Gorilla trekking in Rwanda

Rwanda is the best place to do gorilla trekking which is one of the most thrilling wildlife adventure to do while on your African safari, gorilla trekking is a special wildlife adventure offering visitors a once – in a lifetime chance to trek in the thick African Jungle and track down mountain gorillas. Seeing mountain gorillas in their natural habitat from a few meters is a great sight to behold. 

Mountain gorillas are very special animals as they share 98% DNA Composition with humans, they are also rare and critically endangered animals with only 1000 individuals left in the world. Mountain gorillas are only found in three countries that is Uganda, Rwanda and Democratic Republic of Congo in two populations. One population of mountain gorillas is found in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park (this is the biggest population) and the second population is found in the Virunga Mountains – Virunga Conservation Area made up of Mgahinga Gorilla National Park in Uganda, Virunga national park in Democratic Republic of Congo and Volcanoes national park found in Rwanda.  Gorilla Trekking in Rwanda is done in Volcanoes National Park – the most popular destination in country, the park is located in Musanze District in the northern region of Rwanda at a distance of 116 kilometers and a 2 hours’ drive from the capital city of Kigali.  With about 1,000 mountain gorillas left in world, Volcanoes National Park is home to over 400 mountain gorillas with 12 habituated gorilla families open for gorilla trekking adventure.  Habituation of the gorillas refers to a process through which wild gorillas undergo training and research conducted by trained personnels and scientists as a way of making them used to human presence, before being opened for gorilla trekking. The habituation process takes about 2-3 years.  Habituated mountain gorillas can tolerate humans being in the vicinity, however for a short while.  Rwanda holds mountain gorillas in a higher regard and on annual basis, it hosts Kwita Izina gorilla naming ceremony, on this ceremony all the baby gorilla born in the last one year are given names. Then after, every gorilla individual among the habituated group is known and monitored.  What You Need To Know About Gorilla Trekking Tour In Rwanda 

• The age limit for gorilla trekking in Rwanda is 15 years 
• All gorilla trekking tours in Rwanda start at the park’s headquarters in Kinigi. 
• Only one gorilla trekking session that is during day is available and starts in the morning at 7 am. 
• All visitors are required to report to the park’s office by 7 am for allocation of gorilla groups that they will be tracking 
• A maximum of 8 people per group can track each gorilla family, this is primarily to avoid stressing the gorillas by a big number of people in their presence. This is also to limit the impact of the trekking on the habitat.
•  Once visitors are allocated a gorilla family to trek which is done by park guides, visitors are briefed about what to expect on the gorilla experience and informing you about the dos and donts while with the gorillas and when trekking through the park’s forests.  

After briefing, visitors head to starting point depending on the gorilla family you are trekking, every gorilla tracking adventure in volcanoes national park is led by a park guide who is likely to have participated in the gorilla habituation and can easily be recognized by the gorillas. Also there shall be an armed solider who purposes is to protect against attacks from other wild gorillas or wild animals such as forest buffaloes and elephants living in the thick forests, however this is unlikely.  The gorilla groups live in different locations along the mountain ranges and time taken to find a particular gorilla family assigned to you cannot be predicated because the gorillas are always on the move as they go feeding on plants and fruits. However, early in the morning, there are advance park trackers who set out into the jungle to locate each gorilla group and rely the information about their initial locations. So before the trekkers start the gorilla trek, the park guides have an idea of the location of the gorilla families.  The knowledge of where the gorillas may be helpful when assigning the nearer gorilla groups to the older or less fit travelers and far groups to the young, fit and more adventurous travelers. Therefore, finding a gorilla group assigned to you can take from a few minutes to several hours. On an average it takes about 2 to 6 hours to find the gorilla family in the thick forests of Volcanoes national park. After locating the gorillas, visitors stay for a maximum of 1 hour with the gorillas. During the presence, visitors have to follow the guidelines as have been laid out by the park guides during briefing, these guidelines include 

• Keep a minimum 7 meters’ distance from the gorillas, this is to minimize possible transmission of human diseases. 
• Always remember to be submissive, do not try to challenge the gorillas
• Do not look them straight in the eyes but rather give a sideways glace when they approach you 
• Do not stand over the gorillas, rate crouch and stay in a tight group
• Do not speak loudly while in presence of the gorillas, speak in whispers 
• Do not eat in the presence of the gorillas 

Cost of Gorilla Tracking Permit in Rwanda? A Gorilla permit in Rwanda costs 

• $ 1,500 for international tourists
• $ 200 for Rwandan and East African Citizens 
• $ 500 for Foreign residents in Rwanda and East Africa 

Note: from June to September, promotional permits should be purchased in not less than one month to the date of trekking. If purchased less than one month the permit will cost $ 1,500.  Why is the gorilla trekking permit expensive?  Many people may wonder why the gorilla permit is expensive, well below is the reason to why.  10% of the fee from the gorilla permits is channeled to development projects in the local communities neighboring the Volcanoes National Park, the direct benefit from the gorilla tourism by the locals has encouraged the locals to protect the park. These locals were previously dependent on agriculture, firewood, herbs, hunting and poaching which had degraded the gorilla habitat and resulted into death of the gorillas almost leading to their extinction.  Therefore, when you purchase a Rwanda gorilla tracking permit. You are contributing to the development of the local communities and saving the mountain gorillas.  Level of difficulty of trek to find the gorillas and level of fitness needed  The difficult of level of gorilla trek can be regarded as challenging to difficult, this because it involves climbing up and along the mountains covered with forest and vegetation on trails which are none existent. The trekking gets more difficult during the rainy season that runs from March to May and October to November, in the rainy season the ground becomes muddy and slippery.  To make the experience less challenging, porters are available for just $ 10, they help in carrying bags, equipment and offer support in form of a push or pull in more challenging spots during the trek. Taking a porter is highly recommended, the porters are locals from the surrounding communities so by hiring one, you are directly contributing to the local community.  For visitors who are physically disabled and those that do not feel that they can manage the hike such as elderly or injured can request for a stretcher that is carried by a group of young energetic men for the whole gorilla trek at an extra cost.   In case a trekker fails to continue with the hike, a stretcher can be improvised (made out of tree branches) and carried by the porters for the rest of the hike.   The trek into the park’s jungle starts at an altitude of about 2700 meters above the sea level and one may climb up to altitude 3500 meters above the sea level depending on the location of the gorilla family you are trekking. Before going for the trek, visitors should find out from their physicians if their health may be affected by the altitude (Altitude sickness is possible).  As you prepare, it is important for the visitors to do such as to such altitude so they can acclimatize. This is before going for the gorilla tour.  Best time for the gorilla trekking in Rwanda Mountain gorillas can be seen all year round, however the best time for the trek is during the dry seasons running from June – August and July – September. In the dry seasons, the trek is easier as hiking trails are less muddy and less slippery.  How to prepare for your gorilla tracking tour in Rwanda? On a daily, a total of 96 gorilla permits are issued by the Rwanda Development Board. These permits are very few considering the demand, were recommend visitors to book their gorilla permits earlier to avoid missing out.  Get in shape and prepare for a tough hike through the thick jungle looking for mountain gorillas  Since humans share 98% of the DNA with the gorillas, this means the gorillas can contract human diseases. Visitors are encouraged to make sure they are treated are free of any contagious diseases. Such as cold, flue and cough. In case you have any of these diseases, you will not be allowed to trek mountain gorillas 

What to bring from your gorilla trip?

good hiking shoes, rain jacket/poncho, gaiters, long pants and long sleeved shirt to protect from prickly plants, a cap, sunscreen, garden gloves a small backpack to carry camera batteries, water, etc…