Uganda’s amazing gorilla trekking
Mountain gorillas: fascinating animals you can find in the midst of the rainforest. Just go gorilla trekking in Uganda and see for yourself.
Go gorilla trekking
Get inspired by these popular itineraries and go meet the fascinating mountain gorillas!
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Uganda From $1,665 USD*
5 days Uganda: Gorilla galore
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Uganda From $2,294 USD*
6 days journey
Wildlife safari & Gorilla trekking
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Uganda From $2,992 USD*
9 Days Safari
Visiting Gorillas & Chimpanzees
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Uganda From $3,782 USD*
12 Days
Exploring the Wild West
Did you know that mountain gorillas are a subspecies of gorillas and only live in a specific part of the world? In no more than two places, to be precise: in the Mgahinga Gorilla National Park on the border of Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo and, of course, in Uganda’s Bwindi Impenetrable Forest.
When visiting Uganda, gorilla trekking is on the bucket list of many visitors. We’ll tell you a little bit more about these (mainly) gentle giants and you’ll understand why.
Gorillas are fascinating
Mountain gorillas are the largest and most impressive kind of gorillas but still the ones hardest to find. Why? Because they live high up in the mountains (as you might have guessed). In the 1980s these beautiful animals had almost gone extinct, with no more than 280 animals left. Thanks to conserva your place for gorilla trekking.
Get to know the gorillas
Once you’ve found a troop, you can spend an hour with them. Most likely you’ll find them sitting around eating or foraging, sleeping or playing. If dad isn’t around, the younger ones might even explore and touch visitors. They also love to cuddle, groom each other and at night they create a nest of leaves and twigs so that they can all sleep together.
No gender equality
As much as they are like us, though, gender equality isn’t really a thing among them. One silverback male leads the troop, and his wish is command. He has a pretty neat position actually, since all women tend to focus on him, and younger males don’t dare to discuss his position. These blackback males even tend to leave when they come of age looking for a troop of their own.
How to behave on a gorilla trek
How to do that? Simply keep your distance, avoid eye contact and speak softly. And believe us: as soon as a male gets irritated, you’ll know. He starts to make sounds, beats his chest and emits a weird odor that humans are said to smell even from over 20 metres away. So make sure to keep your ears and nose open!
An exclusive adventure
In any case, a visit to gorilla land is not for the faint-hearted. It takes a hike of one to six hours in pristine and misty rainforests to find a troop. In order to do so, your guides cut their way through the thick vegetation with their machetes as there are no roads or paths. At an altitude of mainly over 2,000 metres, people have even suffered from altitude sickness. And one last piece of advice: since you need to hike on slippery mountain slopes through thick forest vegetation, a minimum level of fitness is recommendable.
One last VII (Very Important Info): gorilla trekking is an extremely popular activity (understandably) and since it requires both a guide and a permit, it needs to be planned and booked well in advance.
Just get in touch and we‘ll get you on “trek” 😉
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