Is it possible to trek mountain gorillas in Rwanda and Uganda? Yes you can trek mountain gorillas in Rwanda and Uganda any time of the year you want because the mountain gorilla parks are open to the public all year. Mountain gorillas are found in Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda and Bwindi national park and Mgahinga National Park in Uganda. Though Bwindi National Park has almost half of the world’s population of mountain gorillas, the three parks combined have almost three quarters of the gorillas’ population.
So if you wish to trek gorillas in both countries, you will either choose to trek one country on one safari and another on another safari. Or you can choose to trek the gorillas on the same safari trip you come from Rwanda to Uganda or Uganda to Rwanda.
If you are trekking in both countries on the same safari trip, you have to book permits for the respective parks with close dates to each other. If you liaise with your tour consultant to help you with the booking the permits it will be easier for them to get the close dated permits.
For this safari, you should also obtain and east African visa to help you more between the countries.
Depending on your preference you can start your trek from Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda then move to Uganda’s Bwindi National Park or mgahinga national park; you can even have it vice versa.
Either way on your visit to any of the three parks you will definitely be assured of a super mountain gorilla trekking experience of your time.
The trekking rituals at the different parks in all countries are the same or similar and include the following:-
- You arrive at the park the day before your intended trekking experience
- On the trekking day, you will be up early, have you breakfast, get you trekking gear, a snack and water and then head out to the park headquarters where you will receive a trekking brief before the trek. The brief is to prepare you mentally for the trek ahead and also at the brief the rules and guidelines of the trek are communicated. You are placed in a group with 7 other people to make 8 people with a ranger who will take you into the forest for your mountain gorilla trekking experience.
- You will enter the forest and ascent to where the gorillas are. This may take between 2 to 4 hours before you can get to the gorillas and when you get to them you will have an hour in their presence watching them, taking pictures and just learning more about them.
Gorilla - After the one hour you will then descend the forest back to your accommodation or on to another activity; depending on the time you come out of the forest.
- The rules for mountain gorilla trekking in Rwanda and Uganda are similar if not the same and they are:- not trekking when you are sick – especially when your disease is communicable, keeping a 7m distance between you and the gorillas when you are in their presence, not using flash photography, resisting from touching and feeding the gorillas, not coughing, sneezing and smoking in front of the gorillas, not staring in the gorilla eyes, not littering or damaging the gorilla habitat and respecting the one hour time limit in the presence of the gorillas.
Because you will be moving in between Uganda and Rwanda for your trek, the whole experience may take you up to 5 or 6 days including the travel between countries. However, if you are doing each trekking experience at independent times each trekking experience may be 3 days maximum including the travel.
