Rushura trail Bwindi

Rushura trail Bwindi: Hiking through the Rushura trail Bwindi is one of the real adventures within Bwindi impenetrable forest national park. Bwindi is located in the southwestern part of Uganda and Rushura trail is one of the interesting trails in the park taking you up to the top of Rushura hill. Bwindi tropical forest provides very impressive nature walks using different trails and Rushura is one of them.

Nature walks in Bwindi impenetrable national park are in most cases combined with gorilla trekking and gorilla habituation activities and they are done to enable travelers to explore the area on foot. Nature walks in Bwindi forest enable tourists to view different wildlife species, birds, and physical features.

Rushura trail Bwindi is one of the strenuous trails in the park found in Buhoma sector of the park. Rushura is a 3-4 hour trail and it takes tourists up to Rushura hill which is the highest point in Buhoma sector. The trail starts from Buhoma headquarters and takes you through the thick forest of Bwindi up to Rushura hill where you have great views of the park and the surrounding areas such as Virunga volcanoes, mountain Rwenzori, and the western rift valley arm.

Along Rushura trail in Bwindi, tourists can encounter different mammals in Bwindi such as bushpigs, bushbucks, duikers, giant forest hogs, elephants, buffaloes, chimpanzees, mountain gorillas, and much more. Bird lovers will encounter different bird species among which include African cuckoo hawk, marabou stork, southern pochard, African cuckoo hawk, African jacana, olive pigeon, African hobby, handsome francolin, red chested owlet, black bee-eater, horus swift, rock martin and grew crowned crane among others.

What to pack

When going for Rushura trail hiking in Bwindi, bring along waterproof hiking shoes, long cotton stocks, a pair of gaiters, long-sleeved pants, long-sleeved shirts, gardening gloves, a hat, sunscreen, sweater, light backpack, insect repents, a camera, a pair of binoculars, energy giving snacks and a drinking water bottle among others.

Best time

The appropriate time to visit Buhoma region for both Bwindi Gorilla trekking and hiking through Rushura trail is the dry season which occurs from June to September and December to February. The dry season is characterized by little or no rainfall that keeps the trail dry and passable, the vegetation is short and thin with great views of the mountain gorillas and the roads connecting to the park are passable.

Travelers can still visit Buhoma sector and hike through Rushura trail in the rainy season of March to May and October to November but they should know that the trail is muddy and slippery and this affects the speed of moving, the vegetation is tall with unclear views of the animals and birds and the roads leading to the park are in poor conditions.

Accessing Bwindi

Travelers can get to Rushura trail by visiting Buhoma sector of the park and this is accessed by road transport or air transport.  By road transport, travelers from Entebbe/kampala can access the region in 9-10 hours via Masaka, Mbarara, Kabale, Kanungu. Travelers from Kigali Rwanda can access Ruhija using Cyanika border in Kisoro or Katuna border in Kabale where they connect to the park and the whole journey takes 4-5 hours.

Where to stay

Travelers that are visiting Bwindi for different activities among which include hiking Rushura trail must book accommodation that is located within Ruhija region. Ruhija sector has lots of accommodation facilities where travelers visiting the area can stay and these range from budget to mid-range to luxury options they include Bakiga Lodge, Ruhija Gorilla Safari Lodge, Ruhija Community Rest Camp, Gorilla Mist Camp, Agandi Lodge, Broadbill Forest Camp, Gift of Nature Lodge, Chameleon Hill Lodge, Ecomarvels Gorilla Lodge, Ruhija Gorilla Friends Resort, Trekkers Tavern cottages, and Cuckoo Land Tented Lodge among others.