Brief History of Kitagata Hot Springs – Kitagata Safaris Uganda
Kitagata hot springs are located on Ishaka Kagamba road, in Sheema county found in Sheema district Western Uganda. It is 2kms South East of Kitagata town and one of the urban centers in the district. It’s also approximately 62kms from Mbarara town and those that wish to fly these are its coordinates 0°40’42.0’’S, 30°09’38.0’’E. and this is the very district and village where the director of Kitagata Safaris Uganda was born and raised from, thus the Name of the company Kitagata Safaris and Tours Ltd
The road to this site is Marrum and located near the swamp, the scenery to the site is breathtaking with conical hills and inselbergs characterized by beautiful green vegetation of trees and grass. During the rainy season, the river Ngaromwenda that supplies water to the springs floods thereby making the Kitagata springs to be warm instead of hot. That’s why the local residents of Kitagata are concerned that the construction of the nearby Kagamba-Ishaka road might put the hot springs in harm of flooding.
There are two hot springs that are adjacent to each other and according to locals, one spring is believed to possess healing powers it’s called Mulago named after Uganda’s largest referral Hospital found in the capital city of Uganda and all the sick people use its water by bathing, drinking it to get healed of their diseases while the hot spring was used by the former Omugabe of Ankole (King of Ankole) and known as an Ekyomugabe.
Kitagata hot springs are a must-visit location for everyone visiting the Sheema district and are on the route that easily connects to Lake Mburo National Park, Queen Elizabeth National Park, Mgahinga Gorilla National park, Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, and Semliki National Park.
On arrival at the site, one will notice half-naked men and women bathing in the warm waters of Kitagata Mulago which is believed to possess healing powers, as many as over 200 in a 24hour period. Here, the water can warm up to 80°C. One wonders whether it’s a market based on the big crowd of people gathered on the site, it has some sections with boiling water hot enough to make millet porridge called Obushera/Ekisyanga or boil eggs and others sections have just warm waters.
