UGANDA: Gorilla Tracking In Uganda

With a diverse collection of activities that visitors can get involved in, gorilla tracking comes out to be the best leading activity at Mgahinga Gorilla national park and almost 75% of Mgahinga's visitors come to view the precious primates.

Uganda being left with an estimate of 400 mountain gorillas, the Smallest Mgahinga park becomes one of the two blessed places where a visitor can have high chances to view the endangered mountain Gorilla species.

The park is the best destination to trek the precious Nyakagezi gorilla group which frequently moves adjacent in the forests of Rwanda and Congo. The most valued park where gorillas are found is Bwindi Impenetrable and these two parks are near each other making it possible for one to trek through both of them on most of Uganda safaris.

The moment you visit the park, the welcoming atmosphere is an evidence of adventure filled of natural beauty. A day trek through the forests of Mgahinga with a well-trained guide who explains the gorillas behavior along the way is a lifetime experience.

Normally, Gorilla trekking starts from Ntebeko Entrance gate at around 8:00am in the morning and this memorable activity daily takes like 2-4 hours. A tourist is needed to plan for his/her time well while with a gorilla family since the maximum time allowed spending with them is one hour.

The best time to visit the place for trekking the mountain Gorilla is during the dry seasons when the park trails can be easily accessed. It is during this dry time that the thick forests can be easily penetrated without any challenge and when the routes are not as muddy as it is in the rainy season.

The two dry Seasons Preferable for Gorilla Safari are June to October and Mid-December to end of February. However, gorilla trekking activity can be carried out throughout the year.

For those who are planning to do a gorilla tracking safari in Uganda there are number of rules and regulations to be followed by the tourists., the following information would apply.

Before departing on your gorilla tracking: A maximum number of 8 visitors are allowed to visit a group of habituated mountain gorillas in a day and this is done to minimize behavioral disturbance that big numbers can cause to the gorillas and the risk of them being exposed to human-borne diseases, It’s advisable for visitors to always wash their hands before they head out to the gorillas.

On the way to the gorillas: Please always keep your voices low because you will also be able to observe the great bird life and other wildlife in the forest.

Do not leave rubbish in the park and whatever you carry into the forest should be carried back with you; you will be taken to place where the guides observed the gorillas the day before.

From this place you will be guided to follow the gorilla’s trail to trace for them. Look for the gorilla’s nesting sites on the way, when you are almost reaching the mountain gorillas, the guides will always inform you to get set.

When visitors are with the gorillas, they are Always requested to keep a 7 meter (21 feet) distance from the gorillas because the more distance between you and the primate, the more relaxed the group will be.

You must stay in tight group when you are near the gorillas, Keep your voices down at all times. However, it is allowed to ask the guide questions because they are well informed about the gorillas.

Visitors are requested not to smoke, eat or drink when they are near the gorillas. Drinking and eating is not allowed because it will increase the risk of food/drink droplets falling, which can likely increase the risk of transmission of diseases to the rare species, Sometimes the gorillas may charge at you.

Follow the guides example,go down slowly and do not see the gorillas directly in the eyes and wait for the other animals to pass.

Do not risk to run away because that is likely to increase the risk, Flash photography is not permitted, when taking pictures move slowly and carefully, do not play or feel the gorillas.

They are a wild animal that means they can harm; the only time the visitor is allowed to spend with the gorillas is one hour. However, if the gorillas become nervous, the guide can finish the visit early before the one hour, after seeing the mountain gorillas, keep your voices low until you are 200 meters away from the gorillas.

As far as health issues are concerned, mountain gorillas are very susceptible to diseases which affect human begins. There are number of rules and ways to minimize the risk that your visit might poses to them: Respect the limits imposed on the number of visitors allowed with the gorillas each day.

This is done to reduce the risk of disease transmission and stress to the group, if you are feeling ill, or you are carrying a disease which is contiguous, stay behind voluntarily.

