A window onto Kibale Forest
This month marks a year since I left Kampala to move (temporarily I thought!) upcountry. We often wake to the sounds of the forest: chimpanzees, black-and-white Colobus monkeys and Uganda Mangabey. Olive baboons would get into the compound were it not for the ever-vigilant dogs and mid-year, we can expect to hear hungry elephants walking across Julia’s land sniffing out our neighbours’ crops. As I write, a Great Blue Turaco coos from the thatch above my head.
I’m a country girl at heart and love life on the edge of Kibale National Park. Every few days there’s something new to see as changes in the weather attract different insects and birds.
I’m therefore thrilled to mark my anniversary month with my little home cum office “Auntie Charlotte’s cottage” featuring in “Amazing views from workplaces around the world” on bbc.com
Sarah Treleaven writes:
“Charlotte Beauvoisin first came to Uganda from the UK 10 years ago when she was fundraising for a conservation charity that focused on the prevention of elephant poaching.
She now lives in what is affectionately called “Auntie Charlotte’s cottage”, a tiny building made of wood with a thatched roof. Beauvoisin works from a desk with a view of the surrounding forest.
She spent her first few years dividing her time between Kampala and national parks, but more recently decided to move “up country” to a property owned by a primatologist friend.
Beauvoisin works from a desk with a view of the surrounding forest. The property has a stream and solar power. Neighbouring farmers grow cotton, pineapple and maize – but under the constant threat of elephants and baboons, which emerge from the forest and destroy crops. In recent years, the Ugandan government has launched a successful programme to reverse deforestation that involves paying farmers not to cut down trees.
Sunset reflected in the pond at Sunbird Hill on the edge of Kibale Forest. PHOTO Julia Lloyd
When the Internet works, she keeps a blog of her experiences. But mostly, she enjoys being immersed in nature. “We built a pond to increase biodiversity by attracting birds and butterflies, and within a week the pond was full of frogs and water scorpions,” she says. “It’s inspiring how nature just gets on with it even as we humans try our best to destroy it.””
The muzungu adds:
It’s 10 years since I arrived in Uganda as a VSO volunteer with the Uganda Conservation Foundation. That was my dream job – on paper at least!
The community of Kikarara near Ishasha in Queen Elizabeth National Park dance a thank you to the Uganda Conservation Foundation
Work trips took us to Queen Elizabeth National Park where we hung out with the rangers and learnt first-hand from impoverished farmers how elephants would trash their crops and thus their entire livelihoods. It’s quite humbling to live on the edge of such a community now.
Julia’s land touches Kibale National Park and we even have an elephant trench at the end of our garden. It’s funny how life goes full circle isn’t it?
The ‘esteemed’ primatologist referred to in the article is Julia Lloyd, highly regarded in conservation circles for leading the team that first habituated chimpanzees for tourism in Uganda. We’ve been buddies since Uganda Conservation Foundation days. She now runs the NGO In the Shadow of Chimpanzees which is based at Sunbird Hill.
If you’d like to read more about life on the edge of Kibale Forest, read A bed full of wings, or read about Sunbird Hill on Love birds, butterflies and chimps?
This story was published by @BBC_Capital in April 2019.
A.M.A.Z.I.N.G
W.E.B.A.L.E 🙂
Charlotte, what an interesting read! Thanks for sharing. And my wife is a “country girl” at heart, so who knows!!!
Thanks Steve, in fact Miha has told me I’m “so much more exotic now I live in the village!” LOL I had to laugh!
Hello to Mrs West – when are you going to come visit us? You’d absolutely love it here…
Lovely, waking up to nature is one of the nicest things, I envy you. No more city noise. next time I’m in Kibale, I should pass by.
No more city noise indeed. In fact, the only time we hear a boda boda is when someone is coming to visit us…
Hi Nagawa, Time can fly, it’s as if you just came to Uganda yesterday. Thanks for your efforts and hand work in changing Uganda and East Africa tourism sector. You should start a hash club there for us to come hash. On On… aka Dirty Dick
Webale kusiima mukwano 🙂
Thanks for all your support.
We will have an upcountry Hash this side eventually, I give you my word! On On. U.C.
You’re delving deeper and deeper into the soul of Uganda… Or is it Uganda permeating your soul?
How do I begin to answer that question?!
They say that culture is like an onion – there is always another layer to unpeel…
Hey I love your skirt Charlotte and little cottage. You amazing muzungu. I like to visit.
