Why do I travel so often to Africa? Well, the simple answer is that I love being here, I always have fun and feel great. But to rationalise – one reason is that in Africa there are still large expanses of more-or-less intact wilderness, ecosystems that we humans evolved in, still with just about all the animals living in them. I am pretty sure that with the way we are changing things everywhere on our planet this will not last much longer. Tourism helps protect these precious places and the more people see them before they are gone forever … well, I don’t know really why exactly, it just feels important, urgent.

Kidepo National Park in the far North-East of Uganda is such a place. It is remote and wild, rich in wildlife, rare birds and rugged landscapes. I have never been there, only heard and read about it.

We reach Kidepo late in the day, in pouring rain. It’s a long drive from Murchison Falls and our departure was delayed by the disappearance of my Brother Saul’s suitcase (abducted by Chinese tourists as it later turned out). We pull in at the Kidepo Savanna Lodge with just enough light to see that it’s a beautiful spot on a hilltop overlooking the national park’s wild valleys and mountain ranges. I am busy for the first couple of hours with sorting out this and that (the plumbing doesn’t work in Moniques bathroom – as usual) but finally I can retire to my safari tent , the last along the path down the hill. I sit out on the terrace and hear a familiar call in the moonlit night. I play “Freckled Nightjar” on my phone and to my delight an answer comes , followed by the Nightjar itself landing for a moment on top of the tent. From far away on the savanna come the deep bass roars of a lion. Who can sleep on a night like this?

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At the first hint of light I am up. I watch the sky change colour and the mountains take shape as I make my way up to the reception where the staff are setting up for breakfast. I get a cup of coffee and sit on the terrace with my binoculars. Everyone else is still asleep or doing whatever they do early in the morning so it’s just me, the birds and the view.

Kidepo is in the far Nort-East corner of Uganda and has many bird species typical of the drier regions of the Sahel and of North Kenya/Ethiopia. I am hoping to see some of these and as I sit on the terrace they start showing up, particularly on a dead tree just opposite. Straight off are a pair of colouful Bruce’s Green Pigeons, then a White-headed Barbet (I have a thing for Barbets – more about them later) and finally a small group of Yellow-billed Shrikes. All new birds for me and we haven’t yet had breakfast!

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The rest of the gang turn up and after breakfast (and a pair of Jackson’s Hornbills pointed out by Tonny) we head down the hill to the cars for the short drive to the park gate.

We barely pass through the gate ( a flimsy pole across the track manned by a sleepy ranger) when we are halted by a party of Buffaloes crossing in front of us. Francolins (including the local Clapperton’s) and Guineafowl along the roadside keep us busy on the way to the park HQ where we are met by a pair of Side-striped Jackals – not a bad start.

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We make a rather long stop at park HQ. First we meet ranger Zacharia, a tall, smiley man with a passion for birds who will be our local guide for the next 3 days. The little Land-cruiser has been having some electrical problems so Tonny goes off to see about repairs while Zacharia conjures up an astonishing variety of Finches, Wattle-eyes, Starlings and a very smart Nubian Woodpecker out of a small hedge for us. The less ornithologically minded members of the party are fascinated by some workers trimming the grass with machetes (bent at the end for this purpose – known as “slashers”). Soon Tonny is back, announcing that he and the Land-cruiser will be staying behind at the park garage. So we all pile in to the min-van with Hamza and Zacharia and head off for our first proper taste of Kidepo National Park.

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Out on the Savanna its a cool morning, clouds still hanging around the wooded mountains. There are lots of animals around : Zebras with Magpie-like Piaciacs riding on them, lots of Buffaloes, some distant Elephants and all sorts of Antelopes: the familiar Oribis, Hartebeste and Uganda Kob and also some Elands and Reedbuck.

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We take our time driving slowly and stopping frequently; I am just thinking that with so many herbivores around the predators can’t be far when we come upon a green truck parked by the track. Next to it a group of official-looking men are busy with something on the ground … a Lioness! The team have darted the Lioness to place a radio-tracking collar. We watch them at work and they invite us to return in half an hour when they wake her up.

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We make a short round nearby – taking in a huge herd of Buffaloes and some Vultures and checking trees and rocks for possible Leopards . Then we return to the Lioness.

The Lioness in awake but still a bit woozy from the anasthetic – we watch her sitting there, take pictures, and then Zachariah says : ” lets move on, there is something better up ahead”. Indeed, just a short way down the track, perched on a beautifully sculpted rock is a male Lion – perhaps keeping an eye on one of his mates.

This is a perfect end to a lovely morning and we head back to the lodge for lunch and some rest.

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After lunch, some heavy rain and a bit of a siesta it’s time for our afternoon program: a community tour at a nearby Karamajong village. Rupert opts for a quite afternoon on his terrace ( I’m secretly jealous, but feel obliged to go as tour leader – luckily, otherwise we might still be stuck behind the herd of goats blocking the road to the village)

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At the village we are greeted by a guide and a trainee guidess and shown around. I am more interested in the birds – three different species of Falcons: Lanner, Peregrine and Fox Kestrel all fly over in a short space of time – no doubt cruising for a tasty little duckling or chick. The guided tour is followed by a very lively dance – Hamza saves our honour by joining in ( I don’t think my old bones could take too many of those leaps!). Then a bit of a crafts market . It’s pretty standard but done nicely and enthusiastically. Good fun + some nice birds.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch .. er, Lodge: Tonny has managed to refill the Landcruiser’s battery acid so that tomorrow we will enjoy the luxury of two vehicles. Still no news of my brother Saul’s missing suitcase – it is still patiently waiting for a ride from the restaurant on the Kampala -Masindi highway where it was left by the Chinese tourists who hijacked it two days ago at Murchison Falls.

