Bwindi Mountain Gorilla and Culture Flying Safari

Upon your arrival at Entebbe International Airport, you will be welcomed by our customer care representative for a meet and greet and thereafter, you will wait for the connecting domestic flight to Kihi airstrip near Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park. Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is located in the southwestern part of Uganda on the rim of the Rift Valley. The hillsides which are mist-covered are sheltered by one of the ancient and very biologically varied rainforests in Uganda that dates back to more than 25,000 years, comprising of about 400 varied plant species. More notably, this “impenetrable forest” in addition protects a predictable 320 population of mountain gorillas – approximately half of the population in the world, among which are a number of habituated groups that can be tracked by visitors. Bwindi is habitat to more than half the world’s population of Mountain Gorillas. Actually, there are over 300 mountain gorillas living here. Gorilla devotees for Uganda tour from different corners of the world to enjoy this Ultimate Safari in Uganda – Mountain Gorilla tours / tracking in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest. The word “Bwindi” means “darkness” and taking a hike in this magnificent forest will certainly unveil to you the reason why the forest was named so. You will also be in a position to quickly tell why the forest is actually regarded as Impenetrable. One is required to be realistically physically fit to take part in this mountain gorilla tracking / trekking adventure because it may involve climbing steep terrain. At Kihihi airstrip, you will be received by your allocated safari guide for a meet and greet and then be transferred to your booked lodge to check in for relaxation and till evening for dinner and overnight stay.

Today, wake up very early in the morning to have your backpack ready. Dress up in the recommended style for the best mountain gorilla trekking experience: long trousers, possibly khaki or jeans, a long-sleeved shirt, water-proof hiking shoes, a water-proof jacket, a round hut, and heavy-duty gloves. This is due to the unpredictable weather conditions in the forest, it can rain at any particular time of the day and then, for protection. Later, you will be served breakfast, get boxes of your packed lunch, and meet your safari guide to drive to the park information center for the pre-gorilla trekking briefing, where you will be informed about the dos and don’ts during gorilla trekking, what are the expectations during gorilla trekking, how to behave while in the presence of the gorillas, and many other things. You will be joined in groups of eight people per group and then be assigned a particular gorilla family for tracking, with two gun-baring rangers (for your security) and a tracker/guide with a machete to lead your way during the forest walk while searching for the magical mountain gorillas. After the pre-gorilla trekking experience, your group of 8 trekkers will continue into the dense forest, following various forest trails in search of the allocated mountain gorilla family. The time taken while searching for the mountain gorillas is not known, but it can be anywhere between 45 minutes and 6 hours depending on the location and the movements of your allocated gorilla family on that day. Therefore, you need to be mentally and physically fit and prepared for multiple hours of forest walking over uneven and steep terrain. So, it is better to ask to be assigned near a gorilla family if you are not fit to manage multiple hours in the forest. If you consider yourself fit, choosing a challenging family will be more fun because you will have the opportunity to encounter several wildlife species that live in this forest, and the longer you stay in the jungle, the more you will enjoy it and have opportunities to see many things.
During the forest walk in search of the mountain gorillas, you may encounter other wildlife species since Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park hosts numerous species, including chimpanzees, African elephants, l’Hoest’s monkey, and many others, plus birds, and your forest guide will keep on giving you information regarding everything that you will encounter that will make you enjoy your forest time. Once you meet your allocated mountain gorilla family, you will have one full hour of interacting with the magical mountain gorillas. You will be required to keep a low tone and you will be free to take as many photos as you want as well as ask as many questions as you want to your guides regarding the gorillas. Get ready to encounter Mr. Silverback, who is the head and determines the movements of the entire family. Mothers nurse the young ones and the juveniles entertain the family, which makes a stay with them so amazing. It is advisable to avoid looking directly into the eyes of the gorillas. In the event of a chance to be approached by the gorillas, it is always important to stay calm and quiet and let them pass because running away or making any kind of noise may disrupt the gorillas, causing them to behave wildly despite being habituated. The chances of seeing mountain gorillas in Uganda stand at 99% on any particular day. After an hour with the magical mountain gorilla, return to the starting point and receive your trekking certificates as a sign of appreciation for your contribution towards the conservation of the endangered mountain gorillas in Uganda, meet your safari guide, have some refreshments, drive back to your lodge to have lunch, refresh and then spend the evening at leisure till it is time to have dinner and an overnight.

Today is when you will enjoy the authentic Batwa culture experience around Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park. This day will be reserved for a day’s walk with the Batwa pygmies and learning more from them. It was during the early 1930s and later in the ’90s that major evictions of the Batwa pygmies were carried out in Bwindi’s impenetrable forest National Park. For thousands of years, the Batwa people lived peacefully in the dense forests found in these two national parks and survived by hunting and gathering fruit. Colonial rule by the British marked the beginning of the end of the Batwa reign in the forest. The colonial rulers and later governments of Uganda considered the Batwa to be poachers and saw an urgent need to protect the forests in Bwindi (Then known as Echuya) majorly the rare and endangered mountain Gorillas living therein. The first of the Batwa were forced to abandon their cultural heritage, customs, and way of life to live in selected camps and settlements outside the two forests/parks in the Districts of Kanungu, Kabale, and Kisoro. Despite great efforts by the government and several international and local organizations to help ensure a smooth transition to their new settlements, things haven’t gone according to plan. The Batwa have never adapted 100% to their new way of life and settlements. They have to deal with new diseases, drunkenness, and chronic poverty which is something they had never experienced considering that the forests provided for their every need. The Batwa/pygmies used to live in the Bwindi Forest before it was gazetted into a national park and they later formed the interesting Batwa cultural experience as a way to educate their children and the visitors about their tradition, culture, and heritage. Batwa cultural experience in Bwindi’s impenetrable national park starts with a guided nature walk in the forest where they used to live during the cultural experience, you will be accompanied by Batwa guides who will show you how they used to hunt small animals for food, their gathering skills, demonstrate how they used to live in small huts made of trees and grass, visit their traditional homestead, listen to their ancient stories and traditional songs, taste their traditional meals prepared by Batwa women, talk to the medicine men who treat different diseases with herbs, enjoy their traditional performances among others. Therefore, today we shall enjoy this cultural experience the whole day as you understand the authentic culture and behaviors of these people, here you will spend your time visiting the Batwa pygmy community for the community experience. Batwa pygmy people are the ancient Indigenous people around Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park who used to serve on the forest and it’s in wildlife species by hunting small game and gathering plants for both medicine and food purposes. This walk to the Batwa communities will expose you to firsthand information about the park and its wildlife inhabitants, they also have good stories about their lifestyle and entertaining cultural performances. You will also spend lunch time with the batwa as you immerse totally into their culture and later after this experience, you will return to your lodge for dinner and an overnight stay.

Today, wake up to have all your travel bags, be served breakfast, and then transfer to Kihihi airstrip to prepare for your domestic flight back to Entebbe airport. On arrival at Kajjansi airstrip, you will be warmly welcomed by our company representative then drive to Best Western Premier Hotel in Entebbe to check in to refresh and then stay at your own leisure until it is time to return to the airport to prepare for your return flight.