Scroll down to read all about the half-day Sunbird Hill Experience!
Sunbird Hill Nature Monitoring & Rewilding Site in western Uganda is a haven for nature enthusiasts that have ticked off the Big Five and are ready to search for the smaller – yet equally impressive – creatures of Uganda.
Sunbird Hill is ideally situated for anyone planning to track the chimpanzees or the Green-breasted Pitta in Kibale Forest or for general birdwatching around Kibale Forest. It’s also a wonderful location to relax and enjoy the pure forest air and the natural sounds emanating from the forest. I’ve been visiting this fabulous part of Uganda regularly since 2009. One definite plus about visiting Sunbird Hill is having the chance to meet Julia Lloyd, the resident primatologist. If you love chimpanzees, you’ll be amazed at her stories of her many years living and working deep in Kibale Forest.
National and international experts who visit Sunbird Hill on a regular basis include ornithologists, lepidopterists, herpetologists, botanists, entomologists and primatologists. Bird ringing (or banding) occurs periodically throughout the year. Bird ringing in Kibale Forest is one of my all-time favourite blogs. Contact me if you’d like to learn more about the next ringing trips.
What is Sunbird Hill?
Sunbird Hill Nature Monitoring & Rewilding Site is situated on 40 acres of private land bordering Kibale Forest. It is just off the Fort Portal – Kamwenge Road, 3 km from Kanyanchu Tourist Centre (base for chimpanzee tracking in Kibale National Park) and 3.5 km from KAFRED at Bigodi Wetlands Sanctuary.
Julia writes:
We are a British-Ugandan family passionate about wildlife and conservation. Our compound is a traditional open plan dwelling, with grass thatched houses, a treehouse, a “camp kitchen” and the Birders Lounge. Guests are welcome to stay in one of the three elevated thatched cottages – with expansive views into Kibale Forest – to house visiting biology experts. These are open to the occasional tourist too.
Sunbird Hill is regenerating farmland. This, and its location on the edge of the forest, means the land has numerous microhabitats that give it a high species richness: plants, insects, amphibians, reptiles and mammals and our main passion: birds. Species lists are constantly being updated, and so far we have recorded 16 of the 38 sunbird species listed for Uganda. Our local naturalists, together with ornithologists Roger Skeen and Malcolm Wilson, have recently pushed our bird species list to 295! (A sighting of a lemon dove particularly delighted our Rog).
We know there are many more birds yet to be identified at Sunbird Hill (and we challenge all visitors to add to our bird list!) We know that NatureUganda members will definitely add many more ticks to our list. We are proud winners of the 24 hour Big Birding Day four years in a row (in the category Outside Protected Areas / Private Site).
Calls from wild chimpanzees are regularly heard, especially at night and early in the morning when chimps call out to each other from their night nests (making ‘contact calls’ as they are known in the primatological world). These primates are often seen when the fig tree at the end of our garden is laden with fruit; half of the tree’s canopy is in Kibale Forest National Park. Often elephants can be heard breaking trees during their nightly forages whilst the distinct calls of the Verreaux’s Eagle-Owl and Black-shouldered Nightjar reveal their identity.
Activities at Sunbird Hill
The Sunbird Hill Experience: explore our nature trails on the edge of Kibale Forest
The Birders Lounge
The Birders Lounge is a large thatched bird-themed shelter that houses our growing reference library and covers topics including: ornithology, mammalogy, primatology, entomology, herpetology, and botany, as well as ecology, conservation and African travel. Comfortable chairs, desks and work benches are surrounded by Ugandan natural history paraphernalia. The garden around the Birders Lounge is full of native and naturalised flowering plants carefully selected to nurture a diversity of birds and butterflies – perfect for the armchair nature enthusiast (and those of you with heavy photographic equipment!) Our bird baths, bird hide, butterfly mud puddle and pond just keep pushing our species lists up!
Paths wind through the 40 acres of land that borders Kibale Forest taking you through forest edge, woodland, bushland, grassland, farmland, wetland, and riverine habitats. (Pre-booked) visitors are invited to follow the nature trails with one of our expert naturalist site guides.
Sunbird Hill was set up to support the local NGO In the Shadow of Chimpanzees. Our concept is that national and international experts train our Sunbird Hill team. Our team pass this learning onto the youth of our Village Bird Clubs. Wildlife identification and information sharing inspire conservation.
In the Shadow of Chimpanzees has created a number of initiatives on the section of Sunbird Hill land that is dedicated to community use. They include a butterfly house and gardens, medicinal plant garden, bee hives, elephant trench and village football pitch.