We enjoy a dinner of local cuisine I have requested (much to the staff’s delight) – “Pushu” with beef stew. After, I try to call up a Nightjar for Rupert and Humphrey but get no response . Only later in the night, when it’s just me and the almost full moon the Nightjar returns, an Eagle Owl hoots right by my tent and far off, again, the Lions roar.

It’s another fine morning as we set off on our second day in Kidepo. Today we are venturing a bit further afield, to the Kidepo Valley itself in the northern part of the park, near the South Sudanese border. It’s a drier area, with less animals but other species, especially of birds are possible. Since we are in two cars I figure we can be a bit flexible today.

First we pass by Park HQ to pick up Zacharia. After some excellent birding in the bushes around the compound we are on our way North. There is some traffic on the road – it leads to a border crossing and is used as a route in and out of South Sudan.

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By mid-day we reach the Kidepo river. It is prone to flash-flooding so we stop here and go no further. We find a shady spot for our picnic lunch and venture out on foot. The wide, sandy river-bed is flanked by Borassus Palms and has a wild beauty; it’s a special place.

We eat our sandwiches, have a bit of a break and decide to head back, especially as Tonny has got a message that Sauls suitcase is finally moving and he will have to drive to Kitgum (2 hours away) to pick it up.

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We drive back slowly, taking our time to check out lots of birds and beasts ( we almost see a Karamoja Apalis but it turns out to be a Yellow-bellied Eremomela – another drab little warbler for Rupert’s collection). A fine Long-crested Eagle caps the day and we are back at the lodge where Tonny immediately sets off for Kitgum and the by now almost legendary suitcase. I wait up after dinner to meet him and bring the suitcase to Saul but the hours tick by and no Tonny.

Next morning – still no Tonny ( has he taken a wrong turning and ended up in South Sudan? or is he lying drunk outside some bar in Kitgum? – not very likely with such a school-teacher type but you never know). Anyway, it’s our last day in Kedepo, I have planned it carefully and we can mange fine with or without Tonny.

For the morning we are splitting up: the non birders are off to the park with Hamza to spend a few hours in the game-rich area . Rupert, Humphrey and I will do some “proper birding” with Zacharia: on foot, in the wooded hills around the lodge. I am very excited: besides all sorts of Cisticolas and whatnots, this is prime habitat for the biggest Barbet of them all, the rare and seldom seen Black-breasted.

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It’s a super morning, we stop every few yards, to admire Cisticolas, Pipits and a splendid Sooty Boubou. There are fresh Leopard tracks all over the place to add a bit of a thrill to things. We bump in to a troop of White-crested Turacos, lovely birds but they are too sneaky to get a picture of.

Plenty of the smaller Barbets – Spot-flanked and Black-throated (also a new one for my growing collection). And then the big moment arrives: Zacharia beckons urgently and points to a tree up ahead and there in it are two large black-and white birds scuttling along the branches – Black-breasted Barbets! They fly off almost immediately but I’ve had a god look, though alas, no photo. I quitely slip Z. a crisp bill (I had promised a reward if we coud find one of these) and we head back to the lodge where the others are just arriving back from their game drive where they had fun with a big male Lion on a kill.

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For our final afternoon we are going for a walk in the Park – literally. Hamza drops us off on a flat topped hill overlooking the Savanna. Zacharia tells us this would have been a hunting camp of the hunter-gatherer tribes who used to live here. We set off on foot over the smooth, ancient granite, making our way slowly, in single file towards the grassy plain below. We see some nice birds (more White-crested Turacos and the last Barbet I’m missing for a full house – the Red-fronted), but really there is not so much to say, the landscape is doing it’s thing, talking to each of us. We come out on to the flat ground, grass towering over our heads; somewhere (not too close) a Buffalo snorts and we walk on towards the distant hills. One of those moments, I could just walk on and never turn back …. but all too soon we come to a track and there is a smiling Hamza ready to take us back to the lodge and the rest of our lives.

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Back at the Lodge – still no Tonny! Hamza assures me he is on his way back, with the infamous suitcase. Also, finally, we get some of the story: last night he had a flat tyre on the way to Kitgum and discovered he had no Box Wrench in the car – hence no way to exchange the wheel. Nighttime on the road in Karamoja is not a very safe time and place to be – it seems- (the region was going through a civil war until a couple years ago and people are still a bit nervous) so he and the lodge manager who accompanied him failed to get any help and spent the night in or by the car. Still that was 24 hours ago and he still hasn’t shown up when I give up and head to my tent. Then, shortly before midnight I here sounds from Saul’s nearby tent and head over: the suitcase has arrived! To my astonishment it has a large label on it saying “Not your Bag”. People!

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Well, tomorrow we leave Kidepo. We’ve seen and experienced alot. And I have learnt a great lesson for future trips in Africa: never, never, ever go anywhere without a Box Wrench!