Minimum age for chimpanzee trekking in Kibale
Minimum age for chimpanzee trekking in Kibale: Chimpanzee trekking is the most done activity in Kibale forest national park and it attracts tourists of different ages from different parts of the world. As more people want to trek chimpanzees in Kibale forest national park they need to know that there is a minimum age for the activity
Minimum age for chimpanzee trekking in Kibale
The minimum age for chimpanzee trekking in Kibale forest national park is 12 years. The law is enforced by Uganda Wildlife Authority which is a government body managing and controlling park activities. Before purchasing a chimpanzee trekking permit, Uganda Wildlife Authority will request you to produce an original passport to confirm your date of birth.
Tourists that have children that are below the age of 12 years will not be allowed to trek chimpanzees in Kibale forest national park. Below are some of the reasons as to why the chimpanzee trekking age was set up.
Children are in most cases with communicable diseases such as flu and this can easily spread to chimpanzees that are vulnerable. Chimpanzees are close relatives to human beings and they do share 98% DNA with humans so any disease from human beings can get to the chimpanzees.
Another reason as to why children below the age of 12 years are not allowed to trek chimpanzees is because you can’t predict their reaction when they meet the chimpanzees. Children can fail to follow rules and regulations of the activity once they get around the chimps. They mind end up shouting while around the chimpanzees which is not allowed.
It’s believed that children might fail to complete the trekking activity or slow down the speed of trekkers. The search for chimpanzees in the jungle of Kibale takes 2-6 hours and it’s very hard for a child to get to the 3rd or 4th hour searching for the apes. To avoid disturbance from kids, children that are 12 years and above are not allowed to trek chimpanzees of Kibale forest national park.
Children below the age of 12 years are not allowed to trek chimpanzees in Kibale forest national park because of the behavior of the chimpanzees. There are times when chimpanzees charge and show threatening signs which can scare away children and make them run. The mature ones can follow the rules as taught at the briefing centre but the young ones might not.
Chimpanzees are wild meaning that they can move to any area of the park. When they move to very far areas looking for food, trekking with young ones might be hard because they are not physically fit to complete some hikes. Even children that are still young are located to groups that will use the easiest trails when trekking.
Children are very playful in nature and this is why they are not allowed to trek the chimpanzees in Kibale forest national park. They might have the capacity to complete the trekking but they might play along the way and even get off the trails which is not allowed when in the jungle. Trekkers must keep in the lines to make sure that they don’t get lost or get in danger from animals.
After reading the information above, you don’t have to feel bad that your children below the age of 12 won’t be allowed to trek chimpanzees. There are circumstances where a child below the age of 12 is allowed to trek chimpanzees. A child who will be 12 years by the time of the safari is allowed to book the chimpanzee trekking permit.
In order to qualify for this offer, as a parent you need to send the personal details of your child for the Uganda Wildlife Authority to confirm. The child must be physically fit and mature enough to complete the trekking activity. On the day of trekking, the child will be grouped with those that are going to use the easiest routes to trek.
When you are traveling to Kibale forest national park as a family or group and you have a child below the age of 12 years you need to know that your child won’t be allowed because they are below the minimum age for chimpanzee trekking. The children can’t even get a trekking permit from Uganda Wildlife Authority because they don’t sell to kids.
Travelers that are intending to have chimpanzee trekking in Kibale forest national park should book their chimpanzee permits early in advance of 3-4 months or even more. This is advised because permits sell out especially in the dry season when many visitors are visiting the park due to good weather conditions.
There are 72 chimpanzee permits every day in Kibale forest national park and each permit costs $200 for foreign non-residents, $150 for foreign residents, and UGX150,000 East African citizens. When booking a chimpanzee permit, a local tour operator or Uganda Wildlife Authority will ask you for personal details to confirm the date.