Things to do in Rushaga after gorilla trekking: Rushaga is one of the four sectors of Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park a home to endangered mountain gorillas. Mountain gorillas are the main attractions within Bwindi bringing thousands of travelers from different parts of the world. The 321 sq. km piece of land is divided into 4 sectors among which include Rushaga.
Rushaga sector of Bwindi impenetrable forest national park brings the highest number of tourists interested in seeing mountain gorillas on a single day. The sector has the highest number of mountain gorilla families and among these include one Bikingi gorilla family which is open for habituation activities.
Gorilla trekking is the most done activity within Rushaga sector of Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park. Tourists who intend to visit this sector can however be part of other activities if they have time to stay around the park for a few days. Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park has a lot of attractions to explore and while in Rushaga tourists can engage in different park activities to see more the sector has to offer.
What to do in Rushaga after gorilla trekking
Gorilla habituation
Rushaga is the only sector in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park where tourists can do gorilla habituation. While on a gorilla trekking safari in Rushaga, trekkers can carry out habituation to get a different experience. Gorilla trekking is just one hour around the mountain gorillas but for habituation, trekkers get to have four hours with the apes making them get used to human presence around them.
Tourists that are intending to go gorilla trekking in Rushaga sector of Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park need to know that there is gorilla habituation within this sector. As they buy the gorilla trekking permits they can also purchase the habituation permits which are documents needed to participate in the four hour activity with mountain gorillas.
Gorilla habituation in Rushaga sector goes through the same procedures as gorilla trekking. Early in the morning, a maximum of 4 people is briefed to go visit a semi-habituated mountain gorilla family. A team of rangers, doctors, and researchers does go into the jungle with the trekkers to search for the Bikingi gorilla family.
To locate the gorilla family for habituation can take 2 to 5 hours and time taken depends on the location of the gorilla group, the nature of trekking trails, and the speed of trekkers. While searching for the mountain gorillas, trekkers get to see other attractions of the park like animals and birds. When the gorillas are found, trekkers become part of the four hour activities that make these apes get used to human presence around them.
Bird watching
More than 350 bird species have been recorded in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park. With Rushaga being part Bwindi, many of the bird species can be spotted within that sector if one takes part in bird watching activities. Bird watching in Rushaga can be carried out with well-trained birders to get opportunities to spot as many bird species as they can.
Birding in Rushaga is carried out using different birding trails to enable birders spot as many bird species as they can. Birds of Rushaga include African wood owl, grey cuckoo shrike, Kivu ground thrush, mountain yellow warbler, bar-tailed trogon, shelley’s crimson wing, handsome francolin, doherty’s bush shrike, regal sunbird, strip-breasted tit, strange weaver, crowned hornbill, and African green pigeon to mention but a few.
Batwa cultural trails
Batwa pygmies are among the shortest people living in Uganda. Tourists can meet them in Kisoro and Kabale which are areas close to Bwindi and Mgahinga National Park. These people used to live in the forest until the government evicted them when it was gazetting the land to protect mountain gorillas which were endangered at the time.
On a gorilla trekking safari in Rushaga sector, tourists can take a visit to the Batwa communities to know more about them. The elders will tell stories of how they lived in the jungle and how they survived. They will show how they used to make fire from sticks. They have groups of traditional dancers who entertain through dance and drama.
When to visit the Rushaga sector of Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park
The driest months of the year are the best times to visit Rushaga sector of Bwindi impenetrable forest national park. June to September and December to February are the best times to visit Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park. These months have good weather that is characterized by little rainfall and plenty of sunshine.
During the dry season, in Rushaga the trekking trails will be dry and passable which allows trekkers to locate the gorillas on time, the vegetation is short and scattered giving tourists a clear view of the wild animals, and roads leading to the park will be in a very good condition. Travelers can still visit Bwindi during the rainy season for the park is always open.
The rainy season in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park happens from March to May and October to November. These months have a lot of rainfall and little sunshine which affect some of the activities within the area. Trekking/walking trails within the jungle are muddy and slippery, vegetation is tall with unclear views of some of the attractions and the roads to the park tend to be in poor conditions.