If you feel the urge to cough or sneeze when you are near the gorillas, please turn your head away and cover your nose and mouth in order to minimize the spread of bacteria or viruses, Always stay 7 meters (21 feet) away from the gorillas. This is to protect them from catching human diseases.

Do not leave any rubbish (e.g. food wrappers) in the park; foreign items can harbor diseases or other contaminants, If you need to help yourself while in the forest, please request the guide to dig for you a hole with his panga. Make sure that the hole is 30 cm deep and after wards fill the hole with soil.

What to bring on your Gorilla Safari: Wear comfortable hiking shoes which do disturb in steep muddy slopes, Put on ear plugs for those who feel uncomfortable with the jungle sounds, , Carry rain gear, Carry a packed lunch and enough drinking water, sunscreen lotion, a hat because the weather is unpredictable and insect repellent, come with a photo of film camera. Using cameras with flashlight not allowed so they recommend using films of 400-800 ASA.

Within Uganda, Gorilla trekking is mostly done in Bwindi National Park and in Mgahinga National Park. But because of the unreliability of gorillas in Mgahinga, highest number of the sold permits are for Bwindi impenetrable National Park in Uganda.

On a single day, approximately 72 people travel into Bwindi to trek gorillas and only 8 people are allowed to see a gorilla family. It’s strongly advisable for clients to book their gorilla permit with Happy Tours Africa; the most prominent mistake is to book a gorilla family which is far away from your choice of accommodation remember the routes to Bwindi and its various regions are often tricky because this is a remote area and jungle.

If you would like to do the gorilla trek on your own so as to save costs, chances are high for you spending more. The Safari guides in the destination have been highly trained to help you with all you want to do so contact them.

Book your a Gorilla Tracking experience and adventure here:

CONTACT: happytoursug@gmail.com



Tourism Observer

UGANDA: Visit The Rare Mountain Gorillas

Gorilla tracking in Mgahinga National Park or the chimp tracking in Kibale Forest National park is one of the beautiful escapes and experiences for the discerning traveler.

Uganda is looking at mountain gorilla tracking as a source of tourist attraction with numbers set to shoot up to 20 million visitors annually by the year 2020.

Gorillas are naturally afraid of humans and will flee or aggressively charge if people get too close to them. Gorillas that are visited by people have undergone ‘habituation’. A process by which through daily peaceful contact with humans, the gorillas lose fear of humans. Habituating a group of gorillas usually takes about two years according to Pontious Ezuma the Conservation Area Manager Mgahinga.

Ezuma explains that it is for this reason that guidelines have been developed for trackers to be respected as the gorillas let us mingle with them in their wild. During my encounter with the gorillas at Mgahinga National park, I realized that gorillas are very social and live in groups cohesively coordinating their daily activities. Gorilla tracking is rather expensive, ($600- ugx2.1m) for Non Foreign residents, and $500 (ugx1.8m for foreign residents), while Ugandans or East Africans part with Ugx250,000 for an hour of tracking. Uganda Wildlife Authority publicist Gessa Simplicious however says that April, May and November are promotional months that go with discounts as low $450, $400 and Ugx 150,000 respectively.

However if you want to experience the gorilla habituation experience, you will have to part with $1500, $1000 and Ugx 750,000 for Foreign non residents, foreign residents and East Africans respectively. These rates according to Gessa include guide fees, park entrance for the day and community development fee. Ezuma says the reasons tracking are so expensive is to deter more interactions with them. At Mgahinga and Bwindi, I realized that interaction with individual gorillas is peaceful. Okoth Yona, the guide of the day explains that conflicts usually arise due to feeding spots, dominancy by the Silver backs over others.

Males may compete intensively for access to females. According to Okoth, intergroup encounters occur about monthly giving the females the opportunity to transfer between social units and allow the males time to out-compete their opponents and appear impressive to attract females.

