Mount Elgon National Park is one of a kind in many ways, such as the elephant salt licks and the fact that it is split in half by the border between Kenya and Uganda.
Mount Elgon gives wild, untamed nature in a beautiful, secluded setting. The park is unique because it is split in half by the border between Kenya and Uganda. Each country’s parks service is in charge of managing the park. A UNESCO Man and Biosphere Reserve has been set up there. People can walk through the forest, ride bikes, and climb Mount Elgon.

Elephant Salt Licks

People can explore a number of big caves on the Mountain. One of the most interesting things about the caves is that Elephants and Buffalo come in at night to lick the salt off the walls. As a nutrient boost, they do this.

One of the caves, Kitum, goes almost 200 meters into Mount Elgon. It is thought that elephants and other animals that like to lick salt have helped the caves grow over time. In one of the holes, you can find paintings on the rocks.

Living things on Mount Elgon

The park is home to many small antelope and monkeys, such as the Black-and-white Colobus and Blue Monkey. On the lower hills, you can find Elephants and Buffalo. Also living in the area are more than 300 kinds of birds, such as the rare Lammergeier, African Goshawk, and Baglafecht Weaver.

Maathai’s Longleg is the name of a rare dragonfly that was found on Mount Elgon in 2000 and named after Wangari Mathaai, the Nobel Peace Prize winner from Kenya. Maathai was a campaigner and environmentalist from Kenya who started the Greenbelt Movement. The goal of the movement is to show how protecting natural resources, like trees, is linked to reducing poverty.

Things to Do on Mount Elgon

Mount Elgon is a great place to hike and walk, but there are also roads that you can take to see animals and get to some of the caves. Along the paths, you can see amazing views of the cliffs, canyons, and rivers.

People like to walk on trails that they can guide themselves on, and these paths lead to caves that can be explored, such as Kitum. In addition to exploring caves, you can also watch birds and primates.