Akagera National Park

After much delay, I wanted to do a brief post on our trip to Akagera National Park in October.  After getting up at 4:00am to pack, we were on the road by 5:00am in our spacious Landcruiser with our trusty driver Amos of Bizidanny Tours & Safari.  The landscape of the eastern part of the country is different from the other directions we have been since you are essentially driving out of the mountains to an area of rolling hills that lack  the tiered agriculture that defines much of the rest of the country.  This park covers much of the eastern border with Tanzania (we even received text messages from our cell phone provider welcoming us to Tanzania) and includes many finger lakes of various sizes as it transitions into the generally flat plains leading to Lake Victoria.

Due to Rwanda already being the most densely populated country in Africa (it is doubling every 25 years) and a significant number of people having fled the country over the last ~50 years, there is a major land shortage here and unfortunately the government is chipping away at the national parks in their efforts to repatriate people.  Akagera has been the park most effected by this policy as it was reduced by nearly 2/3 to 1,085 km2 in 1997 and has numerous refugee camps scattered around the current border of the park.  As a result of this and general poaching (though more for food and resources than sport from what I have gathered), the park does not have the sheer volume of animals that the savanna parks of Kenya and Tanzania have.

This was my first safari experience and it certainly lived up to my expectations (see above).  From what Lucy has told me about her past safari experiences, one of the major downsides of the better known parks (Serengeti, Ngorongoro Crater, Masai Mara, etc.) is the number of tourists and safari cars.  While it is widely known that safaris can be quite expensive with plan tickets, tour operator costs, rising park entry fees, and lodges that are outfitted for people who demand the services of the Ritz Carlton, this has not stopped tourists from around the world flocking to these parks as an "adventure" vacation.  What actually results is one safari car spotting a couple of lions, the driver radioing other drivers, then all of a sudden safari cars are surrounding the lions and the lions run away.  Apparently, the whole experience can lack a sense of authenticity or intimacy.

I think Akagera must be the polar opposite of this.  What it lacks in animal volume is made up by the real feeling that you are out there all alone in the bush.  We did two morning and one evening game drives and literally did not see another car once we picked up our guide and left the ranger's station.

I am fading on the description here so I am heading to bed, but for $100 per person per day this was a pretty amazing experience.  I have put some pictures up on my dropbox account, and we plan to make a couple return visits.