
Trek mountain gorillas in Bwindi from Lake Bunyonyi
Is it possible to trek mountain gorillas in Bwindi from Lake Bunyonyi? Trekking mountain gorillas in Bwindi impenetrable forest national park from Lake Bunyonyi is very possible if tourists had earlier booked the gorilla permits. The two places are located near each other in the southwestern part of Uganda which means that tourists at Lake Bunyonyi will need about 3 hours to get to this place.
Tourists at Lake Bunyonyi can visit Bwindi impenetrable forest national park at any time of the year for mountain gorilla trekking only if they had booked their trekking permits early. If you are intending to visit Lake Bunyonyi and later Bwindi for mountain gorilla trekking, you need to inform your local tour operator about this so that they book you a gorilla trekking permit from the Uganda Wildlife Authority.
Lake Bunyonyi is one of the beautiful places every traveler on a safari need to visit due its nature. The lake is one of the deepest in Africa and is located in the southwestern part of Uganda. Lake Bunyonyi is not only good for honeymooners but also other tourists that would want birding because it’s home to 205 birds, canoeing which is done around 29 islands including Akampene which is famous for being where girls that got pregnant before marriage were taken to die of hunger, and much more.
Bwindi impenetrable forest national park is what comes to a person’s mind when they take about mountain gorilla trekking in the world. The national park is 331 sq. km in the southern part of Uganda and is home to a lot of mountain gorillas which are not even in the remaining gorilla national parks. Bwindi is home to 19 fully habituated mountain gorilla families and 2 semi habituated mountain gorilla families that do live in the 4 sectors of the park.
The trekking of these mountain gorillas in Bwindi is done at any time but all the people who possess mountain gorilla permits from Uganda Wildlife Authority. The trekking is done by 8 people which means over 152 people can trek mountain gorillas in this park on a daily basis. Africa adventure vacations limited is one of the local tour companies that can organize a safari for you to visit Lake Bunyonyi and Bwindi impenetrable forest national park.
Trek mountain gorillas in Bwindi from Lake Bunyonyi
Tourists in Lake Bunyonyi intending to trek mountain gorillas in Bwindi impenetrable forest national park will have to move to lodges in or around Bwindi a day before the final trekking activity. This is done to enable the tourists to move to the briefing points early in the morning where they will meet the rangers.
On the day of mountain gorilla trekking, all tourists including those that came from Lake Bunyonyi will have to leave their beds every early in the morning and move the briefing points. At the briefing centers of different park sectors, the trekkers will be taught about the dos and don’ts of mountain gorilla trekking after which the rangers will lead them into the jungle.
While in the jungle trying to look for mountain gorillas, the trekkers are likely to see some of the park’s wildlife including elephants, buffaloes, duikers, giant forest hogs, monkeys, birds, and different plant species. When the trekkers spot the mountain gorilla family they have been looking for, they are given 1 hour to be around these primates, and it’s during this time that they will learn about their habits, watch them do daily activities, and take photos.
How much are the mountain gorilla trekking permits in Bwindi from Lake Bunyonyi?
Tourists from Lake Bunyonyi to Bwindi impenetrable forest national park will the mountain gorilla trekking permits at the same price that others from other parts of the world get them. The mountain gorilla trekking permits for Bwindi are printed out by the Uganda Wildlife Authority at a fee of $700 foreign non-residents, $600 foreign residents, and shs250,000 citizens of east Africa. Tourists from Lake Bunyonyi to Bwindi with valid gorilla trekking permits will be around mountain gorillas for 1 hour.
Other places to trek mountain gorillas in the world from Lake Bunyonyi.
However much Bwindi impenetrable forest national park has the highest number of mountain gorillas in the world, it’s not the only place where mountain gorilla trekking is done in. Tourists at Lake Bunyonyi have other places they can trek mountain gorillas and these include Mgahinga national park and volcanoes national park in Rwanda.
Mgahinga national park is located a few kilometers from Lake Bunyonyi so it’s the other place you can trek mountain gorillas in Uganda. The park is a home to 1 habituated mountain gorilla families which means if you are in Lake Bunyonyi or planning a safari at Lake Bunyonyi combined with mountain gorilla trekking to this park, you will need to book a gorilla permit in advance so as to be lucky among the 8 on that every day.
Tourists having a safari at Lake Bunyonyi can still cross to Kigali and visit the volcanoes national park. Tourists will have to move to Kigali city of which the journey will take 4-5 hours and then add on a 2-3 hours journey to volcanoes national park. there are 10 mountain gorilla families up for trekking in volcanoes national park for tourists from Lake Bunyonyi and others across the world.
What is the best time to trek mountain gorillas in Bwindi from Lake Bunyonyi?
This does not only apply to tourists in Lake Bunyonyi but to all people out there planning to visit Lake Bunyonyi for mountain gorilla trekking. The best time to visit the park is the dry season which occurs in December to February and June to September. During the above months, there is little and sometimes no rainfall, the trekking trails in the park are dry, the vegetation is thin giving clear views of the park animals and the roads leading the park are dry.
Tourists can still visit Bwindi for mountain gorilla trekking activities from Lake Bunyonyi in the rainy season simply to enjoy the huge discounts on accommodation facilities. During the rainy season, the roads from Lake Bunyonyi to Bwindi are impassable, the trekking trails are muddy and slippery, and the vegetation in the park is thick giving unclear views of the animals due to fog.