Mountain gorillas are one of the largest living primates in the world weighing up to 270 kgs. They are subspecies of eastern gorillas inhabiting the Virunga conservation area and Bwindi impenetrable forest national park. The DNA of mountain gorillas is about 99% similar to that of human beings making them close relatives after chimpanzees.
Mountain gorillas inhabit four national parks in the world the famous being Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park which harbors more than half of the population left in the wild. Other national parks are Volcanoes National Park of Rwanda, Mgahinga National Park of Uganda, and Virunga National Park of DR Congo.
Bwindi impenetrable forest national park attracts the highest number of tourists who are interested in seeing mountain gorillas in their natural habitats. This is because the park has a high population of these apes and many gorilla families have been habituated for visits. Over 20 mountain gorilla families are open for trekking while 1 is open for habituation.
Bwindi impenetrable forest national park covers a total area of 321 sq. km and this is divided into 4 parts which are called sectors. Rushaga and Nkuringo sectors are in the north of the park while Ruhija and Buhoma are found in the southern sector of the park. In each of the sectors are mountain gorillas which tourists can see at any time during trekking or habituation activities.
How to see mountain gorillas of Bwindi
The only way tourists can see mountain gorillas of Bwindi impenetrable forest national park is by taking part in gorilla trekking and habituation activities. These two activities allow tourists to go into the jungle where they search for where the mountain gorillas could be and spend one hour or four hours around mountain gorillas.
Mountain gorilla trekking in Bwindi impenetrable forest national park is a one hour activity around mountain gorillas while mountain gorilla habituation the trekkers are part of the four hour activity that makes these mountain gorillas get used to human presence around them.
How much does it cost to see mountain gorillas of Bwindi?
To see the mountain gorillas of Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park, a tourist must have a gorilla trekking or habituation permit. These documents are sold by the Uganda Wildlife Authority to licensed tour operators. Gorilla trekking permits cost $800 for foreign non-residents, $700 for foreign residents, $500 Rest of Africa and UGX300,000 citizens of East African member states.
The gorilla habituation permits are only 4 in Bwindi impenetrable forest national park and are a bit expensive because they allow tourists to be around mountain gorillas for 4 hours making them get used to human presence around them. A single gorilla habituation permit costs $1500 for foreign non-residents, $1000 for foreign residents, and UGX750,000 citizens of East African member states.
When to see mountain gorillas of Bwindi?
Mountain gorillas of Bwindi impenetrable forest national park found a permanent home in the thick vegetation cover and this means that tourists are able to see these apes at any time of the year they visit the park. For those looking for the best time to see mountain gorillas, it’s the dry season of June to September and December to February a period when the weather is favorable.
During the dry season, there is little or no rainfall within the park which means that the trekking trails stay dry and passable. The vegetation within the park is short and scattered allowing tourists to have a clear view of the mountain gorillas, best photography, and recording clear videos.
Tourists who get time during the rainy season can still visit Bwindi Impenetrable Forest to see mountain gorillas. Tourists should however know that there is plenty of rainfall and little sunshine within the park. This makes the trekking trails slippery, vegetation is tall with unclear views of the mountain gorillas and lastly, there are possibilities of finding muddy and slippery roads especially those from Kisoro and Kabale that are connecting to the park.