This gorilla safari is one of the great wildlife adventures on the planet. The major attraction is the highly endangered mountain gorilla. An encounter with a silver-back gorilla can be a hair-raising experience and one you will never forget! The welcoming people, lush landscapes and other wildlife attractions make Combined Uganda Rwanda gorilla trek an ideal addition to any African safari.
Set off on a once-in-a-lifetime journey into the lush hills of Uganda and Rwanda to encounter chimpanzees and mountain gorillas in the wild. Observe chimpanzees with a primatologist, and track gorillas in the forests of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park and Volcanoes National Park. Stay in stunning lodges, from a lakeside bungalow at the foot of the Rwenzori Mountains to a hilltop eco – lodge with spectacular views of Rwanda’s volcanoes.
This safari starts and ends in Kigali. You will start with volcanoes national park gorillas and end with Bwindi national park gorillas. The national park is a haven for the Mountain gorilla with over 400 of these gentle giants making the park their home. Volcanoes national park is home to ten habituated gorilla families and 8 other groups that are still under research making the entire total of 18 groups.
The park is also home to five of the eight volcanoes of the Virunga Mountains (Karisimbi, Bisoke, Muhabura, Gahinga and Sabyinyo) which are covered in rain forest and Bamboo.
Plan for at least a 1–4-hour trek through the forest, led by experienced trackers who have spent their entire lives living in or close to the forest. Your trek will be enchanting as you weave through overhanging vines, moss-covered Hagenia trees and giant Lobelias that thrive in the tropical climate. You may spot golden monkeys or see buffalo, bush duiker and a wide variety of bird life.
Be warned that gorilla tracking is no walk in the park. You have to track down the gorillas who could have moved a significant distance from the day before. Relatively few permits (80 per day) are issued to see the gorillas and your time with them is restricted to one hour. Go relax at your preferred lodge as you warm up for your next gorilla show in Bwindi.
Transfer to Uganda make the distance shorter and it gives you a great experience of visiting two countries in one trip at affordable packages.
Bwindi impenetrable park is home to half the remaining gorilla population within the world. It’s estimated that about 1000 mountain gorillas are left within the world with the population increasing ever since the conservation efforts were started. In Uganda, gorilla trekking is often wiped out by Bwindi and Mgahinga Gorilla Park. The Bwindi impenetrable park is split into four sectors, Rushaga, Ruhija, Buhoma, and Nkuringo with 15 habituated gorilla groups available for tracking.
The gorilla trekking tours in Uganda is relatively difficult depending on your fitness levels as the treks involve walking through thick forests, valleys, hills and swamps as well as walking in high altitudes with stinging nettles.
Start early with heavy breakfast at the lodge (by 06:00h), then drive to the park headquarters for a briefing about gorilla trekking in Bwindi national park. You must be physically fit to go gorilla trekking. The trek takes 2 -8 hours depending on the movement of these Gentle Giants in their natural habitat! You can hire a porter to assist you during the trek, he can pull or push you where necessary, and he can carry your packed water and lunch.
Meeting gorillas in the jungle is an adventure experience for a lifetime. The thrill of encountering these gentle Giants erases away all the bad memories you went through while searching for them. You will be given one-hour maximum with gorillas, enjoying them feeding, playing and young ones swinging on trees.