Major Activities Done In Mgahinga Gorilla National Park : Mgahinga Gorilla National park is located in the Southwestern Region of Uganda in Kisoro district and it considered being the smallest National park compared to all other national parks in the country covering a total surface area of about 34 square kilometers. Malinga Gorilla national park is being managed by the Government agency programme known as the Uganda wildlife programme, which has a responsibility to protect all the national parks in the country most especially with an aim pf preventing activities like poaching which lead to the reduction in the number of the wildlife species within the protected areas. More so, this national park was officially established as a national park in 1991 and it shares boarders with other national parks in other countries like; volcanoes national park which is found in Rwanda and Virunga national park in the Democratic Republic of Congo which gives an freedom to the mountain gorilla species to cross over from one country to another.
Mgahinga Gorilla national park is famously known as the best destination in Uganda where one can visit for the best Gorilla trekking and Gorilla Habituation experience because this country is a home to over a half of the number of mountain gorilla species in the whole world. However, exploring through this park doesn’t only give you chances to see gorilla but also a variety numbers of many wildlife species like; Golden monkey trekking, forest elephants, buffaloes, giant forest hogs, duikers, bushbucks, L’hoest monkeys, velvet monkeys and black and white colobus monkeys and many others. and also bird lovers get to sight see large numbers of bird species like; the African paradise flycatcher, olive pigeon, handsome francolin and many others. More so, touring around Mgahinga National park also blesses tourists with chances to participate in different interesting activities.
Major activities done in Mgahinga Gorilla National park.
Bird Watching.
Mgahinga gorilla national park is considered one of the best birding destinations in Uganda because it is a home to over 184 bird species that are always available to be seen while on a Uganda Birding safari. Bird lovers touring around the park can be sight see at very many unique bird species such as; alpine swift, the cape robin chat, the blue headed coucal, the moorlands, the Rwenzori Batis, olive pigeon, the fire finch stonechat, the olive woodpecker, dusky crimson, yellow vented bulbul, the kivu ground, the archers robin chat, the white necked raven, speckled mouse bird, double collared sunbird, the black kite and many others. However, these bird species are specified in very many different categories like; the Albertine rift endemic species, forest birds and the migratory bird species.
Volcano Climbing.
Mgahinga Gorilla national park is located within the Virunga mountains which involves around three extinct volcanoes that tourists can climb them during their free time and these include; Muhabura, Gahinga mountains and Sabyinyo mountains. More so, climbing these mountains upto the top enables tourists to capture good classic views and overlook at the beautiful nature of the green lush vegetation within the park.
Gorilla Trekking.
Gorilla trekking is ranked as one of the major activities done in Mgahinga national park and this activity attracts large numbers of people to travel from different parts of the world. Therefore, this national park has one habituated gorilla group, which is located within Nyakagezi Gorilla group and is always available. However, tourists who have their best interest in involving themselves in this activity are always put in groups of about 8 members and each group is being assigned to with a park guide whose role is to lead them as they trek the mountain gorilla species within their natural habitats and before they begin, they are always given short briefings about the rules and regulations that they should follow during the trekking such as; avoid maintaining direct eye contact with the species, avoid eating and drinking while in the presence of the species, keep a distance of about 7 meters between them and the mountain gorillas in order to avoid any harm, and for tourists who would love to take pictures and record videos are encouraged to disable the use of flash lights in their phones and cameras among others.
During Gorilla trekking, after the mountain gorillas are located within their natural habitats, tourists are given about one hour to spend with the species as they learn about their characters and behaviours such as; they watch how they eat and feed their young ones and a gorilla trekking permit is charged at a cost of about 700 USD per person.
Apart from the above mention activities, there are many more other activities that tourists can engage in during their safari in Mgahinga Gorilla national park and these include; the Batwa trail experience, guided nature walks, Gorilla habituation, golden monkey trekking, community visits and many others.
Contact our trusted tour operators in case of any more information about what activities to do while in Mgahinga Gorilla national park and Book with our tours and travel companies such as; Achieve Global Safaris who offer the best tour packages while on your safari in Uganda.
