FACTS ABOUT GORILLA TREKKING IN UGANDA/RWANDA. A gorilla trek within the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest is a highlight of all visits done in Uganda and certainly mountain gorillas are the major reason as to why very many people visit Uganda. On the other hand, Uganda is recognized as a very safe and more so secure country in which you can see these Gorillas in a serene surroundings. Find information about gorilla trekking, how to acquire a permit with AUT-SAFARIS. aut-safaris When to Go? Although tracking mountain gorillas can be conducted all year round in these two countries due to the somewhat damp seasons experienced by the national parks in which these gorillas stay, the majority of tourists prefer visiting from June to September as well as from December up to February. You can visit Bwindi at any time of the year, the low season calls for cheaper gorilla permit price with the deduction of $250 per permit. Which Company Should I use for Gorilla Tracking? The credible companies: in Uganda the most reliable ground tour and travel company is African Unique Tours and Safaris. aut-safaris, specialises in mountain gorilla tracking and wild life safaris in the two countries mentioned above. Where to Stay? Choosing the best safari lodge or accommodation will depend on how much you can afford. Some lodges charge as high as, $900 on a full board plan while the budget ones can as low as between $70 and $100 for a double room. It’s all about the facilities, location, food, services and so much more. Among the luxury include Clouds Lodge, Buhoma Lodge, Gorilla Forest Camp/Gorilla sanctuary, Gorilla resort and Mahogany Springs. For the budget traveller, Nshongi Gorilla Resort is what we recommend. How much does a gorilla Safari Cost? Of course, AUT-SAFARIS will give you quotes, roughly the cheapest gorilla safari should have a price of about $3,113 for an individual tour or between $2,344-$1,763 from 2-6 people sharing mixture of Luxury/Standard accommodation for 3Days Rwanda Itinerary or 4Days Uganda Itinerary. Book in Uganda during low season between April and May any year and get a discount of $250 per person per permit. How to get a gorilla trekking permit in Uganda/Rwanda. Within Uganda, Gorilla trekking is conducted in Bwindi National Park or in Mgahinga National Park. But because of the inconsistency of gorillas in Mgahinga, majority of the sold permits are for Bwindi impenetrable national park. In Uganda, every gorilla permit goes for $600 while from May to April 2024 they will go for $350. On a single day, nearly 72 people travel into Bwindi to see gorillas and only 8 people are allowed to see a gorilla family. We strongly encourage you to book your gorilla permit with a safari agent especially Aut-Safaris at info@aut-safaris, the most prominent mistake is to book a gorilla family which is far away from your choice of accommodation but Aut-Safaris will efficiently help you to book the right hotel/lodge to the nearby gorilla group allocation.! The routes to Bwindi and its various regions are often tricky, this is a remote area. If you would like to do the gorilla trek on your own so as to save costs, you might end up incurring more. Aut-Safari guides have been trained to help you with this. What to Wear? Gorilla Trekking gear guide, Good quality walking boots if trying any hikes or even climbs, warm layers of cloth for the cold evenings and clothing for wet weather remember it becomes cold and wet at this high altitude. More on aut-safaris Background Information on Mountain Gorilla in Uganda/Rwanda –Behaviour, History, Facts of Mountain Gorillas, Predators, Habitat plus Diet: The endangered impressive Mountain Gorillas in Uganda/Rwnda don’t live in any zoo across the planet since they cannot survive in detention and thus there aren’t any known mountain gorillas surviving within zoos. These can only be found and seen in Africa, in just three countries including Uganda, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda. There are approximately 786 Mountain Gorillas remaining in the world shared with the only three blessed countries mentioned above. When you talk about Gorillas imaginative thoughts cross anyone’s mind; with thoughts of Tarzan movies and King Kong. Gorillas weren’t known about by the western world until 1902. Rwanda then a German colony, Captain von Berenge was mountaineering Mount Sabyinyo on the side of Rwanda together with his friends and at 9300 foot-level where they camped, they spotted a group of Mountain Gorillas and there he shot 2 of them although managed to retrieve just one. The victim was a young-male approximately five years of age, not too big at 220 pounds, however larger than all apes the Germans had ever seen. The Bones plus skin were later forwarded to Berlin and there it was acknowledged as a mountain gorilla. Nobody had imagined that gorillas could stay in a high and colder environment than West -Africa. The news of gorillas attracted hunters to the region, especially within Congo and there several Mountain Gorillas where shot and others captured. Actually Prince Wilhelm from