Exclusive three horned chameleon Rwenzori walks – Rwenzori National park is located in western Uganda near the Democratic Republic of Congo.
This type of chameleon lives at an altitude starting from 1700 metres above the sea level. The tracking is normally done near our lodge between 1800 meters above the sea level to 2022 meters above the sea level where our lodge is located.
This is a rare species of chameleon and its endangered and is found around the Bwindi Impenetrable forest National Park a world heritage site sharing the same ecological setup with gorillas. It is unique from other chameleons due to the fact that it lives for 17 to 18 years on a free range, the female gives birth to live offspring’s unlike other chameleons where a female has to have eggs and once they are mature it bursts for offspring’s to be born. It’s not poisonous and friendly.
They are on a free range so you get the opportunity to search yourself though you will be with the guide and it is guaranteed that you see them because we have conserved many of them. The trial has a lot of nature scenic views and during the tracking you encounter different tree shrubs of which the guide furnishes you with the information on their uses in respect to traditional and current uses.
1. Endemics to the Albertine endemic region and can also be found in higher altitudes of Bwindi, Mgahinga, in Uganda Rwanda and parts of DRC.
2. A fully grown chameleon can reach a length of 30 centimeters. The Jackson chameleon can live for over 5 years.
3. They are insectivores mainly feeding on grass hoppers, butterflies, crickets, spiders and others.
4. There biggest predators are birds like hornbills and snakes.
5. Big habitat range has been lost to human through cultivation for farm lands for agriculture.
Mount Rwenzori National Park is located along the equator and because of this; most parts are wet compared to other parts in East Africa. The highest rainfall amount is experienced in the eastern slopes and rains kick start from March to May and from September to mid-December. For excellent tour, you can opt to travel to this park from June to September as most parts remain relatively drier. This area experiences temperature range of about 5 to 20 degrees Celsius.
To get to this park, you need about 5 hours or more to drive from Kampala to Kasese. You can take a car rental a 4 wheel drive safari car or a public means although this may not be favorable enough in case you are looking at something comfortable. The popular routes include the Kampala-Fort Portal or Kampala-Mbarara-Queen Elizabeth or alternatively, take a flight from Kajjansi airfield.
There are many accommodations for you to spend a night in this park and they include among others-Hotel Margherita which is situated at the base of the mountain just a few kilometers from Kasese town. Amazingly, a side from accommodation, they also offer Rwenzori experience.
The Rwenzori International Hotel-this is located about 3 kilometers off Kasese airstrip just at the base of Rwenzori Mountain range. This provides executive self-contained rooms to single non-self-contained rooms with camping options.
Kitara lodge-this is located about 16 kilometers off Katunguru gate of Queen Elizabeth National Park. This accommodation facility is very keen on environmental conservation and it is built using renewable materials.
The Equator snow lodge-this is also set at the base of the mountain and offers luxury accommodation services. Below it, there is a roaring Mubuku River and its cottages are constructed using the river rocks thus making it a few exceptionally rare facilities for one to spend a night while on safari in this park.
Tropical savanna guesthouse-this is set along the Mbarara-Kasese route within Kasese Town and it is ideal for budget visitors on safari in Mount Rwenzori National Park.
It’s always good to know the months suitable for trekking; Mountain Rwenzori national park can be visited any time of the year, however the suitable months to visit the Rwenzori national park is during the dry season, which is from June and August and between Decembers to February these are known as the dry months. Contact Great Adventure Safaris to book exclusive three horned chameleon Rwenzori walks in Rwenzori forest.