Current gorilla families in Buhoma and their composition

December 10, 2015

Current gorilla families in Buhoma and their composition

The Buhoma gorilla trekking area is so far composed of three gorilla families that roam its environment. Buhoma is where the main headquarters of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is found. The first gorilla families to be opened for tourism in Uganda were in the Buhoma area. Some of the so far-known gorilla families in the Buhoma area include the Rushegura family, the Mubale family, and the Habinyanja family.

Bwindi Impenetrable National park has four gorilla trekking areas that are Buhoma area, the Ruhija area, the Nkuringo area, and the Rushaga area.

Most Popular Safaris

Before selecting the accommodation to stay at during gorilla trekking, you must note the area where your gorilla permit is booked to avoid waking up early to catch up with a briefing in another area.

Overnighting in accommodations in the Buhoma area gives you chance to identify a number of birds even by the balcony of your lodge.

You may also be visited by other primates like blue monkeys, grey-cheeked mangabey, black and white colobus, red-tailed monkeys, olive baboons, and others.

The Buhoma community walk and cultural performances in this area bring the community closer to the conservation of mountain gorillas and tourists to the lives of the indigenous people. The visitors are immersed in the village life of the communities around the mountain gorillas. You may get to visit a traditional leader, or banana brewery, and organize traditional performances. The funds accumulated from this walk are used to support the local community.

How To Get To Buhoma Area

Kampala to Kabale to Ruhija to Buhoma

The drive from Kampala to Kabale is about 414 km then connect to Ruhija and Buhoma for about 95 kilometers on a murram road. With this route, you need to hire a 4×4 wheeler because the way is not in good condition.

Kampala to Kabale to Kanungu to Buhoma

You drive 414 kilometers from Kampala to Kabale for about 5 hours to 6 hours. Continue driving to Kanungu and Kanyantorogo for about 120 kilometers. This route requires you to hire a 4×4 wheel drive

Queen Elizabeth National Park to Kihihi to Buhoma

After or before gorilla trekking, you can break with a game drive in Queen Elizabeth National park which is about 4 hours to 5 hours away. When from the Mweya peninsular, the drive is about 160 km to the Buhoma area. Then from the Ishasha sector. Queen Elizabeth National Park is about 64 km from the Buhoma area

Kampala to Ntungamo to Rukungiri to Kihihi to Buhoma

This is the quickest route to the Buhoma area as the drive from Kampala to Rukungiri is about 390 kilometers then drive 82 kilometers on murram road to the Buhoma area.

Details Of Gorilla Trekking Families In the Buhoma Area

Rushegura gorilla family

The Rushegura gorilla family is also referred to as Group R . it was opened for tourism in 2002 after breaking away from the Habinyanja gorilla family.

Mubare gorilla family

This gorilla trekking family is referred to as Group M. it was opened for tourism in 1993 with the 10 mountain gorillas under the leadership of

Habiyanja gorilla family

Sometimes this gorilla family is called group H . is was opened for tourism in 1998 with 2 dominant black backs that succeeded their father.

Gorilla trekking Experience in Buhoma Gorilla Trekking Area

The mountain gorillas in the Buhoma area sometimes pay a visit to the lodges but this is a very rare occurrence. Imagine waking up to the look of a visiting mountain gorilla family by your window.

The different gorilla families in Buhoma meander the park and after the briefing, each of you is allocated a gorilla family to trek. The maximum number of people allowed to trek with a gorilla family is only 8 tourists.

Expect to hike in case the mountain gorillas of the family are allocated to our feeding or lounging at the slopes. This area also is made up of highlands and ridges covered in vegetation that has culminated for thousands of years.

You may get to spot interesting falls and rivers like the Munyanga River with great birding spots and primates, and the three sparkling waterfalls in the Buhoma area with tree ferns, epiphytic ferns, and orchids

Identifying the easiest gorilla family to trek in the Buhoma area is quite hard because of the occasional changes in location for the different gorilla families depending on a number of factors like food proximity.

How To Book Gorilla Trekking Permits For Buhoma Gorilla Trekking Area

Note the date when you wish to go gorilla trekking and state why you need to do gorilla trekking in Particularly Buhoma. In case you have other people accompanying you, state this out too.

After sending us your details or safari consultant checks the availability of the gorilla permits from the Uganda wildlife Authority listing per your requested days and gets back to you.

In case the status is positive, we request our clients to purchase their permits as soon as possible to avoid losing them when another person buys them. Even avoid moving back and forth searching for gorilla permits in case you have to change dates.

Some personal details are required from you to add to your gorilla permit card that as nationality, date of birth, passport expiry date, and others.

These details are used by Uganda Wildlife Authority for record purposes and analysis of the progress of gorilla trekking safaris. Some of them are filled on your certificate after accomplishing the gorilla trek.

When Is the Best Time to Book Gorilla Trekking Safari To Buhoma

Gorilla trekking is open all year round and any time is great for gorilla trekking because seeing the gorillas is not a probability but at least a 99% chance.

