The Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park is situated in the South Western Park of Uganda, bordering the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda. It encompasses an ancient and vast stretch of lush rainforest that covers some 330 sq km and rises from 1,100m to 2,400m. The verdant green trees and plants are dripping with moisture and home to an array of birds, butterflies, primates and more – the biological diversity is unrivalled in most places on Earth! And the park is 316 kilometers and 17 kilometers from buhoma, there exists to roads that can get to the park kabale takes about 6-8 hours and the Ishasha sector road may take 3-4 hours and the park is known for gorilla tracking but there are also other tracking tails like birds and primates.
The highlight of any trip to Bwindi is the chance to see the endangered mountain gorillas that live high up in the reserve. This involves a challenging uphill walk through muddy rainforest but the reward is immeasurable – come face-to-face with a gorilla family staring right back at you through the bush. After all, they are close relatives with 97% of our biological make-up.
Wildlife and biodiversity
Impenetrable Forest is home of the last remaining habitats of the mountain gorillas. It is estimated that half of the world’s surviving population of mountain gorillas live within Bwindi boundaries, making it the most important stronghold of this magnificent species. It harbors half of the world’s remaining gorillas located in Buhoma and Nkuringo. Some other primates and rich variety of Flora and Fauna also inhabit this exceptional Park.
Looking deep into the expressive brown eyes of these gentle giants is surely the most exciting and poignant wildlife encounter that Africa has to offer – but we should not let it distract from Bwindi’s broader biodiversity, a result of its immense antiquity and an altitude span from 1,160 to 2,607m. The forest birding ranks with the best in Uganda, with 23 highly localized Albertine Rift endemics present
People around Bwindi Forest National Park
The local people neighboring the park are mostly Bafumbira although Small communities of Batwa exist. The Bwindi area support one of the rural population densities in Uganda with 350 people. Nature Walks can be carried out if time avail in areas surrounding the park along side activities like Buhoma community walk and cultural performance.
Note that there are also a large number of chimpanzees in the forest so you can track these primates