Community tours around Bwindi Impenetrable National Park.

Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is not only a concentration for the world’s only remaining mountain gorillas but also a bustling destination for the exciting cultures travelers need not to miss out when in Uganda. Community tours in Bwindi are launched to the exciting indigenous homesteads of the people who coexist harmoniously with animals. These communities play a big role in ensuring that the forest is always intact, blooming, and evergreen. It is indeed exciting and more satisfying to embark on a cultural exploration after one has explored the nature and beauty of the park.

Bwindi Impenetrable National Park as the host of community tours.

Bwindi Impenetrable National Park spans a large primeval forest in the southwest of Uganda in the Kanungu district. It extends up to 331 square kilometers. The park lies in the Albertine Rift in the western arm of the great East African Rift Valley. Bwindi elevates from 1160 to 2607 meters above sea level, an elevation that makes it an ideal habitat for a large scale of biodiversity. It is indeed an exceptional National Park with about 160 species of trees and over 100 species of ferns. The National Park harbors several fauna species, especially primates. Another jewel to be explored in the park is the exciting local communities.

Communities in Bwindi, people, and cultural experiences.

Community tours in Bwindi are launched to communities that are scattered all over the four gorilla trekking regions that is to say Buhoma, Nkuringo, Rushaga, and Ruhija. The communities are usually visited after guests have trekked the gorillas. The sensational entertainment in the form of cultural dances, storytelling about their hunter-gatherer life, and the deep immersion of travelers into what it feels like to be a forest person even makes the trip worthwhile.

Community tours in Bwindi are launched to mainly Batwa people villages. The Batwa people have lived in the forest for the past centuries. They are an interesting pygmoid society, vertically challenged but showcase a high level of intelligence through their commitment to sustainability.

Community tours are conducted in the form of village works for example the Buniga forest walk, the Buhoma community tour, the Nkuringo community tour, the Nkuringo cultural center, and the Rubuguri village walk. The community tours are further intertwined with voluntourism where travelers participate in humanitarian work to help empower the lives of the society. They always pick a subject on which to volunteer ranging from maternity, surgery, caring for diagnostics and counseling HIV/AIDS and TB patients.

Best time to embark on community tours in Bwindi impenetrable National Park.

The community tours in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park are always indulged throughout the year since the park is always open. The dry seasons however provide the best experiences since they are associated with limited hindrances. Visitors get to maneuver through the local villages with limited hardships. The dry seasons are usually on from late May to September and early December to early March.

How to access the communities

Travelers need to drive to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park to access the exciting communities. They can be accessed through Kampala – Mbarara – Kisoro road A drive that takes about 10 to 11 hours for the 501.4-kilometer distance. There’s also an option of flying to the park where visitors can get on board chartered flights from Entebbe International Airport or Kajjansi Airfield to Kisoro airstrip from where they can be received by professional tourist guides for the onward transfer to the park.

Chimpanzee tracking in Kibale Forest National Park.

Kibale Forest National Park is a known home of primates in Uganda, the forest is one of the few remaining tropical rainforests of Uganda situated in the western part in the Kabarole district, chimpanzee are the main residents of the biodiverse ecosystem plus 12 other species including the black and white colobus monkeys, pottos, bush babies, blue monkeys, endangered red colobus monkeys, white-cheeked monkeys, retailed monkeys, olive baboons, vervet monkeys, to mention few, there are animals present within the park although they are rare to see for example forest elephants, buffaloes, giant forest hogs. The forest trees rise 55 meters above the ground forming a beautiful canopy overlooking the Fort Portal plateau.

Chimpanzee tracking in Kibale Forest National Park is experiential, the primates have been scientifically proven to share up to 98% of the human DNA, they are characterized by their social behaviors, intelligence, and the ability to use tools, the diet of the Chimpanzee mainly comprises plants, fruits, stems, they occasionally hunt small monkeys for meat and termites, these live in families of up to 100 members by a male alpha,  chimpanzee communities are communicative with cooing charters they are also territorial in nature, there are over 1500induviudals living in the Kibale forest, they are popular for their nesting in the trees not to forget their super playful nature.

Chimpanzee tracking has been taking place in Kibale Forest National Park since 1993, the primates were first tracked at the Kanyanchu visitor center, and to date going into the forest to find Chimpanzee begins here, a briefing is conducted by the Uganda wildlife authority team about the forest and how to generally conduct yourself while with the primates, the walk through the forest will take you to experience the best of the park the hike through the well-distributed trails takes 2-3 hours while with the primates after an hour of interaction and taking pictures you return to meet your guide. The primates are tracked in sessions in the morning at 8:00 a.m. and in the afternoon at 2:00 p.m. East African time, this is led through the game ranger.

Chimpanzee tracking in Kibale Forest National Park requires the purchase of a tracking permit from the Uganda Wildlife Authority, the cost of the permit is $250 for foreign nonresidents, $150 for foreign residents, and 150,000 UGX Charged to all East African citizens, in order to enjoy a chimpanzee tracking experience it is important to pack right for the safari, take long-sleeved shirts and trousers, waterproof covers for phones and cameras, hiking boots, Rian gears, and any other important items of personal nature.

Chimpanzee tracking in Kibale Forest National Park is mainly complimented by the Bigodi Swamp walks, the sanctuary hosts many birds notable for the great blue Turaco, while here expect to view more species of primates, birds, and butterflies’ kinds, a crater walk around Ndali or Kyaninga would be ideal to explore on your primate safari. There is available accommodation around the park ranging from the best budget to Luxury Examples of facilities include the Kyaninga Lodge and the Primate Lodge.