How long is gorilla trekking in Bwindi?

How long is gorilla trekking in Bwindi? Would you like to know how long you can take while on a gorilla trekking safari in Bwindi? In this article, I’m giving you an account of how long you should expect to take while trekking gorillas in Bwindi National park –Uganda.

Gorilla trekking involves an activity whereby tourists hike through the thick forests in search of endangered mountain gorillas. Mountain gorillas were not endangered as they listed now by IUCN. The move to list them as endangered has yielded results with their population increasing daily. The recent mountain gorilla census revealed that there are only 1063 mountain gorillas in the whole world.

Mountain gorillas are only located in three countries of Uganda, Rwanda, and the Democratic Republic of Congo. The parks in these countries that habit mountain gorillas include Bwindi and Mgahinga national parks in Uganda, Virungas National park in Congo, and Volcanoes in the Republic of Rwanda.

Half of these endangered mountain gorillas are situated in Uganda Bwindi Impenetrable forest National Park and others are located in the remaining three national parks. For any tourist to participate in gorilla trekking activity in either of the above destinations you need to buy a gorilla trekking permit.

In Uganda, a gorilla trekking permit costs United States dollars 700 per visitor which became effective July 2020. In Rwanda, the cost of a gorilla trekking permit costs United States dollars 1500 and in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the cost of a gorilla trekking permit goes to the dollars of the united states 400. Booking the permit in advance is necessary because of the highest demand for gorilla tracking activity especially in Uganda and Rwanda destinations.

You can spend time from 20 minutes to 6 hours trekking the mountain gorillas in Bwindi Impenetrable forest National Park. The time spend while tracking endangered mountain gorillas in Bwindi Impenetrable forest National park depends on majorly two factors which include the side or location of the gorilla family being trekked in Bwindi and the fattiness of the visitor. Importantly, all visitors for gorilla trekking in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National park are allocated only one hour to spend with a trekked gorilla family once it is found.

One of the major reasons as to why visitors are restricted only 1 hour with the gorillas is that these gorillas are endangered with their population now stands at 1063 in the whole world. Diseases from humans such as flue, Covid-19, and ebola endanger these gorillas since they share 98% with humans. It is therefore necessary to limit the chances of human disease transmission to gorillas by restricting the time spent with them. This explains why gorilla trekking is restricted for only one hour in Bwindi impenetrable forest National Park.

Spending one hour with gorillas allows mountain gorillas to follow their routine activities without altering their behaviors. Trekking mountain gorillas in Bwindi Impenetrable forest National starts as early as six o’clock in the morning and you will have to trek for 2-4hours in the jungle. Remember, gorilla’s wake up early and spend the whole day moving therefore spending more time with them will have hampered their daily routine of activities such as feeding, copulation, and nesting. A reason why gorilla trekking is restricted to one hour in Bwindi Impenetrable forest National Park.

Any time you spend on gorilla trekking in Bwindi Forest Park no matter how long it is, you will get the first feeling of these endangered species as this experience cannot disappoint. Book with us for more gorilla trekking information in Uganda and other destinations of Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo.