Which bird species do you think is the biggest attraction to visitors to your lodge (please name only one species)?
Shoebill Stork (Balanites Rex)
What is the name of your lodge, and since when has your lodge been operating?
Nkima Forest Lodge has been open since 2018 (6 years)
How best to travel to your lodge?
Can get a boat from Entebbe or travel by car in about an hour and a half or we can pick you up from the ferry landing site.
What kind of services – except for accommodation and food – does your lodge offer to visiting birders?
We can guide you to the landing site (from where you get boats into the wetland) and arrange shoebill/ bird guides. We can show you African Wood Owls after dinner. We also have several self-guided trails in the forest.
Black and white Casqued Hornbill
What makes your lodge special?
It is close to Entebbe and Kampala and yet in a real rural setting in a patch of natural indigenous forest with views of the wetland. It is a haven for bushbabies, butterflies, and other fauna which may be seen from your room deck.
What are the 10 – 20 most interesting birds your lodge offers good chances to see?
- Great Blue Turaco
- Ross’s Turaco
- Red-shouldered Cuckooshrike
- Black and white Casqued Hornbill
- Western Nicator
- Wahlberg’s Eagle
- Western Banded Snake Eagle
- African Wood Owl
- Palm-nut Vulture
- Blue Malkoha
- White-spotted Flufftail
- Weyn’s Weaver
- Pygmy Kingfisher
- White-throated Bee-eater
Great Blue Turaco
What is the best time to visit your lodge, and why?
Being on the equator, Uganda does not have major seasons, although some months (May and November) are wetter than others. The shoebill is resident and visible all year round, with slightly fewer sightings in November.
Is your lodge involved in conservation efforts?
We support the local community ecotourism association which aims to conserve the wetlands and are a member of Nature Uganda (Birdlife partner). We help with clean-ups in the wetland. The lodge is off-grid, using solar for heating and electricity, and we use biogas too. We also support tree-planting initiatives around the lodge and in Kibale forest.
Malachite Kingfisher
What other suggestions can you give to birders interested in visiting your lodge?
There are great local guides for safaris and Uganda is a friendly and safe country. Torches are useful at night. Road travel at night is not recommended due to accidents. Roads are much slower than you imagine, despite distances not appearing far! Mosquitoes can be bothersome at night. As it can also be cool a jacket is needed.
Do you have activities for non-birders?
We get many residents escaping the noise and poor air quality of Kampala. They come to walk, swim and play games (indoor & outdoor such as croquet, cornhole, and kubb) or simply read a book or drink wine with friends on a deck in nature. We also have mountain bikes and canoes for hire.
If any reader of 10,000 Birds is interested in staying at your lodge, how can they best contact you?
Best to email info@ nkimaforestlodge.com and check the website www.nkimaforestlodge.com
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