How To Do Gorilla Trekking Twice | Double In Uganda
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To do gorilla trekking experience in Uganda twice or more you need to book gorilla permits for each day. Time allocated to be with the mountain gorillas in Uganda is only one hour which is normally perceived as being insufficient time for many tourist on gorilla trekking safari. Many tourists end up taking a second gorilla trekking time to have more encounter with these so adorable mountain gorillas.
Alternatively, tourists go on a gorilla habituation experience where four hours are allowed with semi-habituated habituated gorilla family for four hours. During gorilla habituation experience in Uganda, tourists are in company of professional habituators and researchers. At the moment only four gorilla habituation families are open to the public in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. Contact Us
Having some level of patience is necessary before gorilla trekking because of the nature of the topography of the gorilla safari destinations which were affected by volcanic action. As a result, a number of features were formed in this area including ridges, plateaus, deep valleys and others. Sometimes the mountain gorillas spend time on the slopes or deep in the valley. Tourists are required to hike to get to the mountain gorillas during gorilla trekking a step which requires having some level of fitness. This is quite challenging for those unfit but there chances of using sedan chair assistance even those physically incapacitated but wish to do gorilla trekking.
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How To Book Permits For Double Gorilla Trekking Tour
Choose two date when to do gorilla trekking in Uganda and it is best when they are dates close to each other.
Check gorilla permit availability using the dates of your choice. The status of gorilla permit availability can change any time without warning so take note of this.
Book the gorilla trekking permits as soon as you can because there availability is open to change any minute. It is very easy to find gorilla permits available at one minute and out find nothing the next minute. This is because first come first served basis is used to reserve gorilla trekking permits. No gorilla permit is booked without payment.
Avail some personal details later including full names as presented on the passport, date of birth, Nationality and others. These details are used for identification purposes on gorilla trekking day. The details are added to the gorilla trekking permit card that bears a magnetic strip that is swiped unto a card reader to retrieve this information on the day of gorilla safari.
How Many Times Do I Have To Attend Briefing During The Double Gorilla Trekking Safari In Uganda
Briefing before gorilla trekking is compulsory before starting every gorilla trekking adventure. Missing briefing before gorilla trekking may end in getting penalized. Each briefing time may have some extra advise from the ranger guides other than explaining in details about the rules of gorilla trekking. The mood of the mountain gorillas may change in a shot while so as tourists you need to know what to expect.
Sometimes the mountain gorillas families may have wedged a war against another family in fight for supremacy so you need to understand what is expected of you when you encounter such fracas.
The gorilla family may have relocated to the deeper for due to the circumstances prevailing in the wilderness so you need to be aware of the situation to prepare in advance. When the gorilla family looses a member, the mood is quite somber so you need to be advised on how to deal with such a moment.
How Much Is The Cost Of Gorilla Permits For A Double Gorilla Trekking Safari In Uganda
The cost of the gorilla trekking permits for Uganda is $800 per person per trek. Even when you have more times of the gorilla trekking safari, each time the gorilla permit cost is the same.
Other than the cost of the gorilla trekking permit, there are other safari costs to incur including accommodation costs
Transport costs including gas or fuel, vehicle hire, driver guide fees, vehicle maintenance and others
Do not forget extra hard cash to carry and change into local currency where necessary in order to use for on ground purchases.
At Arch Safaris and Tours we encourage our tourists to generously tip those who extend a good service to you as a way of encouraging them to even perform better. Tipping many not be compulsory but a token of appreciation.
Is Gorilla Trekking In Uganda Easy Or Difficult
In general gorilla trekking is quite strenuous because of the nature of the terrain of the environment of Bwindi and Mgahinga forests. The presence of remnants of volcanic activities that affected this area create some challenges during the search for the mountain gorillas.
The mountain gorillas sometimes spend time on the slopes or deep in the valleys where you have to hike to get to them. This is why having some level of fitness is recommended before travelling for gorilla trekking.
The environment where mountain gorillas survive has thick tangled vegetation that may be hard to walk through but the ranger guide holding a machete uses it to trim the creepers. The ground in the forest is normally wet most of the time leaving it soggy and boggy. Bwindi forest and Mgahinga forests have a dense canopy that makes it difficult for sunrays to penetrate to the ground.
Even the decomposing matter on the ground leaves it slippery and so slowing down the gorilla trekking. Having safari boots that extend atleast up to the ankles may save you from such rough surfaces. When there is change in weather conditions the mountain gorillas may find shelter especially during the wet season deep in the forest.
Which Is The Easiest Gorilla Trekking Family Or Area To Visit In Uganda
In Uganda, the easiest gorilla family or area to trek varies with prevailing circumstances in the forest. The gorilla family that was closest the previous day may be the furthest the next day. No matter the gorilla family you are allocated too, the experience with them is exciting.
