Uganda, also known as the pearl of Africa, happens to be planning a trip or a Uganda safari, which includes visiting Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, which is well known for mountain gorilla trekking and habituation. This makes Bwindi Impenetrable National Park a perfect place for adventure lovers, tourists, researchers, and conservationists who would like to witness them in their natural habitat and get to learn more about these amazing, gentle giants, yes!! Mountain Gorillas are gentle creatures, regardless of their gigantic appearance. Below are the frequently asked questions about mountain gorillas that you and facts you should get to learn before visiting Bwindi Impenetrable National Park.
Where is Bwindi Impenetrable National Park?
Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is located in southwestern Uganda, along the edge of the Albertine Rift Valley, bordering the Democratic Republic of the Congo, close to Rwanda, within the Kigezi Highlands, also known as the Gorilla Highlands. Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
What is famous or well known for?
Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is famous or well known for its high population of mountain gorillas that are found there. Bwindi Impenetrable National Park and Maghinga National Park are the major national parks in Uganda that mountain gorillas call home, along with Virunga Volcanoes National Park, which is shared between Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The highest number of mountain gorillas is found in Bwindi, with approximately 459 gorillas. This makes Uganda home to approximately half of the remaining world population of mountain gorillas. Apart from mountain gorillas, Bwindi Impenetrable National Park also has other attractions that tourists love seeing or witnessing when they visit.
Other attractions in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
Apart from the endangered gentle giants (mountain gorillas), there are other attractions found in Bwindi, and these include,
Birds in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
Since Bwindi is generally made up of forests with different vegetation cover, it makes it a perfect environment for the different bird species that are found in it. Bwindi happens to have approximately 350 different bird species, and these include Red-headed bluebill, African Blue, White-tailed blue flycatchers, Common Bulbul, Black bee-eater, Bar-tailed Trogon, Grate Blue Turaco, to name a few.
Batwa Pygmy people in Bwindi
The Batwa people, or the Batwa community happens to be one of the interesting communities to visit and combine with mountain gorilla trekking or habituation activities. The Batwa people are believed to be the first occupants of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, but were later relocated by the government to ensure both their safety and the safety of the endangered mountain gorilla. When you get to visit the Batwa community, you will get to interact with the locals, watch them perform their cultural dances, learn about their day-to-day life, and also get to listen to their stories.
Vegetation cover in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
Bwindi is made up of tropical rainforest, where lowland and montane vegetation cover grows due to the favorable conditions found there. The Montane vegetation is made up of approximately 220 different tree species, plus other plant species, and these include red stink wood, East African yellow wood, Symphonia globulifera, Strombosia, and Nwetonia, to name a few.
Other Primates and Mammals in Bwindi
Apart from mountain gorillas, Bwindi also happens to be a habitat to other animals that stay deep down in the forests and primates, which include antelopes, giant forest hogs, forest elephants, red-tailed monkeys, De Brazza monkeys, colobus monkeys, L’hoest monkeys, and nocturnal potto monkeys, to name a few.
Other attractions in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park include different butterfly species, different hiking trails that have different attractions like waterfalls, swamps, and bamboo, ferns, to name a few.
Tourist activities done/ carried out in Bwindi.
Bwindi National Park, just like the different attractions, has a variety of tourist attractions that you can visit or carry out by tourists or visitors who come to Bwindi. Some of these activities include
Mountain gorilla trekking in Bwindi
Mountain gorilla trekking is a tourist activity that involves trekking on foot to search for the mountain gorillas in their natural habitat. Mountain gorilla trekking activity takes approximately 30 minutes to 8 hours of searching for gorillas in the forest.
How is mountain gorilla trekking conducted/done in Bwindi?
In the morning, tourists or visitors are transferred to the park headquarters, where they are briefed on the Dos and Don’ts during the gorilla trekking activity. After the briefing, tourists or visitors are divided into groups of not more than 8 individuals allocated to different trekking routes leading to different gorilla groups led by different game rangers and tour guides. After that, you will start the trekking activity, and upon finding or locating a gorilla family or group, not more than an hour will be given to you to spend in the presence of the mountain gorillas.
Mountain gorilla habituation in Bwindi
Mountain gorilla habituation is an activity that involves searching for mountain gorillas in their natural habitant in the same way as mountain gorilla trekking activity but these two are only differed by time because upon locating or finding a mountain gorilla family during mountain gorilla habituation, more than an hour is given to tourists or visitors to spend in the presence of the gentle giants (mountain gorillas) unlike mountain gorilla trekking activity where only an hour is given to the tourists.
Birding in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
Because Bwindi National Park is made up of trees that happen to provide shelter and food to the birds, this makes the environment in this park favorable to be called home to different bird species, such as African Blue, Black-bee-eater, Great blue turaco, to name a few, hence making it a good birding destination.
Visiting the Batwa community tour in Bwindi
The Batwa community visit happens to be among the highlights, combined mostly with mountain gorilla trekking or mountain gorilla habituation activities. Tourists or visitors who visit the Batwa community get to learn about their way of life, interact with the locals, listen to their stories about their history, watch them perform their cultural dances, to list a few.
Other activities done in Bwindi include hiking, research and case studies, guided nature walks, hiking, Butterly watching, monkey watching, to name a few.
Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is one of the most famous Mountain gorilla destinations worldwide, known to have the highest number of mountain gorillas, and also a UNESCO World Heritage site, perfect for adventure and witnessing these gentle giants in their natural habitat hence making it one of the most visited tourist destinations in Africa. If you have a dream of witnessing mountain gorillas in their natural habitat or you are planning on visiting Uganda and would like Bwindi to be among your travel destinations, all you have to do is book with us today and watch your dream turn into a reality with Ntale Safaris.