Relax, rewind and refuel your body at Jacana Lodge—one of the many hidden jewels in western Uganda!

Western Uganda is richly ornamented with various tourist attractions— both natural and manmade, often astride each other. One such jewel is Jacana Safari Lodge on the fringes of  Imaramagambo Forest in Southwestern Uganda.

The forest itself is on the edges of the mighty Queen Elizabeth National Park- a medley of wonders, straddling the Equator and teeming with several animal and bird species—95 mammal species and over 600 bird species to be exact. The park is home to at least 20 carnivores- including the lions, leopards, the side-stripped jackal and spotted hyena among others. Set against the backdrop of the famous Rwenzori Mountains, besides the animals and birds, the park is sequinned with a couple of explosion crater lakes, in and around it.

Back to Jacana Safari Lodge. The lodge is an unassuming yet firmly established vintage fortress at the foothills of the forest. It is actually in the forest itself, right on the shores of Lake Nyamusingiri.

Although built in 1999, the lodge’s architecture and finish are a delicate blend of the old and the new. It is a fantastic rustic work of wood whose vintage appeal has grown darker to regular polishing. The cottages calmly sit under canopies of gigantic trees that have lost count of the number of times they have seen the rising of the sun. The crisscrossing canopies form an overarching quiet avenue with distant whispers of crickets ushering you to a haven known by a few.

Every structure makes you feel it is the end of the lodge until you turn to the walkway and find the bespoke ornaments, hidden in plain sight for you to discover.

The sundowner bar is a stupendous detail of both wood and stone with an open foyer to give you a 180 degrees view of Lake Nyamusingiri as you ‘water’ yourself from the bar. 

Enjoy your lunch in the open deck dining area in comfy seats and take in the sights sipping on a glass of wine on the colourful hammocks. On the lower edge is an exquisite swimming pool that gives you a levelled glance at the usually calm Nyamusingiri waters. Mornings and evenings will grant you an extra sight of local fishermen going about their hustle on the lake.

You can catch an afternoon boat cruise on the Captain’s Table, a six-seater artistically built floating dining square boat complete with a tent shield on top that takes you to the middle of the lake to savour more views.

While sitting on the balcony of your spacious cottage, it is easy to lose yourself in the majestic views of the forest as you are serenaded by the raucous cacophony of birds and monkeys- that after a while feels as rhythmic.

The nearby Mount Kaitampungu backdrops Imaramagambo Forest, all the way to the nearby Kalinzu Forest is also a display to behold.

A night in the executive cottages calls on you not to miss out on serenity as it combs through the woods. 

Jacana Lodge is located astride the famous home of chimpanzee trekking, Kyambura Gorge which is peripheral to Uganda’s medley of the wild, Queen Elizabeth National Park as the Kicwamba escarpment watches over it. The lodge is located five kilometres off the Rubirizi – Kasese highway just before descending into the Kyambura Gorge.

Lake Nyamusingiri on whose shores the lodge sits is part of the belt of crater lakes of Bunyaruguru. Next to it is Lake Kyasanduka, and a few kilometres north of the forest is Lake Rwizongo. Atop the Kicwamba escarpment is two twin lakes: Katinda and Murambi. Each of these lakes has its own allure of unique sights and scenes, trust me, you can never get tired of soaking in.

It’s never a dull moment when visiting this area of Rubirizi District.

To access Jacana, you have to go through Imaramagambo Forest which is guarded by the Uganda Wildlife Authority. 

While at Jacana, you can also visit the tree-climbing lions of Ishasha and the gorillas of the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest or do a game drive in Queen Elizabeth National Park. 

The proprietors of Jacana Safari Lodge, also own and run another exquisite luxury— the Equator Snow Lodge, located just 2.3Km from the centre of Rwenzori Mountains National Park in Kasese, making it an ideal alternative location in this adventure-rich part of Uganda.