Gorilla trekking in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National park is one of the most done travel experiences which bring mots travelers to the Pearl of Africa. Over 50% of travelers to Uganda come for Uganda gorilla safaris which they combine with other activities to make a complete Uganda safari package.
Where is Bwindi Forest National park Located?
Bwindi Forest National park is located in south western Uganda shared between Kabale and Rubanda disctricts. The park is roughly 502.5 kilometers from Kampala which takes between 8 to 9 hours of driving via Masaka, Mbarara, Ntungamo and Kabale districts
The stopovers at the Equator for photography and buying African crafts for keeps plus enroute lunch stopover in Mbarara make this long journey fun!
The gorilla tracking day requires you to wake up early for breakfast after which embark on a drive to the Uganda Wildlife Authorities office driving over very rutted dirt roads. Your driver will do hi best o make you feel comfortable on your drive to the park offices. If your driving your self, make sure to drive at a slow speed as the road is rough. Once there, you will register your passport information as you enter the park. At this point you already have your gorilla tracking permit from your tour operator or bought it from the Uganda Wildlife Authority offices with your passport for info. You can buy tickets online in high season a permit goes for $600 per person, low season $350/ per person.
The low season permits are in the months of May and December while the rest of the months are high season.
The Typical day of gorilla trekking
You will assemble at the park offices for a short orientation meeting about how to conduct during your gorilla trek after which you will climb into the back of a truck to drive to the trail head. Its very necessary for you to hire a porter who will be able to array your backpack for you, and to also look out for you along the slippery grounds during the hike. Also make sure to have enough water as it gets very hot and you get very thirsty need lots of water and some food. The forest is very dense, slippery, and uneven and there is no accurate way of telling how long the whole trek will take to finally meet the gorillas so you need to be prepared. The forest trails are very steep, they do not have switchbacks. Make sure to workout for a decent level of fitness and determination to do this trek.
Early in the morning trackers go out into the forest to find the position of the gorillas and radio the information to the guides. This is a good way to easily located the gorillas except that gorillas are just like any other wildlife animal and they keep moving so the guide keeps trying to find out where they are and you follow him as he cuts the vegetation to make trekking trails.
Each group of 8 people is led by three guide, the first with a gun in the lead, another one with a machete cutting vegetation for trails and another guide at the back with a gun. The guns are needed in case an animal appears that might be dangerous and for safety reasons generally.
The trek can last from 30 minutes to 5 hours of hiking straight up and down the mountain and once you meet the gorillas, you are allowed an hour to be with them taking pictures. The gorilla group usually comprises from 8 gorillas to over 20 members including silver backs, males, females, Juvenile and babies. During your one hour with them, if they start moving, you move with them as they carry on their day activities. Its very incredible seeing them behave like humans. After the hour you trek back down the mountain to where you left your truck.
You will receive certificates that shows that you did gorilla tracking in Uganda at the park headquarters.
In the high seasons – the summer the number of tourists coming to see gorillas is usually big hence gorilla permits get booked quickly, so if you want to go see gorillas you need to book early to guarantee your gorilla group.
List of gorilla families in Bwindi Forest
Over 20 Mountain gorilla families are habituated in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National park and ready for trekking. These gorilla families are shared among the four gorilla regions, (Buhma, Ruhija, Rushaga and Nkuringo) which make up Bwindi Forest. The list of gorilla groups in Bwindi Forest include
- Mubare family
- Kyaguliro Family
- Rushegura family
- Kutu
- Christmas
- oruzogo
- Busingye
- Mishaya
- Mukiza
- Kahungye
- Nsongi
- Nkuringo
- Bweza
- Habinyanja
- Katwe
- Binyondo
- Bushaho
- Binkigyi
- Mucunguzi
- Bitukura
Each gorilla family is visited by eight travelers per day and the maximum time allowed with the endangered gorillas is strictly an hour counted from the time travelers meet with the gorillas.
Cost of gorilla trekking in Bwindi Forest National park
The cost of trekking gorillas in Bwindi Forest ranges between $1200 to over $2000. This is determined by the cost of gorilla permit @800 each, the number of days, the mode of transport, other activities included in the itinerary and the type of accommodation booked. Silverback gorilla tour offers budget Uganda gorilla tours for as low as $1200 per person. This is inclusive of the gorilla permit, safari vehicle, driver guide. bottled drinking water, packed lunch, government taxes and company commission. For budget Uganda gorilla safaris, contact us!