Kadoo Travels and Tours Akagera National Park Trip: Highlight of our remarkable day.

 

A promising dawn

We recently had a wonderful adventure at Akagera national park. Here is a story of how the adventure went, and what made the trip remarkable. As a group of excited, and curious travelers, we started our day early in the dawn to make sure we captured the earliest beam of the sunrise. A quiet ambience, promising morning and cheerful faces is what characterized the beautiful morning as each of us drew closer to the meeting point. “Today will be a great day. I can’t believe I am going to spot an elephant up close: it’s always been my favorite animal …” and other phrases rolled out as we all poured out our expectations for the adventurous day ahead.

 Taking off for our adventure

A journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step (Lao Tzu). This has always been only a proverb to us until we took off our meeting point. Little did we know that this was going to take us to our dream destination, the Akagera national park. It felt welcoming to see various stunning towns and their monuments along the way. In a blink of an eye, we took a stop over, a short moment to take some coffee and snacks, because (guess what?”) we had a long day ahead, so we needed to start strong and energized. Plus, the coffee would help us to stay awake all day so that no scenery escapes our capture.

The closer we drew to the park’s main entrance, the more excited we became for what nature held for us. We took the south eastern part and finally arrived at the main entrance. There is no greater feeling than what we had when we saw the sign post that read: “Akagera National Park - 13 km to the main entrance”. After the identification check up on the reception, our tour guide (so humble and knowledgeable), took us through the history and the geographical information of the park. He gave us insights into the Akagera’s natural ecosystem, and our behavioral expectations for an optimum and safer experience. 

Excitement skyrockets as we set off our game drive

Who doesn’t like to see their hopes and expectations come true! It restores one’s soul and brings about heartfelt joy, right? This is what we felt when we took off from the entrance and set our drive into the wildlife homestead, itself. Should I recount all the animals we saw? I’d be happy to, but it can take me decades. I’ll cut the story short, nevertheless. After a one hour game drive without spotting any animal, we suddenly found one. Guess what, this was a graceful waterbuck grazing in green pastures. Later on, we saw a black mamba, the wild boar, as well as other unique animals, let alone colorful birds and medicinal plants.

The joy of spotting the animal you’ve always loved

Every time we saw an animal, we had to stop the car, keep our silence, pull out our binoculars to have an enhanced view of the animals, and take some photos. Sometimes, the crazy, impatient ones couldn’t hold themselves but explode in happiness and wonder (You could hear sounds like: Wooooooow, amaaaazing!), which sometimes chased the animals away (they feel so unsafe with noise especially if it is unfamiliar). As we kept on the chase, we came across a playful herd of zebras and antelopes sunbathing and grazing near a lake. Our guide could tell us detailed uncommon facts about each animal such as its names, family attributes, and relevant conservation stories. This, and other insightful moments we shared, made our day even brighter. 

After a 2.5 game drive, it was now time to take lunch. We stopped by the Shakani camping site, by the shore of Lake Shakani (there are 12 lakes in Akagera), and shared a delicious lunch, took some photos, and told a bunch of stories. One of the benefits of traveling is the power to connect like-minded people who wouldn’t otherwise meet. In the rest of the afternoon, we kept on the game drive, but this time our main focus was on the big 5 (the savanna giants), which was the first item on our to-see list. Blessed enough, we came across the giraffe, the buffaloes, but most importantly, the elephant. 

Animals: Can they teach us big life lessons?

Of all the animals we spotted, the elephant was a game changer. We spotted them last, but we watched them for a while and enjoyed taking amazing close pictures of these giants. We loved how peaceful and caring they are to their families. They live in families and graze together. They can’t allow other animals to fight in their presence. That’s why among all other animals of the park, they are called peace makers. Did you know that as soon as they detect danger, elephants form a circular fence to protect their calves? This reminded us how, if we truly open our eyes and take on more adventures like this, we can all learn from animals. We wrapped up our trip by taking a few more photos, for these memories deserved to be kept as a treasure. 

Why visit Rwanda? and why is Kadoo Travels your prime travel partner?

But why do we, Kadoo Travels and Tours, take these and similar initiatives to help others visit, learn about and marvel at the beautiful nature gems in Rwanda? Simple, just because we were the first to understand and value the unmatched beauty of our motherland. 

Yes, Rwanda has it all: awe-inspiring wildlife, unique travel facilities, world-famous business and Technology facilitation, and so much more! The world needs to know this, and do something. That's why we're here! We can't wait to witness even more treasures that nature holds for us!

Need to learn more about our trips or what we do? Reach out via (+250)791275850 / (+250)780705307. Social platforms: https://linktr.ee/Kadooexperiencerwanda