Updated 03/06/06
Full Packing List is HERE
General Information
Bottled Mineral water will be readily available in Uganda. However, on the third, fourth and fifth days of the trek only boiled river water will be available so you may wish to treat it with iodine just to be extra safe.
If you have knee problems a walking pole is highly recommended. You will be able to try one out on one of the team building weekends before the trip. It may be possible to hire walking poles in Uganda but this cannot be guaranteed.
Theale Green staff and the mountain / jungle guides will have full first aid kits for treating cuts, sprains etc. However, you may wish to have your own kit. This could include Compeed / hydro-colloid plasters for blisters, your personal choice of pain relief medication (eg Aspirin, Ibuprofen), cream to alleviate itching from mosquito bites, sachets of rehydration salts and any other personal medication. School staff are not allowed to supply any medication other than immediate first aid if it is required. You should make sure you have enough of your own personal medication.
The Sun is very intense and altitude so a wide brimmed sun hat is recommended. A baseball cap will not protect the back of your nexk but could be worn in conjunction with a neck scarf.
Antibacterial hand wash / wet wipes are useful for the odd occasion where there may not be the opportunity to wash hands etc before eating.
Martyn The Gadget Man's Top Tips:
Remember that a mains electrical supply is not always guaranteed in Africa. Try to take electronic items that will take ordinary batteries (eg AA or AAA) and that do not require a special charger or battery pack.
Make sure you have plenty of spare batteries with you for your stuff as they might be expensive and hard to find in Uganda.
If you have to use rechargeable batteries or battery packs make sure you have at least one spare in case it is not possible to charge them often enough.
Digital Cameras - take plenty of storage cards. Multiple cards of lower capacity are better than one big capacity card as they can break and loose all your pictures!. Remember that if you fill up your cards there may be no opportunity to download them to CD, so take some spares! - We have a gadget with us to download the pictures off the cards so they can be emptied if you run out, but don't rely on us! - see places on the web for cheap cards, like www.ebuyer.co.uk
Music - It is a good idea to take some form of music system (CD or MP3 player) for long journeys. Please use common sense and pick something small, light and not too obvious. Try to make sure it runs on batteries and doesn't need a charger.
Mobiles - You might like to take a mobile 'phone. There is a GSM network in Uganda, but coverage is no where near as good as it is here. We recommend you take a simple, cheap one to avoid being a 'tourist target'. Please be aware we do not guarantee that you will be able to call home on your mobile. You should check roaming capability and costs with your service provider - before you leave as it can't be enabled once you've left the country!. If you have a pay as you go 'phone please make sure you have made arrangements to top it up while you are abroad - people in the UK may need to do this for you with the top-up card as you may be unable to do this in Uganda- again Ask your provider. Finally, if you are calling home or texting from Uganda or receiving phone calls from home, be prepared for a big bill! If you have a contract phone, make sure people at home know how to tell your provider to cancel it if you loose it. - Picture messaging if you have it rarely works abroad, and is so expensive, it's hardly worth it - take a camera instead!
Try to make sure all your electronic equipment runs on the same type of battery and take plenty of them with you!
Remember we do have travel insurance that does offer cover for personal electronic equipment and belongings but only to a limited amount. Please bear this in mind and think about the total value of what you are packing - should the worst happen (of course we hope that it won't!) there is a limit to what you can claim, as well as the hassle of doing it.
Finally, remember, the thing that uses up batteries VERY quickly is looking at or reviewing your digital photos at the end of the day. Much as though it is very tempting and we all want to see what we have taken try to leave it until you get home - its more exciting that way and you save batteries!!
Reccomendation: Think about leaving the IPOD at home (Cant guarantee you'll be able to charge it) - Get a cheap CD walkman that runs on batteries, and burn your own CD's -some can even play MP3's - so that could be 100's of tracks on one CD!, you can also swap them with the other people on the trip - you'll probably get bored of your MP3's quickly, wont have to worry about losing valuable CD's or your IPOD, and you can barter the CD player if necessary for shopping!