Walking with the Great Apes of Uganda – Gorilla trekking safaris in Uganda – Chimpanzee trekking safaris in Uganda – Golden monkey tracking in Uganda
Walking with the Great Apes of Uganda – For one to enter Uganda, the only entry is the Entebbe airport located along the shores of Lake Victoria in Kampala. This is a very peaceful place that is so welcoming and hospitable to all people despite their culture, religion, and tribes.
Entebbe has a variety of tourist attractions that have attracted more people to the country. For example, the attractions include visiting jane Goodal’s orphaned chimpanzees in the northern part of Lake Victoria, making reviews on the collection of animals in the UWEC zoo and lastly trekking the enormous shoebill bird in Mabamba swamps. As you reach Uganda, you will get a tour around the city as you get to see the different attractions there and the businesses that people do to achieve their leaving for example, visiting the markets places, the Entebbe environs, and the Ngamba chimp island.
From there, you will then have to drive to Kibale forest national park which is a 6-hour drive to reach the destination through the fort portal where you will have lunch, relax and then continue to Kibale where you will be checked in and directed where to stay during your time in Uganda.
Walking with Chimpanzees in Kibale forest National Park
Let’s first understand the term habituation before we continue. We define habituation as a way of making primates get used to human behavior. Therefore you have to bring them closer to humans to adapt their behavior. The habituating of the chimpanzees takes over a full day of habituating and looking for the chimps to bring them closer to humans. It starts at 6 am immediately as the chimpanzees rise before they go to start grazing and ends at around 7 .am when the chimps are going to make their nests to rest.
Here, you will have to wake up very early in the morning, grab yourself a cup of tea or coffee then head to the headquarters to have a briefing about the habituating of the chimps. This is done at the kanyanchu visitor center. After the briefing, you will head to the jungle and then start the habituation. This habituation is done to reduce the fearing of the chimpanzees so that they stop hiding away from humans and get used to them. When you find these primates, you will be given ample time to see them hunting, grazing fornicating, and then resting lastly. The habituation of the chimpanzees takes quite a long time which is over 2 years. It is done till the chimpanzees get used and see humans as their friends.
The chimpanzee habituation experience
When doing this experience in Kibale national park, you will do it with the help of the chimpanzee family which has already gotten used to the presence of humans and understands them. This will help you to easily habituate these apes in the jungle. However, this cannot make the chimps get used to the humans immediately.
The experience when one is with these chimpanzees is physically still lucking because it requires one to continue walking following the movements of the chimps. These chimps are always active and busy playing, drumming the trunks of the trees, and jumping. You will then take the photos while they are on the ground playing.
However, we said earlier that the habituation takes over the whole day but in case you are done with the habituating when it is still early, you are free to go back to the lodge and have a rest
Habituating wild mountain Gorillas in Bwindi impenetrable National park
This is the park in Uganda where gorillas are most found and habituated. It is located in the kanungu district in the western part of Uganda. However, It also has other animal species such as elephants, buffaloes monkeys to mention but a few. The park has got several beautiful bird species that attract tourists to move with the great apes of Uganda and these include the swamp warbler, African green broadbill, remote and so many others.
The habituation of the mountain gorillas in Bwindi’s impenetrable national forest starts very early in the morning by 6 am before the gorillas set off to go and start grazing. Here you will have to wake up very early in the morning, have your tea breakfast and then start your journey to the rushaga sector where you will do the habituation from. You will be advised to go with your packed lunch because this takes almost a day to habituate the gorillas. From there you will have to back to your lodge and rest.
When to go for the great apes of Uganda?.
It is said so far that there is no specific time designed to go for the great apes in Uganda. Therefore as soon as possible you can join the race to go for these great apes. However, The best time would be during the dry season when the land is dry and favorable for all types of trucks to pass in without getting any problems and breaking down.
Best weather when to move with the great apes.
For one to be happy and get a memorable journey or trip, the best time should be in the dry seasons in June to August, and then December to February. This time is very favorable because there will be no problems of sliding, falling and more others. However remember to carry some umbrellas, waterproof shoes, and rainfall coats to mention but a few because this is a tropical rainforest and they always expect rain all the time abruptly.
Heavy rains during the walking with the great apes.
The heavy rains of March to May, and September to November attract fewer tourists because most tourists have allergic diseases, and more so the grounds are so slippery that cause accidents to the clients while hiking. However, the tourists also prefer these months of rain because the apes are always near and they do not always move too far to go and graze. This gives a great chance to these tourists to see them easily without moving too long distances. More on that, for those who like taking photos, the environment is clear and looks so good to give a greater view and a clear picture.
The last thing is that during these heavy rains, the lodges and hotels tend to give discounts to their clients to attract more clients and therefore this makes some clients move during these months.
The costs for chimpanzees and mountain gorillas’ habituation.
The cost for chimpanzee habituation is 250 dollars which is a bit higher than chimpanzee trekking which is 200 dollars. The reason behind this is that habituation takes quite a long time compared to trekking.
if you would like Walking with the Great Apes of Uganda – the cost for mountain gorilla habituation is 1500 dollars also higher than that of trekking which is 700 dollars.
The permits can be booked at the Uganda Wildlife Authority before going for the trip to habituate the apes. This can help you to avoid inconvenience while in the park ready for habituating. you can contact Great Adventure Safaris for more information about Walking with the Great Apes of Uganda
