Overview
It’s one of the planet’s great “bucket list” adventures: tracking mountain gorillas in the wild! In Uganda’s Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, home to half the world’s population of these rare primates, we give you two exciting days of gorilla tracking for extraordinary opportunities to observe them up close. The hikes are steep, but the experience of sitting near a silverback and his family is unforgettable. This adventure is also a great safari as we track chimps in Kibale Forest National Park, explore the savannas of Queen Elizabeth National Park, and boat along the Kazinga Channel among hippo and big herds of elephant, with a behind-the-scenes visit to the Conservation Through Public Health clinic at Bwindi. Your participation directly funds gorilla conservation!
This trip included a tremendous range of experiences, each of which was great. The planning was also perfect. Staying three nights in each of the last two magically perfect hotels allowed us to feel settled in.
— ELIZABETH M., Providence, RI
Itinerary at a Glance
Days 1-3
Entebbe/ Kibale Forest National Park / Wild Chimpanzees
We drive from tidy tea plantations to the tropical forests of Kibale Forest National Park. On a cultural walk in a village near Kibale, we’ll meet with a traditional healer and a coffee farmer, then hike the trails with our tracker to look for bands of chimpanzees as they forage and scamper through the treetops.
Days 4-6
Queen Elizabeth National Park
Queen Elizabeth National Park boasts the backdrop of the snow-capped Ruwenzoris, the fabled “Mountains of the Moon.” We safari by 4WD vehicle, go birding in the wetlands, and boat on the Kazinga Channel, on the lookout for elephant and the abundant hippo population. One morning, we join a researcher to track lion, learning about the social dynamics of the prides and efforts to reduce human-animal conflict.
Days 7-10
Conservation for Public Health / Gorilla Tracking in Bwindi / Entebbe
The primeval forests of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park are home to about 300 mountain gorillas. They live in stable family groups of about 15 individuals, moving from place to place as they forage for roots, shoots, fruit, and wild celery. We’ll start our visit with a private tour at Conservation Through Public Health (CTPH), learning about this award-winning NGO’s work spanning the fields of conservation and local community health, and we’ll dine with one of the CTPH doctors. After an orientation with Bwindi’s trackers, we hit the trail with our skilled ranger guides. With two full days of tracking, we hike through dense thickets at altitudes of 3,800 to 8,500 feet. The hiking is challenging but the rewards are tremendous and the rigors soon forgotten when we come face to face with a gorilla family in the wild. Depart in the evening of Day 10 via Entebbe or join our Murchison Falls Extension.
Mountain Gorilla Safari
Highlights
Highlights
Details
2 days of gorilla tracking (2-8 hours on steep and sometimes muddy trails), 2 days chimpanzee tracking on forested trails (2-4 hours each day), 4WD game viewing, rugged road travel
Similar Private Journeys
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Chimpanzee Tracking, Queen Elizabeth National Park, and the Mountain Gorillas of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
Enjoy thrilling encounters with mountain gorillas and chimpanzees in Uganda on this epic private journey.
