Gorilla Trekking Seasons in Uganda
Gorilla Trekking Seasons in Uganda: If you love wildlife or have heard of Uganda, you know by now that Uganda is home to over half of the world’s population of the endangered mountain gorillas making the country a tourist hub for wildlife enthusiasts and travellers who would love to see these primates in their natural habitats.
Well, the good news is mountain gorilla trekking is done whole year-round in the two mountain gorilla habitats that are in the country that is Bwindi National Park and Mgahinga National Park. Mountain gorilla trekking gives you the opportunity to experience the mountain gorillas for one hour in their natural habitat.
Though mountain gorilla trekking is done whole year-round in the country, mountain gorilla trekking is better done in some seasons than in other seasons. Mountain gorillas are found in mountainous forests meaning to get to them you need to trek or climb up these forested habitats for you see the mountain gorillas and these treks can only happen when the trekking trails are in a state that facilitates trekking; meaning they are trek able.
Different seasons in the country affect these trekking trails differently and below we highlight when the trails are trek able or rather more easily trek able. It’s important to note that Uganda experiences two major seasons that is the wet season and the dry season. These seasons are further divided into two i.e. the short and long wet and dry season.
The short seasons are October to November for the wet season and December to February for the dry seasons. The long seasons are March to May for the wet season and June to August for the dry seasons.
The wet seasons because they involve a good amount of rains they definitely make the gorilla trekking trails wet and slippery, though they are passable and trek able they are difficult to navigate and the difficulty in navigating them can make your gorilla trekking experience quite strenuous; however it will still be memorable.
The wet seasons because of the rains still, they chances of the rains finding on a trek during the rainy seasons are quite high and when the rains find you a trek, you normally find shade for some time or if you are brave you will just contribute in the showers. But this whole rain experience will further make you trekking experience cumbersome especially if you get wet and have to move in wet clothing and with wet luggage. Though when you are trekking in the wet season you’re always advised to wear waterproof clothing because it’s inevitable to not encounter the rain.
Also because of the rains your trekking experience may be longer than the normal 6 to 7 hours and this may be tiresome for you especially if you have other activities to do after the trek.
That said, trekking in the wet season may have its challenges however it’s not impossible, it can be done and it can be as memorable.
During the dry seasons, the trekking trails are dry and quite easy to navigate, so trekkers find it easier to make the climb up the mountainous trails to find the gorillas. Though since the weather is hot, you need to carry loads of water to take you through the trek, the sun can shine during the dry season, you can easily faint during the trek.
Also because the sun is out, there are slim chances of rain pours that would interrupt your trek or even prolong your trek longer than the anticipated time. People that trek during the dry season normally finish the trekking experience in time and are able to do other activities in the park like nature walks or community visits.
Generally, people prefer to trek during the dry season ( best gorilla trekking seasons in Uganda ) because of the few complications associated with the dry seasons however the dry seasons are the most experience to trek, the prices for all the safari associated things like accommodation, transport, meals, permits and many more are always high during the dry season, so trekkers in the dry season spend quite a lump sum of money for their experience. The other thing about the dry season is that availability of permits and all the other safari things is quite low, because of the volumes of people booking safaris so for travellers who wish to trek in the dry season, it’s very apparent that they should make their bookings way in advance.
The wet seasons, on the other hand, are the cheapest and less crowded seasons for trekkers, the prices for all the safari related things are quite low and very affordable, the demand is low so availability of the various safari items is also high, meaning in the rain season you can book as late as 2 to 3 weeks in advance and still have a trekking safari because of the few numbers of people that have safaris in those seasons.
That all said, the ball remains in your hands to decide when you would love to take this lifetime experience of mountain gorilla trekking in Uganda, knowing that any time you wish to your able to trek.