On the Sunbird Hill Experience, one of the highly knowledgeable naturalist site guides will point out and provide insightful information on birds, butterflies, moths and plants as well as the occasional primate, reptile and amphibian sighting. What cannot be identified during the walk is photographed and identified at Sunbird Hill’s extensive reference library back at the Birders Lounge.
Guess who are staying overnight at Sunbird Hill Nature Monitoring & Rewilding Site are welcome to join nocturnal nature adventures with the team, as well as a nature walk the following morning before heading back to the Birders Lounge for refreshments, consultation with the reference books and documentation of our findings. As the birds quieten down, the birding morphs into butterflying, an interest that has been growing rapidly among our naturalist site guides.
Recommended activities within a few minutes of Sunbird Hill
We live in a truly Ugandan village environment so if you would like to see more of the rural village of Kyabakwerere, a member of our staff will be happy to escort you.
Chimpanzee Tracking (Kanyanchu Tourist Centre, Kibale National Park), Swamp Walk in Bigodi (managed by KAFRED, the original and best provider) and Tooro Cultural Museum (Bigodi) are less than 10 minutes drive from Sunbird Hill.
Accommodation at Sunbird Hill
Eat in or out at Sunbird Hill
The Treehouse and three elevated cottages are available on a ‘bed only’ basis. There is a well-equipped Camp Kitchen available for your use.
Alternatively, Kiconcos Kitchen can provide simple meals when booked in advance at 30,000 UGX per lunch and 35,000 UGX per dinner per person. A special breakfast can be prepared by our homeschooled teenager Dillon for 25,000 UGX.
How much does it cost to visit Sunbird Hill?
The elevated cottages are based on two adults sharing. Add $20 per extra person (each elevated cottage has one double and two single beds). (The construction of the cottage makes it unsuitable for little children).
The Treehouse – everyone’s childhood dream! – is cosy and self-contained with one double bed and is based on 2 people sharing.
Rates include accommodation, access to the Birders Lounge for armchair birding, use of the reference library and bird hide and a walk with our expert naturalist site guides.
The Sunbird Hill Experience fees include tea and coffee and nibbles at the Birders Lounge. Cold beers, sodas, local gin tots and snacks are available at extra cost.
Please note: access to the nature trails is strictly only available to visitors who are accompanied by our site guides and who have booked and paid in advance. Be aware that you are not allowed to enter Kibale National Park from Sunbird Hill.
Discounts are available to members of NatureUganda, NatureKenya, East African Natural History Society, Explorers’ Club, Lepidoptera Club of Africa & African Bird Club. (Proof of membership required). “We want you naturalists here!” Says Julia.
Directions. How to get to Sunbird Hill
Sunbird Hill is 3 km from Kanyanchu Tourist Centre, Kibale National Park and is 3.5 km from Bigodi off the Fort Portal-Kamwenge Road.
Keep up to date with Sunbird Hill via their Facebook page or WhatsApp +256 (0)701 577784 to make an enquiry. Booking in advance is essential.
Diary of a Muzungu adds:
Sunbird Hill is a favourite destination of mine. If you love nature and are looking for an authentic experience, in a relaxed homestay environment, this is it. Sunbird Hill isn’t run as a lodge so isn’t for your mainstream tourist. Early mornings are filled with splendid forest birdsong. At night you often hear the PANT HOOTS of chimps from the forest. It’s magical! In fact, it is the biggest inspiration behind the East Africa Travel Podcast. (And if you’re serious about birding then you can’t miss a trip to this lovely corner of western Uganda).
What a year of activity at Sunbird Hill!
In April, I made the ‘temporary move’ upcountry. Eight months later, I seem to have bedded in rather nicely!
What a fascinating time to be here. Every few days we hear a new bird, spot a new type of (as yet unidentified) caterpillar, plants suddenly blossom. A Verreau’s Eagle Owl chick adopts us… an endangered animal enters the compound… we hear elephants between our home and the forest.
Innocent and Emmanuel dug a pond. Within a week it had filled up with rainwater; another week later it was full of frogspawn and toad spawn! From who knows where, we quickly had frogs, toads – and water scorpions! I never knew such things existed.
I thought I’d miss Kampala – I’ve hardly had a moment to!
It’s been such a busy year at Sunbird Hill, we’ve hardly had a moment to update you!
Latest exciting news is that larger and larger numbers of African Gray Parrots are flying overhead! Some mornings we have seen two or three birds. Over the past weeks, we have seen dozens – one day our site guide Nick saw 69 (no jokes please…)
In other news, 13 Great Blue Turacos devoured all the water lillies on the pond. Ooo what a palaver!
Last week the Sunbird Hill team birded non-stop for 24 hours as part of Big Birding Day and guess what? …. the team even saw a Green-breasted Pitta! What an outstanding entry to the day’s recordings.
Do come visit us soon!