Sempaya Hot Springs in Semuliki National Park Uganda : Sempaya hot springs are the most famous attraction in Semuliki National Park situated in South West in Bundibugyo district at the border of Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The name Sempaya was derived from a Swahili word “sehemu mbaya” which means difficult. Due to the difficulty of the construction of the FortPortal – Bundibugyo road.
There are two hot springs in Semuliki, the male and female hot springs located in different places within the forest each with unique features. The male hot spring is locally known as Biteete while the female hot spring is known as Nyansimbi. The Bamanga local people hold the hot spring sacred and they believe their ancestors live underneath the hot springs and therefore pray and worship them.Location of Sempaya Hot Springs
The Sempaya hot springs in Semiliki National Park are sited into two locations, no wonder the locals refers to them as male and female hot springs. As one transcends through the park in search for the hot springs, they cannot avoid another possibility of incentives that the park brings forth.
The temperature of the hot springs goes up to 103°c with steam and this boiling water can be used to boil food stuffs such as eggs. A walk to the hot springs takes about 30 minutes going through the forest with views of several bird species and monkeys such as black and white colobus monkey, red-tailed monkey, grey-cheeked Mangabey and others. Besides visiting the hot springs, there are other activities to engage in while at Semuliki and some of these include; bird watching, Batwa cultural tour, and nature walks, among others.