To say we were spoiled at the Apoka Lodge would be understatement.
Upon recommendation of my cousin, we booked three nights at the Apoka Lodge in Northern Uganda. The lodge is entirely within the Kidepo National Park – an area that spans the border with South Sudan. Since Apoka is not easily accessible by road from Kampala, it receives fewer foreign visitors. We got lucky and had the place to ourselves for a couple days before Christmas.
We arrived via a regional airline that services some of the outlying communities from Kampala. On our flight up, it was just us and our two pilots – it felt very posh having the plane to ourselves for the hour-and-a-half journey. The flight back stopped at Murchison Falls on the way back to collect another couple, but we were OK with sharing. At Murchison Falls, they apparently had to encourage some elephants on the runway to move on so that we could land.
The trip coincided with a brief lull before the Christmas holidays. There was one couple at the lodge when we arrived and they left the day after. The day we were flying out, families began arriving to spend Christmas there. Which meant, for a couple days, we had the place to ourselves.
“Ourselves” at least as far as human visitors go. There is no separation between the lodge and the park – no walls to keep out the wildlife. We sat on the deck of our cabin and watched animals make their way past. Waterbuck were often on the path between our cabin and the lodge. One evening we were startled awake by a shriek just outside the walls – we hoped whatever it was did not have an interest in us since the canvas walls would not deter anything particularly motivated. The next day the staff confirmed it was a hyena hanging out by our outdoor tub. On the day we left, the local lion that had been on the receiving end of a zebra kick loped past our cabin.
To enhance the experience, the lodge dug a watering hole just off from the dining area. We sat and watched as animals wandered up for a drink. Mostly we saw zebras and warthogs with a few waterbuck. We were told Cape buffalo and elephants wander by on occasion. Not a problem, the zebras provided ample entertainment. Zebras are, by nature, skittish and mean – both ideal survival tactics. Drinking deep from the pool, they were constantly on alert for the appearance of a predator. Rough discipline was enforced in the group through bites and kicks that were in no way playful. Eventually, one thirsty animal would nudge another unexpectedly and a chain reaction of kicking, scampering hooves would ensue. The group would bolt a few meters from the pool – each one looking in a different direction – until the situation was identified as a false alarm and the whole process began again.
A group of zebras is a “dazzle” or a “zeal”Wikipedia, et al
We chose to take morning and afternoon game drives. The morning drives began after breakfast and got us back to the lodge during the heat of the day. Afternoon drives took us out past dusk, returning after the sun had set. One of the traditions they had for their guests was a “sundowner” where we were at some particularly scenic spot watching the sunset with the drink of choice in hand. It was stunning to watch as purple and red hues bathed an uncannily still landscape – even if the sundowner was a wee bit decadent.
The drives back in the evening were an adventure. Without street lamps and road signs, our guide navigated by experience and more than a touch of instinct. One evening, we watched a soap opera unfold below with a herd of elephants. We sat and watched for a longer time than I expected. It was then that our guide indicated he had been watching one of the elephants who was hanging out along our planned route home and showed no sign of moving on. So, he figured out a new route since there was little our vehicle could do to dissuade a large pachyderm.
The wildlife was embarrassingly abundant. Black ribbons of Cape buffalo stretched to the horizon. Elephants were plentiful. The common patterns of the lions was understood so we could track them in the morning and visit their favorite haunts in the afternoon – we even drove up incredibly close to one male lion who glanced disapprovingly at us. An elusive leopard wanted nothing to do with us. A distant part of the park had ostriches, if we were so inclined (we passed). One extraordinary morning, we relinquished the comforts of our vehicle and hiked among a herd (or more accurately, a “tower” if you believe the intergoogle) of giraffes. An armed park ranger joined us lest we encounter some less friendly creatures. The tower kept a watchful eye on us as we cut a broad circle around where they grazed. The ranger indicated that we could not approach them closer than a certain distance but the giraffes could come towards us if they wanted. One of the young ones seemed curious but never took more than a few strides in our direction.
Back on our balcony, we sat and watched the collections of wildlife go by. A warthog or two wandered closer but none of the animals were all that interested in us. What sticks with me was the stillness. No voices, no engines, no car horns. The chorus of insects and the wind rustling the fibers of our thatched roof were usually the only sounds. I have never felt as spoiled as those days at Apoka. Someday I hope to experience it again.
