Bwindi Gorilla Habituation Experience – Uganda Bwindi Safaris
Bwindi Gorilla Habituation Experience; This is truly a humbling life time experience that gives you the chances to spend 4 hours with the mountain gorillas in Uganda’s Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park, you will trek these unique mountain gorillas into the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest alongside the park ranger who leads you in forest trail head through the wilder sides of the forest, in search for gorilla families.
Bwindi Impenetrable forest is where gorilla habituation excursion takes place with an expert team of guides, researchers, doctors, park rangers lead the group of trackers to the habituated gorilla group in search for tracks left by the gorillas. The strongest clue of finding the gorillas nest from the previous night, can take up 6 to 7 hours to locate a gorilla family. Bwindi gorilla habituation experience is done in Rushanga sector one of the four sector where gorilla trekking is done an hour experience.
Once location is made, you can spend up to 4 hours with the gorillas, which are first undertaken into the process of two or three years training them how to get into eye contact with humans. If the researchers have approved that gorillas are used to human presence, they will introduce the group to tourism through official opening it. You engaging in gorilla habituation experience it gives you a great insight into the lives of the rare species of mountain gorillas that few get to experience. To many yearn to do gorilla trekking an hour experience which is done half day experience. When you locate them, you will be given four hours to spend with them as you learn from their amazing life style as well as taking memorable photography.
It’s important to know that 4 hours can be a long time so you’ll have to make sure the habituation experience is right for you. As you watch the gorillas up close, interacting with each other in their small family groups, you will begin to draw parallels between the gorillas. The similarities are often humbling.
Bwindi Gorilla Habituation experience is a full day experience with four hours given to the trackers to spend with mountain gorillas and later no return back to the lodge for refreshment, dinner and overnight stay. Tourists wishing to take a more active role in understanding of these great mountain gorillas, you just need to join the rangers and conservationists in the habituation process of two or more gorilla families in the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest. During a habituation experience, you will be allowed up to 4 magical hours with these highly intelligent and emotional species. This activity is incredibly humbling experience in life time and is the fundamental way of protecting our lovely creatures in their natural inhabits.
Gorilla trekking is one of the most remarkable wildlife experience on the continent, gorilla treks gives you the chance to spend up to one hour in the company of mountain gorillas in their natural habitat.
Facts about, Bwindi gorilla habituation is a life time experience that involves in hiking through dense forests in search of habituated gorilla families, then spend up four hours with a gorilla group which are provided for observing the unique behaviors of gorillas and incredible photography without being rushed. This activity is only available in the Rushaga sector in the southern part of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park.
Bwindi Gorilla permits costs; A standard gorilla trekking permit costs USD700 for foreign nonresident, USD600 for foreign resident and UGX250,000 East African citizenships whereas the gorilla habituation experience costs USD1,500 per person per trek. It is advisable to book your Gorilla permit in advance of 3 to 6 months before your time of arrival. Bookings for gorilla permits are done through contacting directly to ‘’UWA’’ Uganda Wildlife Authority Offices or through help of reliable tour operators with fully registered tour company and acknowledgeable about local tourism.
Best Time to Go for Bwindi Gorilla Habituation Experience
Bwindi gorilla habituation experience can be done throughout the year. The park’s temperature hover between 20 and 25 degrees Celsius yearly. The best season to enjoy the activity without any obstruction is in dry seasons from the month of June to Mid –September and from December to February but you should be prepared for showers at any time of the year, the weather is unpredictable.
The months of March are not recommendable but good for bird watching since they attract variety of notable birds inside the park because of abundance in food, it also offers good advantages for photographers. It also clears the air dust thus making for clearer photos and mist combined to create a certain wilderness.
What to Pack; Bwindi Gorilla Habituation Experience or Trekking
Water proof hiking boots; This essential term is good in avoiding any nasty blisters and ensuring that you have comfortable cotton walking soft worn in before you depart.
Essentials like light, waterproof jacket and trousers and long –sleeved shirts. Putting on a long sleeves and trousers helps to protect you from insect bites and keep you warm if the weather turns.
Hat and Sunglasses
A lightweight backpack; You need to carry enough room for lunch, mineral water bottle, extra layers, snacks. Other essentials include sun cream, insect repellent, bite relief cream and lip balm.
Binoculars; A pair of binoculars is required to help you in spotting bird species and monkeys from a distance.
Camera; One to enjoy a gorilla habituation experience must carry a digital camera with enough batteries.
Bwindi Accommodation; The park boosts with perfect accommodation options and most of them are located near to the families of the mountain gorillas. Bwindi boosts with wide range of luxurious end of the spectrum such as Volcanoes Bwindi Lodge, Clouds Mountain, Gorilla lodge. They were built with blend high end modern amenities with elegant and stone architecture. You can choose to camp around the park and we recommend you to Sanctuary Gorilla Forest Camp. The most used and popular to the tourists.
Other less Luxurious lodges; Mahogany Spring Safari Lodge, Buhoma lodge.
Getting to Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park
Bwindi Impenetrable National Park sits in the southwestern region of Uganda, can be accessible by both road or by air.
By Road
The park can be reached by car from Entebbe or Kampala in around 9 to 10 hours. It is also possible to break up the journey from Queen Elizabeth national park or even from Murchison Falls national park, if you wish to do a combined wildlife safari.
By Air
Alternatively, you can fly from Entebbe or Kajjansi Airstrip to Kihihi airstrip by domestic flight which takes 1:15hours and from there, you will be driven to the park to get ready for the next morning activity.
