Ruhija sector / Region in Bwindi

The Ruhija sector is situated in the Eastern side of Bwindi Impenetrable national park and it harbors three gorilla families namely; the Bitukura Gorilla family, Oruzogo family and Kyaguriro family though the Kyaguriro family was habituated, its there for research purposes and only 6 visitors are allowed to visit this group in a day but the family can be trekked if the visitor has asked for permission from the Uganda Wildlife Authority.

Only 8 healthy right aged trekkers with valid permits are allowed to trek a particular family in a day with 24 permits available every day. Ruhija is not as busy as Buhoma and so trekking here will give the visitors ample time to do other activities like bird watching. The Bitukura gorilly family are believed the most friendly family and took the shortest time to be habituated to humans.

Though Ruhija is not as developed and has fewer gorilla families than Buhoma, the region offers more ecotourism experience due to its location.

Ruhija Sector in Bwindi

How to get to Ruhija sector

Ruhija  is positioned between Buhoma sector to the north and Kibale to the east making it to be easily accessed from parts of north and south and connects  218km to reach Queen Elizabeth national park

By road, Ruhija can accessed from Entebbe/ Kampala via Kabale or from kampala via Rukungiri, Kihihi, Butogota then to Ruhija. A 4×4 vehicle is required for the journey due to bumpy and muddy roads in Uganda.

By air, there is no direct flight to Ruhija but you can board via kihihi and then drive two hours to Ruhija.

Activities in Ruhija sector of bwindi

Ruhija is well situated for bird watching for the birders with about 348 bird species. The birds are present throughout the year but it is best when visitors come earlier so as not to miss out birds like Striking Handsome Francolin, White-tailed crested Flycatcher,  Yellow-streaked Greenbuls, Rwenzori batis, Red-faced woodland Warbler and many more amazing species.

A nature walk in the Ruhija sector is fun and exciting. The nature walk involves penetrating through the forest and touring around the villages. You will get to see different primates in Bwindi including red-tailed monkeys, butterflies, tree species and flowers and learning the way of living of the surrounding community.

Enjoy the traditional dances and songs, how the people around grow and harvest their crops, experience the fantastic way of making juice, gin, and beer from bananas and visit the traditional healers who extract theirt medicine from the forests.

Ruhija sector / Ruhija Region, Ruhija gorilla trekking