Only just over a thousand mountain gorillas live in the wild, and roughly half of them are in Uganda’s Bwindi Impenetrable Forest. Spending an hour with a gorilla family is one of the great wildlife experiences on Earth. Here is how the day actually works.
Where you can trek
Uganda has two gorilla parks. Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, has four trekking sectors: Buhoma in the north, Ruhija in the east, and Rushaga and Nkuringo in the south. Each has its own habituated families. Mgahinga Gorilla National Park, on the Virunga volcanoes, has a smaller number of permits. Your permit is for a specific sector, so we match your lodge to it.
The morning briefing
Trekkers gather at the sector headquarters early, usually around 7:30am, for a briefing from the rangers. You’re assigned to a gorilla family and a group of no more than eight people. Trackers have already gone ahead to find where the family nested the night before.
The trek
Treks can take anything from under an hour to most of the day, depending on where the gorillas have moved. The terrain is steep, muddy and thickly vegetated. Hiring a local porter is highly recommended. They carry your bag, help you on steep sections, and the fee supports families living around the park.
Your hour with the gorillas
Once you reach the family you spend one hour with them, usually about seven metres away. You’ll see the silverback, mothers and infants feeding, grooming and playing. No flash photography, no eating, and keep your voice low. Then you walk back out, often with a certificate waiting at the headquarters.
What to bring
- Waterproof hiking boots and a rain jacket.
- Long trousers and long sleeves, plus garden gloves for gripping vegetation.
- Two litres of water and a packed lunch.
- Your passport: rangers check it against your permit.
The rules that matter
- Minimum age is 15.
- If you have a cold or flu, you can’t trek. Gorillas can catch human illnesses.
- Permits cost US$800 (US$600 in April, May and November) and are non-refundable.
