There is wild African safari. And there is the experience in Kidepo Valley National Park, an arid savannah that butts up against Uganda’s border with South Sudan. 

Animals have the right of way. There is a genuine danger that your vehicle will be attacked by elephants, or that buffalo will charge past at frightening proximity. Don’t walk alone, as the hyenas are savage and both leopards and lions lurk in the yellow straw-like grass. 

Most visitors find Kidepo Valley to be too wild and too far away (and too scary perhaps). It’s not usually a destination for first-time safari goers. But with fewer than 2000 annual visitors and a location in a forgotten part of Africa, this surreal national park is highly recommended by the safari connoisseurs. 

You need great guides, a light aircraft charter to get there, and an unflinching sense of adventure. But what an adventure awaits!