Safari Activities to do in Mgahinga Gorilla National Park

Gorilla Trekking

Gorilla trekking is the main safari experience to do in Mgahinga Gorilla National Park, with an armed ranger you follow a trail of trampled and snapped vegetation across the slopes of the Virungas to spend an hour in company of mountain gorillas ranks among the world’s most sought after wildlife encounters. Mgahinga has only one habituated gorilla family – Nyakagezi which is visited on gorilla trekking experience.

Gorilla trekking in Mgahinga starts daily 0800 at the Ntebeko Visitor Centre, after briefing about the safety measures and guidelines all visitors must adhere too. And typically lasts 3-5 hours. You must book your gorilla permit earlier to avoid missing out.

Golden Monkey Trekking

Golden monkeys are other endangered primate species found in Mgahinga Gorilla National Park, these primates are endemic to the Albertine Rift and the Virunga ranges in Uganda, Rwanda and DR.Congo. Golden monkeys with their beautiful golden coats are rather small in size weighting about twenty pounds, they are very playful and active living in large groups that can contain 80 individuals. They spend most of their time on top of trees feeding off bamboo shoots or insects on the slopes of the volcanoes.

On this excursion, you will be allowed to spend one hour in their habitat, bamboo forest as you watch them go on with their life in the forest, pick fruits and play from one tree branch to another. Golden monkey permits cost $100.

The Batwa Trail

The dense forests of Mgahinga were home to the indigenous Batwa Pygmies, hunter gatherers and warriors, who depended on the forest for shelter, food and medicine. Today, the Batwa guides lead visitors through the lower slopes of the forests, introducing them to their old home and demonstrating the skills they used to survive in the forest. The highlight of the Batwa Trail is the descent into the Garama Cave, the largest of numerous lava tubes with which the slopes of the Virunga are riddled.

Once the home of the Batwa King, this is the setting for the finale to the Batwa Trail, a memorable subterranean performance of music and dance.

Birding

Mgahinga Gorilla National Park is a heaven for keen birders seeking rare Albertine Rift endemics and other forests birds in a range of scenic locations that include the Sabinyo Gorge (prime habitat for the beautiful Rwenzori Turaco), the saddle between Mountains Gahinga and Sabinyo, and Boundary Tail at Ntebeko, with its incomparable Volcanic backdrop.

With a local bird guide, some of the colourful bird species to lookout for include the Archer’s Robin-Chat, Banded Prinia, Barred Long-tailed Cuckoo, Black kite, Blue-headed Coucal, Blue-headed Sunbird, Bronze, Cape Robin-chat, Chestnut-throated Apalis, Collared Apalis, Doherty’s Bush-shrike, Double-collared sunbird, Dusky Crimsonwing, Dusky Long-tailed Cuckoo, Dusky Turtle Dove, Equatorial Akalat, Fire finch, Grauer’s Warbler, Grey capped warbler, Handsome Francolin, Kivu Ground Thrush, Lagden’s Bush Shrike, Mackinnon’s Fiscal, Montane Oriole, Mountain Masked Apalis, Olive pigeon, Olive Thrush, Olive woodpecker, Paradise Flycatcher, Pin-tailed whydah, Red-throated Alethe, Regal Sunbird, Rwenzori Batis, Rwenzori night jar, Rwenzori Turaco, Shelley’s Crimsonwing, Speckled Mouse Bird, Strange Weaver, Strip-breasted Tit, Waxbills, White necked raven, White-eyed Slaty Flycatcher, White-starred Robin, Yellow-eyed Black Flycatcher and Yellow-vented bulbul among other.

Volcano Climbing

Mgahinga Gorilla National Park rises upwards to three of the six volcanic summits all of which can be climbed in a day. Views from the peaks, all of which can be climbed a day. Views from the peaks into Rwanda and Congo, and towards the rift valley and Bwindi Impenetrable Forest.

Mount Muhavura is the highest peak in Mgahinga Gorilla National Park at 4,127m, the summit is adorned by a crystal clear crater lake, 40m in diameter, and commands panoramic views along the length of the Virunga chain. Muhavura is the only mountain in Southwestern Uganda to display the full range of altitudinal vegetation zones peculiar to East Africa’s highest mountains. The hike takes you to the top passes through montane forest, bamboo stands and heather groves, before encountering bizarre forms of giant lobelias and groundsels at the summit.

Mount Gahinga (3,474m) is the smallest of the Virunga Volcanoes and its bamboo-covered slopes rise up to lush, swamp-filled crater, about 180m wide. The jagged crown of Sabinyo (3,669m) bears several summits divided by deep gorges and ravines. Some steep and vertiginous sections, including an ascent of a fixed ladder, must be negotiated to reach the summit and enjoy the rare privildge of standing 3,669m high whilst in 3 countries at once.

Getting There                                                        

Travelling to Mgahinga Gorilla National Park is relatively straightforward. From Uganda’s capital, Kampala, it is a full day drive southwest, a scenic 9-10 hour drive through Uganda’s countryside, observing changing landscapes and rural life. For visitors from Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, it is a half day journey, with scenic landscapes marking the route between the two parks. Another popular option is to travel from Kigali, Rwanda, which offers the quickest access, around four hours by road to the park.

There are domestic flights from Entebbe International Airport and Kajjansi airstrip to Kisoro Airstrip which is close to the park.

Accommodation in Mgahinga Gorilla National Park 

There are several accommodation options in Mgahinga Gorilla National Park ranging from budget, midrange to luxury. These include

• Mount Gahinga Lodge
• Chameleon Hill Lodge
• Traveler’s Nest Hotel
• Amajambere Iwacu Camp
• Nkuringo Safari Lodge among others.