But how about the gum boots? My favourite fashion accessory
You’re welcome to visit us at Sunbird Hill – just send us an email via the contact form.
Hi Nagawa, Greetings from Soroti! How can we get this government to stop destroying the forests? Bugoma is a case in point! There seems to be an assault on trees all over Uganda starting with Kampala which was once know as the Garden City!
Hullo dia
The way we cut old trees in Uganda is very upsetting. In Fort Portal, for example, the local temperature has raised by 2° in the last decade or so, directly as a result of having cut so many trees. This means we are directly contributing to local global warming and climate change. Developers think they can cut all the old trees and then plant new ones after they have constructed a new building. Having a lot of tree seedlings does NOT replace the shade, the carbon capture function (I can’t find the right words) nor the ecology (nesting sites for insects, birds and more) that mature trees offer… now I’m ranting 🙁
PS on a lighter note, please give me advance notice of your next trip to Soroti! I need your local guiding expertise. On on to Teso!
Hi Ive been a “lurker” on your sight for a number of years and decided to post. We love Uganda and have had more that 5 trips in the last 5 years working with a couple of schools in Kayunga Area. Sometime Id love to meet up with you and share a couple of books Ive written for the children about their wonderful parks and animals.
Just love your idea of living in Kibale. My favourite Park is Murchasian Falls. I just want to visit it every time we come back.
Keep sharing your experiences with us.
Hi Pauline, thanks for checking in 🙂
Murchison Falls National Park is sensational isn’t it?
Your books sound interesting. My friends at Sunbird Hill work with NatureUganda and Wildlife Clubs of Uganda. There’s even a Sunday morning bird club for the local children so it sounds like we would have plenty to talk about. Perhaps you should come visit us on your next trip?
By the way, you might like to sign up to my occasional newsletter
Great read. Thank you for choosing the Gorilla Highlands region Charlotte
Hey Isabelle, lovely to read from you 🙂
Truly, there is nowhere else I’d rather be…
Hey there ,
I love reading your blog . It’s very entertaining and detailed. Thanks so much for writing it .
I read that it’s possible to visit in sunbird hill. Is it possible to get there by public transport? Do you recommend for me to rent a car ? And what are the prices to stay there ? At the moment I’m in jinja working for a small ngo . I hope I can visit you!
Very warm wishes
Anna
Hello Anna, glad you’re enjoying reading my blog 🙂
I regularly travel by public transport from Kampala using the Link bus to Fort Portal (5-6 hours). From there it’s an hour by matatu on the Fort Portal – Kamwenge road. Sunbird Hill is about 2 km after you exit Kibale Forest.
If you want to rent a car, the roads are very good, from Kampala to Fort and then from Fort to Kibale. (The last 2 km are dirt roads). However, if you’re okay catching the occasional boda boda, you can manage fine around here. For example, if you want to go chimp tracking, the Sunbird Hill team can organise a boda to take you to the start of the chimp tracking in Kanyanchu, which is just 3.5 km from Sunbird Hill. However, there’s plenty to explore in this region, so a car is useful if you want to visit ‘Top of the World’, various crater lakes, Mpanga Gorge (for the cycads) and Fort Portal town itself.
Read the Sunbird Hill page for details of pricing. Your most affordable option will be the Treehouse which you can book directly or via AirBnB. Minimum stay is two nights.
We look forward to meeting you 🙂 – although can’t guarantee I’ll be here as I do travel a lot, sometimes at short notice.
Where better to spend lockdown?
Every day I’m thankful to live here on the edge of Kibale National Park where I wake every day (at 6.21 exactly) when the Lead-coloured Flycatcher leads the dawn chorus.
We rarely have to wear masks and social distancing is easy but we’ve all lost most of our business… temporarily at least.
The sounds of the forest soothe our worries about what’s going on in the real world but I miss my family, I miss my training workshops, I miss traveling… I miss the lives we led before 2020.
Read “We asked for fascinating stories of lockdown abroad, and wow, did we get them.”
I just like your cottage!! Do you really sleep in there? You have even reached my ancestry spiritual places-Amabeere ga Nyina Mwiru, Nakayima, etc. Very articulate and fun blog mukyala Nagawa. Keep going.
Hi Stephen, yes I lived in this little cottage for a whole year. I absolutely loved it! I now live in a bigger cottage, also made of wood and thatch, just a few metres away.
Thanks for taking the time to comment. Webale kusiima. Do you travel?