Most people prefer to do gorilla trekking from June to September and December to January because there are lighter rains received. The trails are less soggy and the humidity is not heavy. Forest dwellers are most active during this time like the birds, primates, butterflies and other interesting features are clearly visible.

This comes with high prices because this is also peak season for other Uganda activities too like game drives, chimpanzee trekking, white water rafting, visiting the source of the river Nile and others. Some of the services are competed for like vehicle hire, driver guide hire, city accommodations, and others. This is why this season for gorilla trekking is costly.

The low season which is March to May and November gives chance to those with a limited budget to do gorilla trekking and use high-end facilities because sometimes they discount their prices.

For those wishing to block off the gorilla permits, it’s easier in the low season when fewer people are purchasing the permits. You may even do solo gorilla trekking in case no one else is booked for the day.

What Is The Cost Of Gorilla Trekking In the Buhoma Area

The gorilla trekking permit is the universal cost for all packages in the Buhoma area which currently costs $700 per person per trek for foreign nonresidents, $600 for foreign residents, and 250000shs for East African residents.

Other costs included in the gorilla trekking package are determined by

The number of paying people included in the gorilla trekking party. The more people booked to go gorilla trekking the less the cost per person. This is because you share some safari components like vehicle hire, driver guide fee, gas, and accommodation in case of twin rooms.

As a solo tourist going for gorilla trekking, you bare the entire safari expense alone.

The number of days on safari also matter where by the more days on safari, the higher the cost of the gorilla trekking package. This is because most of the service providers charge per day cost for their facilities.

The timing of the gorilla trekking package also matters whereby the peak seasons normally call for higher prices while low seasons may attract some discounts from service providers like lodges, driver guides, and others.

Additional activities to combine with gorilla trekking where the more activities added to gorilla trekking, the higher the cost of the gorilla trekking package. The fewer the additional activities the less the total cost of the safari.

The kind of gorilla trekking package you choose for the safari matters where the cost of luxury gorilla packages is different from Mid-range safaris Budget gorilla safaris and others.

How Difficult Is Gorilla Trekking In the Buhoma Gorilla Trekking area?

The topography of this gorilla trekking area is volcanic just like the rest of the Virunga area. The position where the mountain gorillas are matters in when going into the forest to do gorilla trekking.

When they are feeding from the slopes, you have to hike to locate the mountain gorillas. You may have to walk over boards, and bridges, jump over rivers, and others. This rugged area requires you to have some level of fitness at times to maneuver the huddles in the forest.

Walking through the thick vegetation that has culminated over the years and formed different vegetation zones you may be required to cut through with a machete to make your way.

Wear the right gorilla trekking boots to cover your feet from harsh conditions that may hurt your feet, and wear a long-sleeved shirt to protect yourself from biting nettles in the wilderness. Ensure you pack a first aid kit in case you need emergency treatment.

How Safe is Gorilla Trekking in Buhoma Area

The Buhoma area is safe for gorilla trekking because of the ranger guide’s cooperation with other Uganda security agencies. The security of this area is very important for the conservation of these endangered mountain gorillas.
Personal security is very important too for you to enjoy the entire gorilla trekking experience
Do not carry precious items that you are insecure about when traveling for gorilla trekking or any African safari. This is to avoid attracting the wrong people who can follow you.
Eating street food may not be safe for you during gorilla trekking because you may get food poisoning.
Carry limited cash so that you can change it into local currency in case you need to purchase anything on the ground like souvenirs. Credit cards are rarely used in Africa because of the lengthy procedure of collecting money from them.
Counting large sums of money in public is not safe for you because you don’t know who may be watching.
Carry your travel documents with you during gorilla trekking in case you are lost you can be traced.
Ensure you have an escorting ranger guide before moving into the forest. You may encounter other animals that may cause you harm.
Carry the right gorilla trekking gear that will protect your body and feet from getting hurt.

What Are The Rules Of Gorilla Trekking In the Buhoma area

Spitting on vegetation is forbidden because it may contaminate the food for the mountain gorillas.
In case you have a communicable infection, volunteer to stay behind so as not to spread it to the highly susceptible mountain gorillas.
Keep a distance of about 8 meters from the mountain gorillas to avoid direct contact with the mountain gorillas.
Surrounding the mountain gorillas makes them feel unsafe and agitated.
Using flash photography is forbidden because the gorillas fear new occurrences in their vicinity.
Never litter the forest with indecomposable garbage like plastic wraps because they alter the forest’s nature.
Try not to make noise when with the mountain gorillas because they fear unfamiliar noise in their vicinity.
Only one hour is allowed with the mountain gorillas when you locate them. this is to allow them time to do other activities like feeding, grooming, family bonds and so much more.
In case you wish to sneeze or cough, do it away from the mountain gorillas they are highly susceptible to human infections.
The age limit for gorilla trekking is 15 years and above because of the factors surrounding the activity. There is a need for patience and the ability to hike and find mountain gorillas.
Never provoke the mountain gorillas because they may get agitated by this.