A gorilla walking safari is an adventurous activity where guests embark on slow paced, guided walks with the primary objective to explore different wildlife species along the bush. Walking safaris are generally slow, with plenty of breaks, and ideal for most fitness levels, regardless of time.
A walking safari might last anywhere from two to four hours if done at a leisurely pace. However, a full-day or multi-day walking safari is recommended if you are looking for a challenge.
Both Uganda and Rwanda offer gorilla walking safaris in Africa. Gorilla trekking in Bwindi National Park is arguably the most popular tourism activity in Uganda. The activity takes you for a special encounter with Mountain gorillas. Uganda is also the only country where mountain gorillas can be found in two different national parks. There are 17 habituated gorilla groups in Bwindi which is the highest anywhere.
A gorilla permit in Bwindi costs $700. It is important to note that the price of a gorilla permit doesn’t include expenses on accommodation, Visas, transport, food and flights. The cost of gorilla trekking in Bwindi will also depend in the number of days and category of accommodation one is interested in.
Visitors can also visit the Batwa pygmy community, take forest walks, spot birds and view other primates like Chimpanzees. Talking about chimpanzees, Bwindi is one of the few national parks in the world were mountain gorillas and chimpanzee live together. The chimps may be sighted while tracking the gorillas.
Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park is divided into four main sectors – Rushaga, Nkuringo, Buhoma and Ruhija. Rushaga and Buhoma have more gorilla families than other sectors. They are also more popular for gorilla tracking. Visitors who are interested in a gorilla habituation experience can do it from Rushaga at $ 1500. Only four permits are issued for the gorilla habituation experience each day.
Therefore, gorilla trekking tours in Bwindi Forest starts with a briefing at the park headquarters at around 7:30am. After the briefing at the park office, trekkers are separated into smaller groups of 8. Each group of eight track a particular gorilla family. Some gorilla families live near the park offices while others are found further away. The Park Guides from the Uganda Wildlife Authority, two armed rangers and porters move with each group. The Guides are very experienced, knowledgeable and well-trained. While leading tourists to the gorillas, they will share information about the gorilla family and other animals found in the forest.
It can take only 30 minutes to locate some groups while others can take hours. A team of trackers normally go ahead of the group to identify the location of the gorilla family. These advance trackers know where the gorilla group built their last sleeping nests and will head to that direction. As you walk through the forest, you have the chance to see other wildlife creatures.
Once you spot the family, you will be allowed only one hour with them. Watching gorillas can be an extremely emotional event as gorillas behave like humans and share about 98 percent of our DNA. Take your time to observe their behaviour and different personalities while taking some great photos for your memories.
Volcanoes National Park is a very popular Rwanda safari destination because of mountain gorilla trekking expeditions. Mountain gorilla trekking is probably the best wilderness adventure activity on the African continent that gets travelers more personal than ever to wildlife.
To be allowed entry into Volcanoes National Park and to take part in most of the activities in the park, certain fees need to be paid. The Rwanda gorilla trekking permit costs $1,500 for all travelers interested in gorilla trekking in Volcanoes National Park.
Volcanoes National Park consists of afro-montane forests, bamboo forests, Savannah grassland, vast swamps and 5 volcanoes (Bisoke, Gahinga, Muhabura, Sabyinyo and Karisimbi). Mount Karisimbi is one of the four tallest mountains in Africa. Also, home to the spotted hyena, buffaloes, elephants, bush bucks, duikers and golden monkeys among many other mammals.
Gorilla trekking at the Volcanoes National Park involves hiking through dense bamboo forests and steep mountain slopes in search of one of the gorilla families in Rwanda. The final encounter with the primates is considered one of the most exciting and memorable wildlife encounters in Africa.
Gorilla trekking in the Volcanoes National Park starts with a briefing from the park authorities and rangers at around 7:30am. During the briefing, participants are divided into groups and assigned to a particular gorilla family. The fewer fit hikers are assigned groups which are closer to the park offices. At 8:00am, the park rangers lead the group to search for the gorillas.
You spend an hour just watching the little ones roll around and play. Mountain gorillas are always playful and quite curious. Some may walk right up to you but with no harm intended. While with the gorillas, it’s important to listen to instructions from your guides and to always stay calm. Never make sudden movements. Gorilla tracking in the Volcanoes National Park can take between one to six hours before seeing them depending on the gorilla group you are assigned and their specific location on the day of the trek.
Apart from gorilla trekking safari, there are other activities that one can take part in while at the Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda and in other parts of the country. Throughout your travel, you will notice that the country has beautiful landscape consisting of hills and mountains.
Visiting the grave of Dian Fossey: Dian Fossey is considered to be one of the greatest primatologists of all time because of her extensive research and work with mountain gorillas from 1969 till her death in the 1980’s. She let the world know about the mountain gorillas and fought hard to end poaching.
She introduced new approaches to habituating mountain gorillas by learning their mannerism, staying in their midst and gaining the acceptance of the dominant Silver back. This is quite remarkable because the mountain gorillas she worked with had grown to see all humans as a threat.
The Volcanoes National Park is home to the endangered golden monkey. These beautiful primates live in the same areas as the mountain gorillas. They survive on bamboo shoots, insects and will occasionally raid farms for potatoes. Golden Monkeys are very playful primates with their only real enemies being man and the African eagle. Golden Monkey trekking is real another life changing adventure.
