Bwindi Impenetrable National Park

Bwindi has unique creatures the mountain gorillas with a wild range of bird species

Gorillas and Birding with Avian Safaris at Bwindi

It was fantastic. Very well organised. A great balance between getting us the best views/interaction with the gorillas and the gorilla's welfare and status as wild animals.

Birding was a bit tough cos the birds tended to stay at the canopys but still not too bad. If someone could have controlled the rain it would be fantastic but as it is it wasn't too bad!

Unforgettable opportunity to see mountain gorillas

On May 29th, 2008, I visited Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. By that time I had been in Uganda for three weeks, spending most of my time around Kabale and lake Bunyonyi - a lake suitable named after a 'place of many little birds'. Suitable, because the most colorful and cheeky little birds I've ever seen gladly helped me finish my fruit-breakfast in the morning, when I stayed at the lake. But I could not withstand the temptation to visit Bwindi - I wanted to see the gorillas with my own eyes! Even though the entrance price to the park was steep at the time, $500,- I decided that my chances of seeing these wonderful animals might be very slim if didn't take this opportunity. What are the odds of me going to Uganda again, when there is an entire world to explore? So why not see everything I want to see, while I can?
While in Kabale, I had made a few friends, and one of them helped me get a permit. If you want to avoid tour operators, getting a permit can be difficult if you're on a schedule. Only a few people a day are allowed to track the gorillas, so it could be a couple of days before you can get one. Since I was in Uganda for a month, I had that luxury, but if you're visiting for a short period of time or if you have planned your entire trip, better be safe than sorry and use a tour operator. In my case, my friend offered to drive me there on his cousin's motorcycle if I paid for the fuel - which is what we did. That in itself was an adventure, as paved roads are few and far between. We left late, and after it had started to rain, we found the roads be very muddy. We actually fell once and had to push the bike up a hill a couple of times, but I was so excited, it never felt dangerous. It took us 6 hours and we arrived after dark. But we were there! We found a place to stay and sleep and had a late dinner - goat meat was all that was available, but it tasted great - even for a vegetarian ;) The next morning I went to the UWA meeting place and heard some stories about what it was like. The gorillas move around a lot, so trackers are sent out to find them, before the tracking groups are sent on their way. The day before, the gorillas had stayed close to the camp area, and the group had found the gorillas within the hour. You're allowed to stay a maximum of one hour with the group, so as not to upset them, meaning this group had come back early. No such 'luck' for me, I am happy to say. We got word where the gorillas were, and our group was taken by car to the edge of the forest, where the trackers met us. The gorillas had moved on, so the tracking became a long, long hike - our entire trip, start to finish, took 7 hours, although that includes the drive and an hour with the gorillas. Yes, we did find them, after several hours following gorilla droppings, navigating narrow paths and steep climbs. Not everyone in our group was prepared for this, unfortunately. An elderly man had come with his daughters to 'see the waterfalls', but since that excursion was full, they had opted for the gorilla tracking. On sneakers. Not a great idea, especially since the man himself was not really fit enough for the climbs - the guides had to help him up and down every hill, sometimes one person pushing, the other pulling. To his credit - he never complained once, unlike his daughters, who were ready to go back after an hour or so, and eventually even demanded to be taken back - which was not an option. The lesson here: come prepared. Dress for the occasion, and do not try this if you are not up for a (very) long hike & climb on slippery forest trails and hills. This is not an exaggeration - holding on to tall grass to not slide down a hill was part of the journey. And on this day, the gorilla's had quickly moved out of the forest, so we did not go very deep into it, (unfortunately). But do not let this scare you off, either: that hill was the last one between us and the gorilla's, and we could see them from afar. We had come out of the forest, as the gorillas had moved to the banana plantation to feast on the leaves of the banana trees, after climbing down that hill, crossing a stream, we went up the next hill to the group of gorilla's (the H-group). We were told be as quiet as possible, no shouting, no wild gesturing or anything of the kind, and of course, we paid attention. We walked up a trail that brough us about 30 meters or so above the group, a great vantage point for quiet observation. Or so we thought. Part of the group of gorillas was actually a bit further up the hill than we were, putting us basically in the middle. We heard some huffing and grunting from behind the bushes, and after moving about a bit (carefully) I spotted one gorilla lying on his belly, staring at us. He seemed content enough to stay there though. Unlike the gorilla that suddenly broke out of the bushes and make a mock charge at our group, me being nearest. It was a female, with a baby on her back, which was no doubt the reason for her anger. Of course I instinctively backed away a couple of paces, even though she only took a step or two in my direction, I still think she was close enough to touch had I stayed where I was. She quickly moved down the hill to the rest of the group, and after calming down, we settled in for our hour of watching. The silverback, the leader of the group, was down there, climbing a tree to rip off leaves, then climbing down again with his massive, massive body to sit down and eat. A couple of meters before him, two very young gorilla's played on a log of wood, climbing, falling down, having fun, and the baby gorilla on the mother's back that had just passed us, was groping at leaves as his mom moved about. I just sat there, taking pictures, and sometimes just quietly contemplating life in general and the beauty of what I saw around me.
Since we were already almost out of the forest, the trip back was fairly easy. The cars picked us up and brough us back, and it was all over...

