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| Savannah elephant browsing the thorny acacia tree in Queen Elizabeth National Park; Photo Patrick Tusiime |
Many people always have an urge
to travel away from homes to find out how the other world looks like. Many
questions keep flashing on their minds as they plan on their ideal destinations.
How are the people in the other world, how do they relate and interact with
them, what shall they feed on, the nature of travel and accommodation and the
exciting things in the other world? Weather patterns are a big part and parcel
of travel plans. The weather conditions determine the clothes to carry, the
nature of transport to use, the scenery and beauty of nature at time of travel,
the availability of enough food to feed.
Weather conditions sometimes determine the price of the services you pay
for (heating rooms in winter, duration of transport on inconveniencing slippery
roads, scarcity of food means increased cash to cater for meals, some means of
transport are risky like boat cruise on stormy weather, others).
Two distinct factors determineUganda weather patterns. Uganda is bisected by the equator line; paths of the sun
and the movements of the sun influence the weather conditions of each time.
Uganda has two rainy seasons; March- May and September –November when the
weather is wet with high rainfall. This is characterized by dark green lush
vegetation and plant cover. Rivers, streams and lakes flood and water spills
onto land. The whole setting of plant, mammal and bird life is agog, vibrant
and full of life. Cool winds swing plants and vegetations in all corners. Birds
tweet sweet melodies while mammal bellow hoarse sounds very sure of next meal
due bumper crop fruiting. Temperatures
drop to tens depending on where you are. Warm clothing is highly recommended
and in some cases a must.
The opposite of rainy seasons is
the dry season; December- February and June- August when the scotching sun
seems to get a few miles closer to planet earth and Uganda in particular! The temperatures
are irritatingly high almost burning. The rivers and streams dry up, the water
levels in the lakes hit low bottom. Water that was previously taken for granted
now becomes a necessity. The vegetation in many places shrinks, in other places
dries up and in a few places the ground is bare. The birds in the air seem tamed,
drowsy and quiet all together. The mammals become a rare sighting during the
heat of the day. They improvise best
survival games and feed at night and early morning hours when grass is soft and
tender. During the day they shift to wetlands and on edges of water bodies,
others prefer to hide in their dens to escape the sun burns. The general mood
of the day is somber, passive and life seems dim with no energy. For
travelers this is time to pack less heavy wear. Short (not skimpy) clothes are
ideal as are short sleeved cotton tops and t shirts to absorb excess sweat. Recommended
too are taking of water and juice constantly to replace the lost body juice.
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| Beautiful crater Lake Nyamunuka in dry season, Uganda. Photo Patrick Tusiime |
The second factor that determines
the weather pattern is terrain of Uganda range. Uganda is generally a flat a
plateau with the lowest and highest points at 620m- 5109m above sea level at
Lake Albert and Ruwenzori Mountains both on the western axis respectively. The
terrain slopes gently towards the central region into the Lake Victoria basin;
the largest inland lake on African continent. Highlands naturally have cool
temperatures. A well balanced combination of thick forests on highlands and
wetland vegetation in many ways leads to constant relief rainfall pouring at
anytime of the day even in the so called “dry season”. Uganda vegetation, plant life, mammals and
bird species are most of the time full of life and very “proud” of the natural setting.
Ugandan weather is generally
accommodating everybody with an average annual temperature at 260
Centigrade and rainfall in between 1000m-2000m; pleasant climatic conditions
all year round. Weather patterns though a very big factor determining travel
destination, there is every reason to believe in no way does it hamper tour to Uganda.Uganda’s beauty remains intact and unscathed by weather patterns and safaris toUganda are ideal at any time of the year with many contingences in place incase of unforeseen obstacles.
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