Before the beginning of the trek, visitors are woken up from their respective lodges and camping sites as early as 6 am for breakfasts then head to the Park headquarters for a short briefing by the Uganda Wildlife Authority from where they divided into a small number of 8 people to trek the different gorilla groups in the park.
Visitors with health problems like flu and colds are not allowed to carry out the Gorilla trekking. This is because these endangered species are highly sensitive to human diseases that may destroy them. Any trekker who is suffering from any disease is advised to report to the authority.
The trek usually begins at 8:30 am and its when different groups are given the gorilla family name that they will trek. You can then hire a local porter to assist you in the thick forest. These porters are around or near the park
Each group will be given a guide, driver and armed security men to lead and guard you through the forests. Your tour guide might not accurately be knowing where the gorillas have shifted to so the hike might take quite long of about 2-6 hours in the struggle to allocate them. Some gorilla families are difficult to find while others are easy depending on how long each group moves per day and the trekkers’ speed also matters. Slower trekkers in the group will drag will make the group take more hours to discover the gorillas because the hiking speed will be reduced In favor of the slower ones.
As you come nearer the gorillas, you will be required to leave your bags and non-essentials behind from where they will be safely kept till the end of the activity.
When the gorillas have been found, one hour will be given to the visitors for observation and photo taking. Make sure that you carry your camera with well charged batteries and memory cards. Flash cameras are strictly not allowed for taking the pictures because they make the gorillas uncomfortable and unsafe and might end up being violent to the visitors.
You are advised to keep 7 meters away from the gorillas. If the animals are moving closer to you, make sure you slowly step back and you will be highly guided by the guide.
Finally the guides over a great job to the trekkers and so they should be appreciated using a tip of $15-20 per ranger. The tips should be dated post 2006 and in small units for easy conversion into the local currency.
Adventure in the wild safaris is tour operator specializing in Bwindi Gorilla and Uganda wildlife safaris. We offer a wide range of Gorilla trekking and wildlife safari packages at affordable rates with a focus on delivering high quality services for all travelers who book their trips with us.