Was it worth it? Don't even ask. I am writing this in 2014, 6 years after I went, and it is still one of the dearest memories I have. I was reminded of my trip because a friend is in Uganda right now, and I just wish I could join her. Writing down my experience is as close as I can get.. for now ;)

Gorillazzzzz!

If you want to see mountain gorillas I believe this is the best park to go and see them. I went on Sunday 7th September 2014 to one of the entrance points (sorry I forgot the exact location of entrance) of Bwindi Impenetrable Forest NP. The group was small, arount 5-7 tourists. Before the track the guide/ranger gave us tourist/trackers a good introduction on what to expect and the do's and don'ts. Thereafter the guides were informed by the rangers where our gorilla family was found. Because they are walking, foraging and eating, they are not fixed in one spot. Then the tracking began. I am not a sporty and I was a bit scared now and then climbing up and down the slopes of the mountain, but they all provided us with a stick and you could choose a porter to carry your daypack and to assist you. I have to admit that I was holding the (female?!) porter's hand for almost the whole trip, but they all really helped out: the guides, the porters and the rangers. It was a very nice experience, they were all very professional and we managed to find the gorillas after around 1-1,5 hours hike. We saw them eating tree bark and sitting together. They (the gorillas) saw us, but for the main part they simply ignored us and allowed us to be in there habitat. We also saw them swing in a tree and sit far above us. After we had spend 1 hour with the gorillas we hiked back through the forest. The silverback said his goodbyes to us with a big fart :-). After around 2 hours hiking we came at a parking lot where our drivers were waiting for us with the cars. It was a well organized and wonderful experience and we were all rewarded with a certificate :-). We were lucky with the weather, because during the whole track there was no rain. Nice experience!

definitely a place of outstanding beauty, The Gorillas are the main attraction here but again there is such a diverse range of species you can't fail to be impressed.

Fantastic place, very geared around the gorillas

The hardest hike I have ever done-- beating through thorns and dense bush, it took us 4 hours to find the gorillas -- wow, it was worth it. Incredible to see them lounging and foraging and eating and sleeping. A mother and tiny baby, a silverback, a few females, another competing male. So docile, in general.. Really incredible.

I didn't have money for the gorilla trekking but decided to go to Bwindi for hiking. Even without trekking gorillas I had a great time in the park. It is gorgeous.

Dream coming true Gorilla interaction experience

We planned this trip around the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest Mountain - Gorillas and was expecting wet weather and muddy dirt roads and slippery hike thru the undergrowth. The Torrential rains was not disappointing the day before the hike - I was drenched within 2-3 meter when running from the reception to the bungalow - but the next morning we experience a road that was partially washed away with mudslides that covered a 60-75% of the road on the uphill side of the road and cave in scenarios on the down hill side of the road - Needless to say that it was not impossible to uncontrolled heading down hill if it was not for our experienced Driver ( Tolbert from Encounter Arica Safari's ) with the permanent 4 x 4 Hi- Ace bus that take us up ( slipping and sliding) to the mountains thru washed away and blocked roads (tree fell a crossed the road)at some places. The scenery up there was breath taking and the hardworking local villagers plowing the lands with picks i must say was an eye opener for me--(I couldn't believe that all those lands was not work with the aid of tractors and farming implements)
The weather was playing along and we had a perfect day trekking the Gorillas . Even the Gorillas played along and we did found the with a hour and a half since we started the long trek downhill ( I must say another bonus for me--at the age of 58 this is not a joke to trek thru thick undergrowth vegetation with hooks and thorns) -- but I'm not complaining - I was enjoying every minute of it even when I dropped down a washed away hole in the pathway the tracker indicated to us. Then we got our first glimpse of the mountain gorillas in the distance --about 300meter away. I must say the silence was overwhelming and the only thing we hear was the cracking of the boots and clothing against the undergrowth. as we move forward towards the gorillas. We spend the allowed 1 hour in their midst. We were surrounded by 16 Gorillas - 2 x silverbacks, youngsters. 2 x babies and females. Soft whispers and the clicking sound of the cameras as the picture were taken from the group could be clearly heard as the gorillas was in front, left and right next to us, behind and above us . And to soon the hour was up and we had to move on. This was also an experience and a half -- we basically move back at an angle varying from 45º to 75º to the road where our transport will collect us. Now nearly dead when we reached the road . I was puffing, heaving and my heart was beating about 2 feet above my head and this is where i realized why they called it a rain forest-- The sweat was raining from my head.
The food was also very nice especially the fruit - Sweet and very fruity.

This is quite an amazing adventure

It takes quite a lot of effort to get to Bwindi but the journey is well worth it if you get to see a Mountain Gorilla which generally most people do. This is really why you go there. I have worked for the National Parks Service in Australia so i went with a critical eye as to how the experience was managed but particularly how the Gorilla trekking was managed, especially since there are only 880 Mountain Gorillas left in the world. And i was very impressed. I stood within four metres of a Silverback and his family after a five hour hike with my heart thumping a million miles an hour. The guide was fantastic. You are only allowed one hour with the Gorillas but it was a truly wonderful experience to see these magnificent animals in their environment. A word of caution. The trip to get there from Kampala is long and arduous and if you get car sick then the last two hours could be hell but i dont so i just took it all in and had a wonderful time. I highly recommend going. It's a good idea to take a stop at Lake Mburo and/or Queen Elizabeth national parks on the way.