Mount Elgon national park is open to tourists all year round. However some seasons provide a better experience than others.
The best time to climb Mount Elgon is during the dry seasons between June-August and December-March. But climbing Mt. Elgon can be done all year round.
Mount Elgon has moist to moderately dry climate. It receives 3000mm of rainfall annually. Mt Elgon is a water catchment area. The forest zone receives the maximum rainfall and is important in the mountains role as a water catchment for several million people.
April- October is the wettest period. Although the park can be visited any time of the year and mountain climbing can be done pretty much the entire year, it gets extremely cold during the rainy season; snow and hail are common and will put a damper on your volcano climbing experience. Rain gear and warm clothing are necessary regaerdless of what time of the year you make your trip. There can be abrupt changes in weather and you do not want to be unprepared for those.
Mount Elgon has a series of vegetation zones that the avid mountain climber is bound to notice. First there is the montane forest zone which runs from the park boundary up to about 2500m altitude. Then there is the bamboo and low canopied forest from about 2500m to 3000m, above that is the high montane heath zone covering 3000m to 3500m. Over 3500m vegetation gives way to open moor land. At about 3800m there is zone of Afro alpine vegetation.
All this diversity in vegetation provides habitats for various species of wildlife and birds. All of which can be seen on a game drive and bird watching expedition if Mt Elgon National Park is on your itinerary for a Uganda safari trip.
Mount Elgon National Park both on either side of the Kenya-Uganda border together with a an adjoining forest reserve and natural reserve combine to form a trans-boundary nature conservation area of about 2229 sq. Km. UNESCO declared this area a Man and Biosphere reserve. The Uganda part of the park was gazetted in 1992, while the Kenyan part was gazetted in 1968.
Game viewing and Mountain climbing are the major activities in this park, and they are worth the trip.
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