The criteria used to allocation gorillas families or areas is hard to determine as this may depend on factors including fitness level, age brackets, fitness capability and much more. To enjoy the gorilla trekking safari open your mind to viewing other forest inhabitants and not focus on only finding the mountain gorillas.
At the moment, Uganda has about 20 gorilla trekking families some include Mubare, Nshongi, Butukura, Habinyanja, Bweza and others in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. The gorilla trekking permits for Bwindi are booked according to the four areas under which the park is divided that is Rushaga, Ruhija, Nshongi and Nkuringo. At the moment Mgahinga National Park has one gorilla trekking family called Nyakagezi.
Why Do Gorilla Trekking in Uganda Twice
Doing gorilla trekking in Uganda twice gives you an extra opportunity to indulge in part of the day of the mountain gorillas. On the fast day, many tourists may not get the chance to enjoy the moment with the mountain gorillas because each of the actions they do passes like a flash of light.
Spending time with the mountain gorillas is never enough because of the way they naturally open up without being choreographed or coached about what to do next or putting up a show to entertain.
It is amazing to stay with the mountain gorillas in the wilderness where they have to fend for themselves and not depend on human supplies. Even when exhausted with staying in a particular location the dominant silverback orders the entire family to move on a tactic that is similar to leadership in humans.
Mountain gorillas have about 96% humans DNA and so during the second gorilla trekking you may get to see some of the activities they do similar to human behavior. The more time you spend with the mountain gorillas the more you get to learn about how they conduct there day today activities.
Are Mountain Gorillas Violent
Mountain gorillas may charger when provoked but they are naturally not aggressive primates. The mountain gorillas are calm and serene a character that differs from the perception onlooker have about them. Physically, they have dark hairs allover there bodies, huge in size, fierce knuckle style of walking that is mistaken by many for being aggressive.
When agitated, the mountain gorillas may react by chest thumping, hooting, grumbling, retreat into the forest. It’s not every time that mountain gorillas show such behavior that they are angry with visitors so wait for the ranger guide to find out the cause of the matter. Follow the new guidelines provided by the ranger guides including trying to chew foliage, showing submission and much more.
What time Does Gorilla Trekking Safari in Uganda Start and End
The starting time of the gorilla trekking safari in Uganda is normally 0800 hours with briefing happening earlier. Every tourists is expected to report to the ranger station earlier so that all necessary clearance can be done in advance. When reporting to the ranger station before gorilla trekking, donot forget to carry packed lunch because you are not sure of the time of returning from gorilla safari adventure.
From starting the gorilla trekking tour, finding the mountain gorillas may take 2 hours or more depending on factors prevailing in the wilderness. The excitement of being a few meters from the mountain gorillas may fade away in the due course if you keep focusing on only finding the mountain gorillas. Open your mind to viewing other primates that linger in the forest including primates and others.
The end time for the gorilla trekking tour in Uganda is after the one hour allowed in the presence of these primates. Staying with the fully habituated mountain gorillas is one hour for which they are habituated to be in-front of humans.
Being with the mountain gorillas for one hour is minimized to reduce on the chances of affecting the running of the day today activities of these primates. Mountain gorillas have to feed on over 200kg of foliage each day that can take them through the night and day. Even the mountain gorillas need to take a nap as part of the running of there day today life.
After being with the mountain gorillas get away slowly without appearing suspicious before the mountain gorillas.
Why Is The Gorilla Trekking Safari Expensive
The gorilla trekking safari is normally perceived as expensive but when you find the details that are included in the tour package quotation you realize that every penny is worth spending on this African safari.
Taking the gorilla trekking safari is a lifetime adventure with great memories that you may never get to experience elsewhere in the world. Mountain gorilla are an endangered primate species with currently about 1000 living in the world but they exists in only three countries that is Uganda, Rwanda and D.R.Congo.
When the conservation of the mountain gorillas was starting according to the then statics, about 250 mountain gorillas were living in the entire world as per the population census at that time. In order to conserve the mountain gorillas more ways of accumulating funds were devised including selling gorilla permits.
During gorilla trekking you get a glimpse of what life is like for the primates in the wilderness without being under humans care. The characters of mountain gorillas are portrayed as being aggressive in animations and films but when with them you realize how cowardly and timid they are. Mountain gorillas are such vulnerable giants with a dark fierce furred body.
By taking a porter at a friendly cost during gorilla trekking, you contribute to community sensitization as some of the porters are reformed poachers but now gain from the presence of mountain gorillas.
A portion of the money collected from the sell of the gorilla permit is given to the local community to support their project a gesture that is used to bridge the gap between the community and the parks. The community around the gorilla safari destinations used to collect medicine, firewood, water from these forests but for conservation reasons, they were stopped from entering these forests. This did not rub well with the locals which created some friction that ended in the death of some of these primates.
In order to help the community realize the relevancy of co-existing with the mountain gorillas, some community programs have been set up and these benefit the community includes the Batwa pygmies visit.
