Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is the world’s popular mountain Gorilla destination, the highlight of a visit to Bwindi is a remarkable hour with the Giant Apes. Tracking Gorilla can last from a couple of hours to a whole day depending on how far the group has moved since it was observed nesting up the previous evening, Gorilla usually sleeps in their nest as soon as night falls and wakes in the morning before sunrise.
Mubare Mountain Gorilla Family
This was the very first mountain gorilla family to ever be habituated in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. The family is named after the nearby Mubare hills and can be found in the Buhoma sector of Bwindi under the leadership of an alpha silverback called Kanyonyi. The habituation process for the Mubare mountain gorilla family started in October 1991 by the skillful Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) experts and ended two years later. At the time of its habituation, it was under the leadership of Ruhondeza who fathered a family of eighteen. Over its many years, it has suffered a number of misfortunes like raids by wild mountain gorilla families, kidnappings, deaths, and defections by some members which greatly reduced the group’s numbers. The group received one of its worst raids by a wild mountain gorilla family recently which injured and kidnapped most of its members. Ruhondeza tried to fight them off but because of his old age, he was over-powered. He, therefore, absconded deep into the forest because of the unbearable sadness in his heart. We are told that he died three months later in his sleep when he was above his fifties and his grave can be visited by tourists today. The five members who were deserted by Ruhondeza a few years ago have been increased to eight by the effortless contribution of their current alpha silverback called Kanyonyi.
New babies born in Buhoma sector
We are excited to announce new babies in Mubare Gorilla Family in Buhoma sector – Bwindi Impenetrable National Park a few weeks ago, Karungi gave birth. Mother and the baby are healthy - the sex of the baby gorilla is not yet established. This is the second baby born in Mubare gorilla family Uganda’s oldest gorilla family within a period of 3 weeks. 2019 has been a great year for Uganda; we have continuously been blessed by births of the Mountain Gorillas in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, which was declared a UNESCO Natural world heritage site in 1994.
Best time to trek mountain gorillas
The high season is June – September, and December to February. It’s hard to predict nowadays when the rainy season will be. Climate changes are making it difficult to forecast. Normally the long rainy season should be in March, April and the beginning of May and short rainy season in November. However, in the last 5 years, the short rainy season has been in early December. Gorilla tracking can be done throughout the year and the success rate of seeing them is the same. In the rainy season, the tracks in the rain forest might be a bit muddier and your tracking might be a bit longer and tougher because of that. However, it’s a rain forest, so the difference is not all that big compared to the dry season, especially in November.
How to book permits for Buhoma sector
Permits to track mountain gorillas can be obtained from the Uganda Wildlife Authority head offices in Kampala, kindly send us the dates you would like to track mountain gorillas, Uganda Wildlife Authority is in charge of issuing gorilla permits for all gorilla tracking sectors namely Buhoma, Ruhija, Nkuringo and Rushaga in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park and Nyakagezi in Mgahinga Gorilla National Park. If you are planning to visit mountain gorillas in their natural habitat, we advise you to book your permits in advance 4-6 months before your trekking day, the high demand for gorilla permits in Uganda prompts us to advise our clients to book their permits in advance to avoid disappointment on the trekking day when permits are fully booked especially during the peak season which usually occurs from December to February and June to September.
How to get there
Buhoma gorilla group can be accessed by road from Kampala following a tarmac road to Kabale for about 410 am spending about 6-7 hours and then connect on a murram road through Kanungu District to Buhoma for about 60 km for approximately 3 hours drive to Buhoma Gorilla Sector.
What to wear or carry on your trek
· Long Trousers
· Hat
· Long-sleeved shirt
· Hiking shoes since the terrain is rough
· Hand gloves
· Raincoat
· Packed lunch
· Drinking water
· Camera
