Kiang West National Park

Kiang West National Park (KWNP) is one of the largest and most esteemed wildlife reserves in The Gambia. It was gazetted as a national park in 1987 and is managed by The Gambia Department of Parks and Wildlife Management. It is located 5km away from Tendaba village on the south bank of the Gambia River, in the Lower River Division in the Kiang West District around 145km from Banjul; and spans over an area of 115 sq km. The Gambia River marks the park’s northern boundary. Most of the park is located on a plateau of low altitude covered with wide stretches of mangrove creeks and tidal flats. Kiang West National Park is renowned as a park of regional distinction because of the impressive range of fauna, avifauna as well as a number of distinct biotopes it hosts.

Kiang West National Park

Vegetation
Dry deciduous woodland and guinea savannah covers most of the Park. The park’s tree species include the baobab, red acacia and Ficus species.
Wildlife
Kiang West National Park is homeland to most wild mammals in the Gambia. And this makes it the foremost wildlife reserve in the country. The park offers a significant national refuge for species such as caracal, serval, bushbuck and common duiker which are all fairly widespread in The Gambia but in low density. Roan antelope are not currently resident in the area, though small groups visit the park from the Cassemance area of Senegal. Warthogs are abundant in the park and surrounding woodlands. Spotted hyenas are common; their tracks are found regularly throughout the area but they are shy and rarely seen during day game drives. There have been occasional sightings of leopards around the park boundaries, though being shy and elusive they are unlikely to be encountered.
Reptile species found in the Park include the Nile crocodile, African python, Nile monitor, Puff adder, Royal python, Bell’s Hinged Tortoise and Spitting cobra.

Kiang West Baboon

Bird Life
Kiang West National Park is a celebrated pilgrimage site for the keen bird watchers. An over time bird count suggests more than 300 species inhabit the park. Some of the bird species have a very local distribution with restricted distributions in other locations in the country. There are quite a number of birds of prey in the park especially during the dry season including harrier eagles, falcons, vultures, hawk, and vulture species. Kingfisher species, the Ground-hornbill, and the threatened Brown-necked Parrot have also been observed within the park mangroves. Other bird species include White-fronted Black-chat, Dorst’s Cisticola, Burchell’s Courser, Brown-rumped Bunting and Chestnut-crowned Sparrow-weaver as well as much-liked The Bateleur, a short tailed eagle species. The Bateleur preys on pigeons and sand grouse in the park and is more common from July to September.
Getting There
Available are 3 entrance routes which can be explored to foot as well as with a 4WD Vehicle. With Dumbutu, at one of the entrances, which is convenient to the south bank route also next, is the office of the park. Important to note is that the park’s terrain is pretty wild and road system is underdeveloped, therefore 4X4 Wheel Drives are the ones recommended for game drives within the park areas.
Best Time to Visit
The park receives few tourists. November to January are the best months to visit the park.

Activities

• Bird Watching – perfect sighting is at Tubabkollon point and on the Gambia River banks
• Camping Safaris – there are several chalets that provide accommodation for tourists camping.
• Game Viewing - A viewing shelter has been erected overlooking a waterhole about 1.5km to the west of Tubabkollon spot, which attracts a wide diversity of animals as the dry season progresses. It is a good place for visitors to watch wildlife. Game tours are offered at Tendaba Camp.
• Gambia River Cruising -  Cruise fares are charged weekly and begin at US$2,490 per person