Sweden shot fourteen mountain gorillas in an expedition within this region done from 1920 to 1921. The Belgians launched a Mountain Gorilla preservations program and later followed the English who did it in Uganda. Within Uganda for several years no one was allowed to receive visitors to see these Mountain Gorillas. Within Kisoro, Walter Baumgärtel was offered permission to establish visits for tourists to his beautiful Traveller’s Rest Inn, a facility where up to date you can stay within Uganda. Baumgärtel wrote an interesting Book “Up among the Mountain Gorillas” which actually is about his personal encounters with the tranquil giant apes in southern Uganda. It is a great book with reference to a man, the attractiveness of the Uganda’s countryside and an inn, and generally about the fascinating Mountain Gorillas. Actually Dian Fossey lived there on a frequent basis similar to George Schaller a many other renowned personalities. The majority of Gorillas which you may have seen in a zoo are the lowlands gorillas of western Africa, and the mountain gorillas are actually a subspecies known as Gorilla beringei beringei. These can only be found in the wilderness of the Virunga highlands of Rwanda within Volcano Park found in Rwanda, Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park as well as Mgahinga Gorilla National Park in Uganda, and the Virunga National Park found in the Democratic Republic of Congo. These parks are found only 48 km from each other. Within Uganda as well as Rwanda these parks can be accessed easily, while in the Democratic Republic of Congo due to the rebel activities that happened, there was a probable threat to the lives of visitors. There are more than seven hundred and eighty six mountain gorillas in the whole world. Uganda hold close to half of their total population, and the majority of them live in Uganda the rest in Rwanda and Congo. Fortunately the Gorillas are growing in numbers because of the protection they are offered from the government of Uganda and Rwanda trough IGCP and Gorilla Doctors which also included efforts of the adjacent communities to the parks to whom part of the USD 600/750 fee of Gorilla tracking permits charged from foreign visitors some percentage goes back to the community developments, eg Health centres are built, Good water tanks, Schools, extra. Common Questions. Are Mountain Gorillas Dangerous Species? Will they hurt me during the trek? The answer to the question is NO….NO…. NO…. NO. Visitors into Bwindi Impenetrable Forest/Volcanoes National Park frequently inquire if mountain gorillas are dangerous? Although dominant and very strong, these are gentle as well as shy, and in addition the mountain gorillas which visitors see within Uganda/Rwanda have been habituated. In other words they are habituated to people, which process that takes close to 2 years. Dian Fossey actually stayed visited and habituated mountain gorillas for many years and was not tortured nor hammed by gorillas which is however the money collected that survival of this endangered species, and seen their number increase over the recent years. While mountain gorillas are threatened they do attack so as to protect their very own. When different Mountain Gorilla groups meet, there is a fight between the leader Silverbacks to death. Recently 2 Silverbacks fought within Democratic Republic of Congo and the rangers had to intervene. Mountain gorillas exist in groups which differ in size from 2 – 30 or 40, however commonly in groups of 10. There is no specific mating season while babies are born through the year. The Males begin breeding at around 15 years while the females start giving birth between 10 and 12 years. Females can give birth after every 2 to 3 years giving birth to 4 – 6 offspring through their lifetime. Males leave their group at about 11 years of age, while a little over half of the females will leave their group. Mountain gorillas communicate through sounds like roars, grunts and shouts, and 25 sounds currently have been documented by researchers Mountain Gorilla Predators: The supreme threat to the Mountain Gorillas is human encroachment for settlement around them. previously there was a slash as well as burn mentality however, through an educational program by the Uganda Wildlife Authority and Rwanda Development Board plus cash motivation to the community through the tourism industry that the gorillas within Uganda/Rwanda are today no longer as threatened by various poachers as it was in the DRC. Additionally they are threatened by various diseases transmitted by human visitors into the park, and for that reason the Uganda Wildlife Authority/Rwanda Development Board together with IGCP and Gorilla Doctors has set up strict rules to prevent spreading of such diseases though once happens ie in case of any disease or accidentally fall in a snare in the park boarders in search for antelope and other small animals they are treated as required. Read as many as you can. Aut-Safaris recommendation. aut-safaris
Posted on: Sat, 22 Nov 2014 10:29:49 +0000
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