Crater lakes tours in Fort portal : Fort portal is a city in the western part of Uganda, which is 290km from Kampala which lies on the foot of Mountain Rwenzori ranges and has a vast of tourist attractions inclusive of the crater lakes.
Crater lakes are waterbodies formed as a result of volcanic mountains eruption causing the top of the volcano to be blown off leaving a hole which forms a crater. Thirty kilometers south of the Fort portal city between the main Fort portal Kasese road and Kibale forest national park is a collection of crater lakes. The visit to the crater lakes is quite adventurous and interesting visit enjoyed and loved by many tourists.
Fort portal has 50 crater lakes, these vary in the size, character and these crater lakes support activities like swimming, fishing, nature walks, cycling, and birdwatching since they have over 300bird species found on the shores and the primates. The crater lakes in Fort portal are located in the northern and southern part of the city. The beautiful magnificent landscape of the crater lakes cupped under steep hillsides in the area of South of Fort portal offers travelers with a scenic retreat ideal for the long nature walks and road cycling thus biking safaris are carried out in the area. The landscape south of Fort portal is dotted with crater lakes some over 400 meters deep. Fort portal has about 50 crater one should visit when they visit Fort portal town. These include;
Lake Nyabikere – This is 30 minutes’ drive from the main road at the edge of Kibale forest national park. The word “Nyabikere” translated in English as “frog”. One can possibly access Lake Nkuraba from Lake Nyabikere via Lake Nyinabulitwa to Lake Nyamirima. Lake Nyabikere is a popular base for the chimpanzee treks in the Kibale national park.
Lake Nyinambuga – Nyainambuga Lake is located south of the lake Nkuraba with amazing landscapes around it, which is full of forests. This lake has many luxurious places of stay for people with very high budget one of them being Ndali Safari lodge.
Lake Kifuruka – Kifuruka Lake is located west of Lake Nyinambuga and has blue green waters, which offer stunning views of nature. The waters are of that color because they are still suphuric. This lake also has hotels like Ndali lodge, which is set on a narrow ridge overlooking this waterbody 100 meters below.
Lake Nkuraba – Lake Nkuraba is located 25 kilometers south of Fort portal. On this lake there is a campsite known as Enfuzi community campsite.
Lake Lyantonde – This lake is located south-west of Lake Nyinambuga. Lake Lyantonde I one of the beautiful lake and has various accommodation like the papaya lake lodge where one can sleep.
Lake Kasenda – This lake has fertile soils around it therefore it favors the growth of crops an plants like the Arabic coffee which has led to the growth of Agro tourism in the area. Note: while on the visit to Kasenda one cannot miss visiting the Mohammad falls in Kabata village near Ndali Safari lodge
Lake Katanda – This lake is secluded and is very close to the Mohamed falls which may also added on the list to compliment the visit.
Other crater lakes in Fort portal include; lake Mwimba, Lake Rwenjuba, Lake Mwamba, Lake Mwegenyi, Lake Murigamire, Lake Ntambi, Lake Nyamugasani, Lake Mutusi, Lake Nyamirima, Lake Kanyango, Lake Lugembe, Lake Nyaswiga, Lake Nyamiteza among others.
Things to do while on a crater lake tour in Fort portal.
Visit the different volcanic crater lakes involves viewing the different attractions found on the lakes, getting beautiful scenic views of the landscape and the Rwenzori mountains ranges. As you explore, you will meet the locals who will be excited to meet you, different birds on the shores, and other water animals. You will explore the different crater lakes like Lake Nyabikere, which is one of the easiest lakes to access located 11km from Fort portal and has different accommodation facilities, Crater lakes tours in Fort portal
Nature walks around the lake involves walking around the lakes for example taking a walk around Lake Nkuraba going to see tye views of the crater lakes above like lake Nyamiteza. These nature walks will earn you sights of the birds, interaction with the people who live around the lakes.
Top of the world hike – From this point you can see the 3 lakes at the same time which is a good option for the nature wall in the area. There is an accommodation at the top of the view-point that serves as a stopping point for eats and drinks and spending the night.
Visiting the Rwenzori mountains – One can choose to proceed to the Rwenzori Mountain while on the visit to the crater lakes in the Fort portal. Mountain Rwenzori is the highest mountain Uganda. This is one of the icons of the country with a variety of impressive landscapes. While here you can get involved in the hiking an mountaineering.
How to get to Fort portal?
Fort portal is very accessible and very well connected through the lakes there are different dirt roads that connect to different lakes. Mainly there is a main road that goes through the Fort portal to Rwakwenzi in the south passing through the top of the world Nyinambuga, lake Mwimba, Lake Kasenda, Lake Rwenjuba and finally to the town of Rwakwenzi. This route is accessible without using 4×4 from here you can go through the different lakes that are a far kilometers from the main road, Crater lakes tours in Fort portal
If you are accessing Fort portal from Kampala, you will follow a good road (A109) travelling the most 300km that separates the city. If you are coming from the North, you can get there from Masindi-Hoima Fort portal road and if you are coming from south, you can get there from Kasese on the same A109 road, which skirts the Rwenzori mountains through Katoma and Kibaale national park.
It is advisable while visiting the crater lakes in Fort portal to have your own vehicle or hire private driver to take you through.