It was some serious bush-whacking as we navigated through the thicket. It is a rare chance to see these mountain gorillas, some of the worlds’ only remaining species. They are few because the size of their habitat, Bwindi just about 330 square Kilometers and Virunga that is 450km2 are too small. The gorillas are also heavily threatened by the destruction of their habitat by the increasing population around the parks.

Though the people around Virunga and Bwindi don’t eat primates, poachers set snares to trap other wild animals and these gorillas get trapped too. No wonder they estimate just about 700 mountain gorillas in two small populations in Virunga Volcanoes of Rwanda, Uganda and DRC. While in Bwindi, the figures are estimated to be around 300. According to Ezuma, the gorillas are monitored as they move during a census that is conducted every 5 years

Feeding

Gorillas are so huge because they spend most of the hours eating. Surprisingly though, they are vegetarians. They feed on leaves, fruits and stems. Okoth Yona, the guide at Mgahinga says one gorilla has the energy of 8 gigantic men combined together not with the 5-6 hours of salad eating. This explains their huge presence in Ruhija and Buhoma areas in Bwindi, where there is heavy presence of the fruits. Gorillas travel at least 1 km a day in Bwindi depending on availability of food.

They also travel long distances when they sense danger from other groups, but usually each group occupies a home range of between 10-30 km2 .Bwindi has 10 habituated gorilla groups giving daily maximum of 80 permits. The gorilla families include: Nshongi Gorilla Family, Mishaya, and Oruzogo family located in Ruhija, Bitukura, Rushegura, Kahororo, as well as the Mubare and Habinyanja Gorilla families located in Buhoma in the southern sector of Bwindi.

Batwa Trail experience

Mgahinga also offers a unique Batwa forest experience that includes discovery of the cave and traditional home of the Batwa king complimentary with cave cultural dances and mimicking of wild hunt. There is nothing dull about this luxurious award-wining establishment. Here you will experience how these Batwa’s light fire without matches.

Bwindi Impenetrable Forest

This is so far one of Africa’s richest forests with over 350 bird species, 200 trees, over 300 butterflies, 50 reptiles and over 100 mammals, hundreds of primates including the rare black and white colobus and Blue monkeys. Outside the forest, community walks provide an insight into the lives of the Batwa and Bakiga living beside the forest.

After the hectic gorilla tracking in Mgahinga, Bwindi or chimpanzee tracking in Kibale forest, you can then experience the best classical and contemporary cuisines and rare wine vintages amidst spectacular breath taking views among the various lodges spread within and outside these parks.

n Mgahinga, you will wake up each morning to an exquisite blanket of mist bright sunshine.

There’s something extremely romantic about a stay on a remote park, but the real luxury is being able to connect with yourself in a place where time’ of no consequence.

Profligacy is the word that comes in mind when you go gorilla tracking.

A holiday or weekend break is becoming a luxury for many Ugandans. If you are a foreigner, a self drive to one of Uganda’s parks will offer an excellent value for money and if you’re a local, these self-catering destinations won’t break the bank.

Located some 400km southwest of Kampala, Uganda’s capital lies a picturesque valley nestled in a myriad of magnificent mountains and lush greenery. With quaint, quiet accommodation set amidst the thickets, there are few holiday destinations as conducive as Bwindi.

Mubare Gorilla Group

When in Bwindi as a guide for the Mubare gorilla group, one of the oldest habituated gorilla family in Uganda that was opened for tourism in 1993. The name was derived from the Mubare Hill where the gorillas were first sighted by trackers. This group had 18 individuals, led by the dominant Silverback Ruhondeza. Sadly though, over the years the family lost many members leaving just five in 2012.

Earlier in 2012, the family was attacked by a wild gorilla group who broke Ruhondeza’s leadership and took away some of the females. Ruhondeza took refuge in a nearby community forest were it later died aged over 50 years on 27 June 2012. Ruhondeza was buried in Buhoma.

But the good news is that Ruhondeza’s successor Kanyonyi managed to expand the family again and increased it to nine members now.