Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park is one of Uganda’s smallest national parks located in the southwestern region. It borders the Democratic Republic of Congo in the west, Kabale town in the southeast which is about 29 kilometers away from the park. The park is located at the edge of the Rift Valley, covering an area of about 331 square kilometers in the high altitude of Kigezi Highlands. The park has an altitude of 1,190 to 2,607 meters above sea level with the highest elevation being Rwamanyonyi hill in the east. Being at a high altitude, the park receives about 70C to 150C temperate conditions, and at times in the rainy season, it goes to 270C. The park being a tropical rainforest, receives between 1,400 to 1,900 millimeters of rain annually. It is received in March to April and September to November and this is considered a low season for the park.
Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park is famous for hosting the world’s remaining mountain gorilla population in the whole world. The gigantic mountain gorillas are endangered due to many reasons. These include poaching by the surrounding communities, habitat loss due to human encroachment, and rising diseases for example the MPOX disease, and increased pneumonia in mountain gorillas which is the highest killer of the mountain gorillas.
The driving time to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park from Entebbe is 9 hours and it is about 1 hour on a domestic flight, where you land in Kihiihi. Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park is very close to Rwanda and one can drive for about 2½ hours through the Katuna border to connect to Kabale and then proceed to Bwindi. While driving from Entebbe expect the journey to be very long, but enjoyable since there are so many stopovers and beautiful scenery. For example, the Equator, homesteads, Igongo Cultural Center in Mbarara city, the undulating landscape, and the beautiful sceneries of the Kisoro area. These will surely give you goosebumps and you cannot be left the same.
Activities in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park
Gorilla trekking
Gorilla trekking is an experience where one person or a group of people navigate the thick forests to meet the mountain gorillas in their natural habitat. Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park has four gorilla sectors. These include the Buhoma gorilla sector, the Nkuringo gorilla sector, the Ruhija gorilla sector, and the Rushaga gorilla sector. Rushaga is the most visited gorilla sector. This is because this sector has more habituated gorilla families and it is easy to find the gorillas. The park is also so close to Rwanda and the gorilla permit being cheap compared to Rwanda’s gorilla permit has made Bwindi so famous and the most visited gorilla destination.
Gorilla trekking takes about 5 hours including an hour you spend in the presence of the mountain gorillas. This starts with a briefing from the guest information center in the early morning at 7 am and you are also allocated a gorilla family to track. With the help of the ranger guide, you head to the jungle to encounter the mountain gorillas.
Gorilla habituation
Gorilla habituation is for gorilla enthusiasts and this is where you have to spend more time with the gorillas. Gorilla habituation is a bit different from gorilla trekking in a way that during gorilla habituation you spend about 4 hours with the gorillas watching them roam around with their chores. Gorilla habituation is only done in the Rushaga gorilla sector which is in the southern part of the park.
Birding in Bwindi
Bwindi impenetrable forest national park accommodates about 350 bird species 23 bird species being endemic to Albertine Rift. Some of these birds include the African wood owl, western green tinker-bird, archer’s robin-chat, Montana Oriole, and great blue turaco among others. Ruhija is the best sector for the birders, especially in the morning when the birds are active and will entertain you with their sweet melodies in the tree brunches.
Hiking in Bwindi
Since Bwindi is at an elevated altitude, therefore reaching those altitudes one has to hike from the north to the southern part of Bwindi. Hiking in Bwindi takes about 5 hours especially if you engage in the Kashasha River trail which stretches from Buhoma to Nkuringo. It goes up to 600 meters to the top of the trail. This trail is the longest, so be ready to meet different animals and birds. Fortunately, the ranger guide will be explaining to you everything as you trek.
Batwa Cultural tour
Bwindi is home to the culture of the Batwa pygmies, one of the oldest cultures in Africa. They have turned out to be a great experience to visit their communities and learn about their ancient experiences in the forest. They have lived in the forests before it was established as a protected area. They have a lot of experience to share with the tourists and right from social life and how they managed to live in the jungles then.
You can visit the Rushaga Batwa community where the government has established schools, clinics, and clean water. The Batwa have been educated to make crafts and when you visit the community, you can decide to support them by buying a souvenir. They have many things that will make your visit to Bwindi more memorable and rewarding.
