Beautiful might not be the right word to use every time I visit
Lake Bunyonyi, Africa's second deepest Lake.
Birhazia- free waters with undulating terraced hills sorounding this trough like lake.Perhaps the best relaxation place in Africa is a must see when you visit Uganda. It is also the best place in Africa to watch otters....you cant fail to see one!Nowonder the majority of tourists visit this wonderful place on their way from tracking the famous mountain
gorillas of Bwindi National Park and Mgahinga. Bunyonyi literally means "many small birds" and indeed it is a place of many bird species. The cool breeze, green sorounding vegetation, clean water and sweet sounds from these birds make it purely natural and every time I see young children, old ladies and pregnant women canoeing to and from school, markets churches, plantation gardens on the numerous islands makes it more facinating! Lake Bunyonyi has attracted many investments in form of campsites, hotels and guest houses but still below capacity for the increasing number of tourists especially in the peak season and festive periods. I have never been in the best position to count the islands on this lake but 29 of them seems not to be the right figure! The people- the Bakiga always welcome you with that honest smile, perhaps the most hospitable tribe in Uganda I highly recommend Lake Bunyonyi to both
Ugandan and foreign tourists.
Situated 1962 meters above sea – level and bordered by steep sided yet heavily cultivated hilly scenery, Lake Bunyonyi is approximately 25 kilometers long and just 7 kilometers wide (the word means ‘the place of many little birds’). The waters of Lake Bunyonyi are dotted with 29 islands each with varying depth although this ranges between 44 meters and 900 meters. The biggest of all is the Bwama Island, which is commonly referred to as the “lepers colony”, while the smallest island is the “punishment island”, on which the long ago Bakiga people used to abandon unmarried girls that got pregnant prior to getting married. These were left there to starve to death. The fresh waters on the lake’s surface are 25 degrees Celsius and fortunately they are bilharzia free with no crocodiles and hippopotami and very safe for any water activities particularly swimming. The fantastic scenery persuades most visitors to this lake to enjoy an overnight experience around the beautiful Lake Bunyounyi than actually having an overnight in Kabale.
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