By: Ryan Obed
The Pugu Hilly Forest Reserve is one of the oldest Tanzanian forest reserves. It is located in the Pwani Region in the south-west part of the Dar es Salaam, the country’s capital. With an area size of 2.179 hectares, the Pugu Forest Reserve borders Kazimzumbwi Reserve and Selous Game Reserve.
As a tourist, I had to pay my US$30 to register my entry to the evergreen forest at Kisarewa.
The endangered species(Flora and Fauna)
A visit Pugu Hilly Forest Reserve is worth it as I was amazed to see wonderful wildlife such as the side-stripped jackels, colobuses, black-backed jackels, elephants and elephants shrews, impalas, baboons,galagos, warthogs while walking with the reserve guide.
All my life, I only saw spotted hyenas, pangolins,hippopotamuses, giraffes and other creatures on televisions wildlife documentary and books but I was amazed to see them here on one of Africa’s developing and culture loving countries.
Over 80 species of birds were found in this forest reserve as they hopped from tree to tree and flew in the sky spreading the wings.
After trekking for more than 3 hours, we came to Minaki Campsite, which was sited on a swampy land, to have some rest and lunch.
We continued our tour to the natural and man-made bat caves where I saw different colonies of bats like the Hildegarde’s tomb bat, Tanzanian woolly bat and others.
We saw over 116 species of indigenous plants such as Anitiaris toxicaria and Dialium holtzi which were 35 metres tall.
Other species of plant included Garcinia actutifolia (Sap tree), Rothmannia macrosiphon, Baphila puguenesis and Fernandoa magnifico (Snake tree).
The Saris who took us around told us that in the year 2008, fire gutted the northern part of the forest destroying habitats of the wild animals and killing several plant species. He added that most of the plants we are seeing were reseeded after the fire.
The trek, canoeing and the hiking
However, there were no tree houses for tourists who would love to see most of the wild cats in family gathering most of the night.
We had the privilege to canoe on the Msimbazi river which flows through the reserve to the indian ocean.
While trekking through the forest, we saw bench spots where one could rest and enjoy snacks.
Conclusion
A trip to the Pugu Forest Reserve is very exciting as it is one of the 34 global biodiversity hotspots due to its serene nature and hiking for tourists.
