Size of Mgahinga national park

Size of Mgahinga national park: How big is Mgahinga national park is a question asked by so many travelers. Mgahinga national park as of today covers a total area of 33.9 sq. km and this is full of bamboo and afro montane types of vegetation. The 33.9 sq. km area of Mgahinga national park also includes part of the three Virunga mountains that are part of Uganda. The Virunga mountains found in 33.9 sq. km of Mgahinga national park are Gahinga, Muhabura, and Sabyinyo.

A total of 33.9 sq. km piece of land makes Mgahinga Gorilla park the smallest national park in Uganda. The smallest national park in Uganda is full of wonders and it does attract tourists that pay more revenue than other parks. Mgahinga Gorilla park is a habitat for mountain gorillas which are not seen anywhere in the country apart from here and Bwindi impenetrable forest national park.

Mgahinga national park is located in the southwestern part of Uganda in one district named Kisoro. Mgahinga national park is located at the extreme end of the Ugandan border with Rwanda and DR Congo. It’s part of the Virunga conservation area which as other national parks like the Virunga national park of DR Congo and the Volcanoes national park of Rwanda.

Mgahinga national park was so big in the beginning but because of the increasing population, the park did reduce to what it is today. A big thanks to the government of Uganda for gazetting the area to protect the remaining vegetation by chasing away the people that were living around there. When the population around areas of Mgahinga national park increased, people cut down the trees for settlement, farming, firewood, and charcoal among others. All this led to the reduction of the area in Mgahinga national park.

Mgahinga national park was occupied by the Batwa people who settled inside the jungle alongside different wildlife animals and the neighboring areas were occupied by the Bakiga and Bafumbira people. The Batwa inside Mgahinga national park could carry out bush burning which destroyed vegetation and homes of so many wild animals. They could also carry out poaching where they would kill different animals for meat, medicine, and sale.

The communities around Mgahinga Gorilla park which include Bakiga, and Bafumbira used to cut the vegetation for firewood and create land for cultivation which kept on reducing the size of Mgahinga national park. As soon as the government of Uganda gazetted the national park, all this stopped and the national park stayed at the size of 33.9 sq. km.

The locals around the national park were not allowed to cut down the vegetation or even carry out poaching within the park. The Batwa people who had their homes inside Mgahinga national park were chased out immediately to go and settle in other areas. They decided to settle on the outskirts of the park because they never wanted to go so far away from their homes.

As of today, tourists who want to visit Mgahinga for cultural that group of people that lived inside Mgahinga national park can organize community tours led by the locals. During the community tours, it’s when you get a chance to visit different homes and interact with the locals. If you meet an elderly person, they will tell you stories of long ago for example how they survived in the jungle, the way they dressed, food they ate, and how they killed animals among others.

For tourists that have been asking about the size of Mgahinga national park, I guess you have gotten the answer which is 33.9 sq. km. Mgahinga national park is the smallest national park in Uganda with a total land area of 33.9 sq. km. The national park comprises vegetation covers like bamboo, Afromontane, montane, tree heathers, and montane woodland which are home to different wildlife species the famous being the mountain gorillas and golden monkeys.