Best 5 Things to Do in Bwindi
There are lots of things to do in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. Bwindi Impenetrable National Park as established in 1991 is situated in south western Uganda, along the Democratic Republic of Congo border. Occupying 331 square kilometres of both montane and lowland forest. Bwindi is wildly known for being a home of roughly half the world’s mountain gorillas. The impenetrable forest provides shelter for over 440 mountain Gorillas, and other primates like baboons, chimpanzees and forest elephants, with several species of antelopes. There are over 200 species of butterflies, and 350 species of birds all which fascinate and attract tourists.
The park engages tourists in numerous activities. Top things to do in Bwindi include gorilla tracking, bird watching, cultural encounters, and nature walks. During your safari you will enjoy a whole new experience.
Gorilla Tracking
Tourists in Bwindi get the opportunity to see the endangered mountain Gorillas. Rushegura, Habinyanja, and Mubare are the groups of mountain Gorillas in Buhoma that are tracked by the tourists with the help of an experienced guide. For some one to engage in the act of trekking gorillas in Uganda, he pr she has to acquire a gorilla trekking permit which is issued by the Uganda wildlife authority.
Bird Watching
The park has over 350 species of birds that the tourists can view. These include the African green broadbill, White-tailed blue flycatcher, brown necked parrot, Robin chat, Frazer’s eagle owl and others that the tourists enjoy. In addition to bird watching, there are also several beautiful butterfly species that may take your breath away.
Cultural Encounters
The tourists, during the visit meet the local Bakiga and Batwa communities that reside around the park. Tourists visit the Blacksmith, craft shops where they can buy different art materials and craft made materials like candles, shoes, bags. They are also entertained by the local people with vibrant dances as they also get to experience the local communities’ life style, day to day activities for example how to make juice and beer fro matooke.
Cycling/Mountain biking
The biking activity follows a well maintained trail from the park headquarters at Buhoma to the Ivi river organized by the Buhoma community rest camp. During the ride, tourists are able to see different animals like the bush bucks, red tailed monkeys, black and white Columbus monkeys and also some birds.
Hiking and nature walks
The tourists who wish to explore the impenetrable forest are allowed to explore with the help of an experienced tour guide. The park has several trails that the tourists can use to explore the different parts of the forest and these include the forest walks where tourists can see different animals and birds as well, the waterfall walks where the tourists are able to admire the muyanga waterfalls, the Ivi river walk where the tourists can often see world pigs at the Mukempunu Trail.
Accommodation in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is conducive and comfortable for the tourists and these include Nkuringo Bwindi Gorilla Logde situated in the park, Bwindi Backpackers Lodge in the southern part of the park and others near the park like Rushaga gorilla camp which is 2.5kilometres from the park, Sanctuary Gorilla Forest Camp which is 0.4 kilometres, and Gorilla Safari Lodge which is 3.7kilometres from the park.