From the main road, we drove on gravel for around one hour through Queen Elizabeth National Park to the local community information center. We arrived late afternoon and paid for entrance to the lake area (🎟️36000 UGX, including a guide on a motorbike). Later, we used the place behind the information center for overnight parking.
Lake Katwe differs from other lakes due to its large, cauldron-like hollow, which several streams lead into but have no outlet. The depression keeps a consistent, shallow water level until the hollow fills out in the rainy season; in the dry season, the process reverses with a high level of evaporation. While only one of the tributary streams is saline, this is enough to make the lake very salty. The crater is a key source of sodium chloride, carbonate, and sodium sulfate. It was an interesting and picturesque natural phenomenon, and we got an insight into how locals mine salt here.
Parking location – Katwe: 0.142558S 29.882811E (🚻)