5 Days Gorilla and Chimp Trekking

The 5 Days Gorilla and Chimp Trekking is a primate tracking adventure that takes you to some of the most iconic primate tracking locations in Uganda. This safari tour allows you to enjoy a gorilla trekking experience in Uganda and a chimpanzee tracking experience in Kibale National Park. Although most African safaris focus on savanna wildlife viewing, this safari package is curated to offer an unbeatable primate tracking experience in Uganda.

on this 5 Days Gorilla and Chimp Trekking, you’ll visit the famous Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, home to more than half of the remaining mountain gorilla population. Bwindi ins hiome to 20 habituated mountain gorilla families making it the best place to go for gorilla trekking in Africa. From Bwindi, you’ll visit the primate capitalk of the world for an unforgateble chimpanzee trekking adventure. 

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Detailed 5 Days Gorilla and Chimp Trekking Itinerary

Day 1: Briefing on the Safari, Transfer To Bwindi Impenetrable Forest

Our local guide will meet you for breakfast, following which you’ll drive towards the south-western part of Uganda. En route, you’ll come across a local community that is popular for making drums and crafts. It’s a good place to purchase some well-crafted souvenirs. Proceed to the equator line, taken as one beautiful scenery in Africa –the pathway of the sun, and take photographs. Pass by mountains, tropical rainforest and bamboo forest during the nine-hour journey.

• Budget: Gorilla Hills Eco Lodge/Broadbill Forest Camp
• Moderate: Rushaga Gorilla Lodge/Gorilla Mist Camp/Icumbi Lodge
• Up-market: Chameleon Hill Lodge/ Four Gorillas Lodge
• Premium Luxury: Clouds Mountains Lodge
• Meal Plan: Dinner

Day 2: Gorilla trekking (Bwindi Impenetrable NP)

Your gorilla tracking journey in Bwindi will start today. Following breakfast and a briefing about the park regulations, you’ll embark on the tracking trip, which can take up the entire day. Through the rainforests and bamboo-covered slopes, we’ll track the gorilla family. Walking in this environment can sometimes be tough and long with no guarantee of success. But once you spot the gorilla family and the male head of the group, the silverback, any discomfort will tangibly vanish. Most often, you’ll be sitting just 6 to 10 meters from the family and gaze into their big eyes as they continue on with their daily activity. But it is difficult to foresee how long the journey will take as tracking the gorillas is unpredictable. The walks are mostly along the steep and muddy conditions, sometimes accompanied by mid-day shower. Thus a good physique is recommended and patience is required. For the sake of conservation, a maximum of one hour is allowed to stay with the gorillas. How to behave when you’re near the gorilla family will be briefed to you at the park gate. Overnight at your chosen lodge.

• Budget: Gorilla Hills Eco Lodge/Broadbill Forest Camp
• Moderate: Rushaga Gorilla Lodge/Gorilla Mist Camp/Icumbi Lodge
• Up-market: Chameleon Hill Lodge/ Four Gorillas Lodge
• Premium Luxury: Clouds Mountains Lodge
• Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 3: Transfer to Kibale Forest National Park for chimpanzee tracking.

After breakfast, we check out and drive to Kibale National Park, where you enjoy nice scenery and good views of the shadows of the mountains of the moon –the Ruwenzori. Kibale National Park, which averages about 3300 feet in elevation, is an extension of the great rainforests of central Africa. It is inhabited by three large communities of chimps, each numbering more than 100 individuals. Each community has a complicated social structure. The big adult males dominate the group and defend the community territory against incursions by male outsiders; the females usually wander in small family grouped .chimps tend to forage in small parties or even as individuals. They usually travel on the ground but being primarily fruit eaters , they mostly feed in trees. They sometimes form a larger group when they come across an abundant food source such as near the fruiting fig trees. Typically, we locate the chimps by listening for their pant hooting calls, then hustle to the area from which they are calling. We get to observe them as they feed in fruiting trees, lounge, and socialize with each other or even, occasionally, hunt.

• Budget: Kibale Forest Lodge/Chimpanzee Capital Lodge
• Moderate: Rushaga Gorilla Lodge/Kibale Forest Camp/Guereza Canopy Lodge
• Up-market: Crater Safari Lodge/Papaya Lakeside Lodge
• Premium Luxury: Kyaninga Lodge Lodge/Ndali Lodge
• Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 4: Chimpanzee tracking & Bigodi Wetland Sanctuary.

Assemble at Kanyankye River Camp at 0800hours to go for the most popular activity in this park which is chimpanzee tracking. Chimpanzees are considered the closest species to man, but they’re also among the most threatened primate species. Primates like L’hoest monkeys, black and white colobus, grey checked mangabey, red tailed monkey, bush babies, along with bird-like yellow spotted nicator, rumped tinker bird, little greenbelt green breasted pitta, black bee eater, the crowned eagle, and mammals like elephants can be spotted in the walking tour. The Kibale National Park averages about 3300 feet in elevation and is an extension of the Central African Great Rainforest into the eastern part. it is inhabited by three large “communities “of chimps, each numbering more than 100 individuals. Each community has a complicated structure. The big adult males dominate the group and defend the community territory against incursions by male outsiders; the females usually wander in small family grouped .chimps tend to forage in small parties or even as individuals. They usually travel on the ground but being primarily fruit eaters, they mostly feed in trees. They sometimes form a larger group when they come across an abundant food source such as near the fruiting fig trees. Typically, we locate the chimps by listening for their pant hooting calls, then hustle to the area from which they are calling, You’ll observe them as they feed themselves in the fruiting trees, socialize with fellow chimps, or even hunt smaller animals. In the afternoon hours, we’ll come across a nearby forest swamp which is excellent for viewing primates and other forest animals of the park. The eastern edge of the Kibale forest is called the Bigodi Wetland Sanctuary and is maintained by the local community. Fascinating birds like the great blue turaco, and smaller animals like otters, mongoose, bushbucks can be spotted.

• Budget: Kibale Forest Lodge/Chimpanzee Capital Lodge
• Moderate: Rushaga Gorilla Lodge/Kibale Forest Camp/Guereza Canopy Lodge
• Up-market: Crater Safari Lodge/Papaya Lakeside Lodge
• Premium Luxury: Kyaninga Lodge Lodge/Ndali Lodge
• Meal plan: Breakfast, Lunch

Day 5: Drive back to Kampala

Following breakfast at the lodge, you’ll be driven back to Kampala via Mubende, which is a 5 hour drive time. The route travels through breathtaking scenery and mesmerizing rolling vistas, some of the best in Uganda. Depending on how much time we have on us we can tour around Kampala‘s craft and souvenirs markets before checking in at your hotel or being transferred to the air port

What to Bring:

Given that Gorilla tracking involves a lot of walking on rough, mountainous terrain, a tracker is advised to

• Bring shoes with good traction, suitable for steep muddy slopes.
• Carry rain gear, sunscreen and a hat, as the weather is unpredictable.
• Carry enough water and food.
• Carry binoculars
• Carry a good camera that can take photographs of black animals in dim light without a flash. A monopod can also be very helpful.