RUSHAGA GORILLA TREKKING SECTOR
Rushaga Sector in Bwindi Impenetrable national park : Rushaga sector is one of the fascinating sector amongst the 4 sectors of Bwindi impenetrable national park situated in the southern part of the park making it the best sector for Gorilla trekking adventures in Uganda from Kigali Rwanda since it is the nearest sector to Rwanda. Other sectors in Bwindi impenetrable national park include Buhoma sector in North, Nkuringo in the south and Ruhija in the East.
Bwindi Impenetrable national park is such a fascinating destination to add on your travel list while planning your Uganda safari. This is because the park harbors the largest population of endangered mountain gorillas making Gorilla trekking in any sector of Bwindi a memorable one. Another destination for gorilla trekking in Uganda is in Mgahinga gorilla national park which harbors only one Nyakagezi family thus trekked by only 8 persons per day.
Gorilla trekking in Rushaga sector
Gorilla trekking is one of the top tourist activity enjoyed in the Rushaga sector of Bwindi impenetrable national park. The fact that Rushaga harbors the largest number of habituated gorilla families makes it more rewarding since it receives the highest number of trekkers all year round to spend an hour with the mountain gorillas in their natural habitat. Some of the habituated gorilla families in Rushaga sector include Kahungye, Bweza, Bikingyi, Rwigi, Nshongi, Mucunguzi, and Mishaya to mention but a few.
To participate in Gorilla trekking in Rushaga sector, trekkers are supposed to report to the park headquarters for briefing as early as possible where the gorilla trekking dos, don’ts and regulations are communicated before embarking on a forest walk to search for these endangered primates.
After briefing by 8:00am, trekkers be grouped into different groups depending on their physical fitness, and later on embark on a forest walk up and down in the jungle to search for the allocated gorilla families.
The entire trek lasts from a few hours to several hours depending on the movement of Gorillas but upon finding the gorilla family, trekkers are allowed only 1 hour to take photographs and closely interact with gorillas in close vicinity as you watch them breastfeed, play, copulate and sometimes fight amongst themselves.
Once an hour elapses, trekkers are supposed to exit the forest, return to the park headquarters to obtain their gorilla trekking certificates and proceed to their respective accommodations.
Note;
- Only 1 hour is recommended in presence of Gorillas during gorilla trekking
- A maximum number of 8 persons are allowed to trek a particular gorilla family
- The minimum age for Gorilla trekking is 15 year
- Always follow all the rules and regulations while in the habitat of mountain gorillas as advised by your ranger guides.
A gorilla trekking permit for Rushaga sector is obviously the same as that of any other sector and it goes for $700 per person for the Foreign Nonresidents, $600 for Foreign Residents and UgX. 250,000 for Ugandans and East African Community member states. The gorilla trekking permits are only issued out at the Uganda Wildlife Authority whose headquarters are located in Kamwokya.
These gorilla trekking permits are nonrefundable once you miss out on your trekking date thus it is very important to report at the briefing ground in time and set off for trekking with others. Each permits includes in the park entrance fees and the ranger guide fees but excludes porter hire fees.
Why you need to visit Rushaga sector in Bwindi impenetrable national park?
First and foremost, Rushaga sector is one of the best sectors in Bwindi impenetrable national park and as mentioned before, it is the best sector for gorilla trekking from Kigali Rwanda. This alone makes it an exceptional reason as to why you need to visit it given an opportunity to trek endangered mountain gorillas in Uganda. It takes about 3 hours’ drive from Kigali Rwanda via Cyanika border to Rushaga sector of Bwindi Impenetrable national park making it easier than taking a long drive from Kampala/ Entebbe that takes about 8-9 hours.
Rushaga sector is as well the only sector in Bwindi impenetrable national park where gorilla habituation experience is conducted. This is not different from Gorilla trekking but this enables travelers to spend 4 hours with the gorillas unlike gorilla trekking that allows only 1 hour with Gorillas. The only challenge is that during gorilla habituation experience tourists are dealing with the primates that haven’t been used to humans thus they be shying away and you have to toil hard as you follow then up slowly till they finally settle. There is an opportunity to watch gorillas right from the morning as they get out of their nests where they spent a night and follow them up till late in the evening when they start nesting again for the night.
A permit for gorilla habituation experience costs $1500 per person and this includes 4 hours with gorillas, ranger guides and habituators. It however excludes porter hire. Only 4 persons are allowed to participate in Gorilla Habituation Experience in Rushaga sector of Bwindi impenetrable national park.
Having a high population of habituated mountain gorilla families, Rushaga sector offers more gorilla permits than any other sector in Bwindi impenetrable national park making it easy to select which family to trek amongst many other families.
Accommodation facilities/ Where to stay in Rushaga sector
Here are some of the accommodation facilities where one can spend a night while on a Uganda safari to Rushaga sector of Bwindi impenetrable national park and these include; Clouds Mountain Lodge, Gorilla Valley Lodge, Rushaga Gorilla Camp, Mutanda Lake Resort, Gorilla Valley Lodge, Chameleon Hill Lodge, Bwindi Jungle Lodge, to mention but a few. These cater for both Budget, midrange and luxury travelers and there is yet an opportunity of sleeping in Nkuringo sector and trek in Rushaga sector since they both thrill in the southern part of Bwindi Impenetrable national park.
“Book your gorilla safari to Rushaga sector and enjoy an alluring experience in the jungle.”
