This gorilla safari will take you to track the mysterious mountain gorillas, spend an hour close to them, and watch their antics and complex social behaviors. This African jungle adventure occurs in an ancient UNESCO World Heritage Site, Uganda’s last stronghold of almost half of the endangered mountain gorillas – Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park.
Hike across the rain forest jungle using one of the oldest walking trails on the continent. The guided walking safari adventure will put you right in the centre of pure wilderness for an authentic forest bath. An incredible array of wild animals and plants has lived there for thousands of years. If you’re fortunate, you will meet some prominent ones, like chimps, forest elephants, monkeys, birds, and butterflies.
Take a game drive on the northern tracks of Queen Elizabeth National Park and watch some of the savannah game favourites like lion, elephant, buffalo, hyena, antelopes, and leopard. Get closer to the game animals like Hippos, Crocs, and Elephants, on a boat safari at the Kazinga Channel.
Spend an incredible and unforgettable holidays in Uganda on a gorilla wildlife safari. The package is planned to give you the best of Africa’s wilderness experience on a private trip to a small country unknown to most world travelers. Spend 4 nights equally in two cottages at different ends of the ancient rain forest, boasting enchanting views across the Virunga Mountain. And three nights in a savannah bush camp close to uninterrupted game viewing.
The journey begins in Entebbe and flies you across south-western Uganda’s enchanting rugged landscape to a small town outside the park. From Kisoro town, you get down a village track walking through rural villages, terraced gardens on the mountain slopes, to the quant volcano lake for a canoeing experience with local fishermen in dug-out canoes.
You’ll track gorillas in the south of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, cross the impenetrable jungle to the north sector, meet the mountain gorillas again, dance with the Batwa forest people, meet with the local skills women, and drive north for a 3-day wildlife viewing adventure.
You must be up by 7:00, have breakfast, get your packed lunch-pack, and check your gear. Your private driver will have you at the briefing point before 7:30 am. gorilla trekking starts at about 8:00 am; respectful of the weather and group size.
You may take almost part of the day in the jungle, definitely more time tracking the mountain gorillas than watching them. You have about one hour to watch the dark-fared giant beasts about 10 meters away. But sometimes they come closer, and you must follow the rules of the jungle.
The time you spend with the great apes will greatly compensate for all the jungle hiking that challenges your health and fitness. I recommend you work out for a few days before you come.
Take a gorilla walking safaris across Bwindi. You’ll get on the trail at about 8:30 am after a short briefing with your walking safari guide at the lodge. You must hit the trails in the misty early morning hours so that the intense afternoon sun rays find you under the jungle canopy. You will travel with a local guide and two gun-bearing rangers for security. Go light; just your backpack with lunch, a camera, and walking. It takes about 4-5 hours to walk the trail.
Two trails meet somewhere in the jungle and meander down to Buhoma town; you’ll have to select one. The longer one takes about six plus meanders along the Kashasha River and over several ridges. The shorter one starts at Kashasha River, down Nteko valley, and meanders along Ivy River. You must drive about 15 kilometres to Nteko village to start the Ivy River Trail. However, both trails deliver the same adventure for intrepid travelers.
Visit with the Batwa forest people on their time-lapse cultural trail. Check out the medicine man, and dance to their ancient tunes. From the trail, you can walk through local markets or check out some rural development organizations.
Visit the Ride 4 A Woman Charity Organization. The charitable organization was established to support Bwindi women struggling with poverty, HIV, and domestic violence. Take a walk around the campus and learn a few creative skills like local basket weaving, sewing, and pottery.
Queen Elizabeth National Park offers a kind of safari experience similar to private conservancies in Kenya or South Africa, but it’s larger and has animals for show. You could have the whole game track to yourself at one time. So you will spend here 3 days searching for game and finding the time to lay back and breathe the African air.
You will drive through the Ishasha sector, a tree climbing Lions’ territory. You may see these lazy giant cats lounging in fig tree branches after their meals to rest, experience the winds but to also easily watch their prey because of the high savannah grass. There are many theories as to why they climb the trees, you will learn more from your tour guide as you do game drive.
Get chance to reach close to Africa safari’s big game players on an early morning or evening game drive and a boat safari on Kazinga Channel, famous for hosting the largest population of hippos.
While on a game drive on Kasenyi tracks, you will encounter animals like enormous herds of elephants and buffalo. You’ll also spot many interesting antelope species such as Uganda kob, Topi, and bush buck. The giant forest hog is unusually easy to spot. Search around the Kasenyi tracks for the elusive leopard.
On the Kazinga Channel boat safari trip, you’re able to catch sight of elephants, buffaloes, water buck, Uganda kob, and large hippo pods daily. Keep an eye open for the enormous water monitor lizard, which is common in the riverine scrub, as well as crocodiles.
You will also see the giant forest hog, leopard, and lion. The odds of seeing predators and other nocturnal creatures coming to drink are highest in the late afternoon. Take your scheduled flight back to Entebbe to catch up with your flight back home.
