Plan to visit Volcanoes national park Rwanda
Are you planning to visit volcanoes national park Rwanda for gorilla trekking and other exciting safari activities like golden monkey tracking, hiking and cultural experiences? Volcanoes national park sited on the northwestern part of Rwanda in Musanze district is always open at any time of the year. If you are anyway in the world and would want to spend time in volcanoes you are always welcome at any day and time. volcanoes national park is the oldest national park in Africa having been gazetted in 1925.
The park has abundant of over 115 mammals, birds, and 5 out of 8 Virunga mountains but what makes it famous are the endangered mountain gorillas found nowhere but in this park. There are 10 fully habituated mountain gorillas in the volcanoes of Rwanda meaning over 80 people can trek these apes in a single day. Volcanoes is bordered by Virunga national park in the east and Mgahinga national park in the north.
Apart from mountain gorillas, volcanoes national park is home to the endangered golden monkeys which are found only in this park, and Mgahinga in the southwestern part of Uganda. The park is also home to animals such as bush pigs, buffaloes forest elephants, duikers, vervet monkeys, spotted hyenas, giant forest hogs, and over 200 bird species.
Volcanoes national park shelters 5 Virunga volcanoes and are Karisimbi, Bisoke, Gahinga, Muhabura, and Sabyinyo. These mountains are covered by bamboo and rainforests. When the mountain gorillas were at the time of extinction in 1966, Dian Fossey an American primatologist arrived in Rwanda for her field study about mountain gorillas.
Dian Fossey taught people how to love mountain gorillas and she further told them the benefits of mountain gorillas and her work of chasing poachers, burning their houses, and much more began. With time she built a research center where she taught different people about mountain gorillas, bought equipment for trackers in the park, and slowly started making mountain gorillas get used to human presence.
Dian Fossey favorite mountain gorilla was digit and when it died it was buried in the gorilla cemetery also out up by this American primatologist. It was in 1986 on 26th December that Dian Fossey was killed by unknown people and her body was found in her cabin in the park. she was later buried in the gorilla cemetery next to her favorite mountain gorilla Digit.
Volcanoes national park has a lot of activities you can be part of and these include mountain gorilla trekking, golden monkey trekking, hiking where you get to hike any mountain of your choice among the 5 in the park, and birding. With birding in volcanoes national park, you get to see over 178 bird species such as Handsome francolin, Ruwenzori turaco, dusky Crimsonwing, brown-necked parrot, collared apalis, archers ground robin, strange weaver, Ruwenzori batis, Ruwenzori apalis, Ruwenzori nightjar, brown necked parrot, red-faced woodland warbler, and bateleur among others.
Mammals in volcanoes national park
Volcanoes national park comprises of bamboo and rainforest type of vegetation that harbor different mammal species. What most of the people around the world know about volcanoes are the mountain gorillas and endangered golden monkeys but these are not the only animals living in this park
There are other mammals in volcanoes hidden in the hilly and rugged terrain in the thick rainforest and bamboo vegetation and these include forest elephants, duikers, bush babies, gaint forest hogs, bushbucks, buffaloes, spotted hyenas, and much more. The most common primates in volcanoes are mountain gorillas and golden monkeys but there are others such as vervet monkeys, black and white colobus, blue monkeys, owl-faced monkeys, and olive baboons among others.
Birds in volcanoes national park
Volcanoes national park is strategically located in area where so many birds are attracted by the rain forests and the vegetation around Lake Kivu. The park is one of the important birding areas in the country with about 178 different bird species that are so far recorded in the park. Birding is best done in the rainy season reason being most of the migratory birds come into the park looking for food which is always plenty.
Birds to spot in volcanoes national park include Bateleur, baglafecht weaver, cinnamon-chested bee-eater, red-backed shrike, brown-necked parrot, Archer’s robin-chat, handsome francolin, blue-spotted wood dove, dusky turtle dove, Doherty’s bush-shrike, red-faced woodland warbler, scarlet-tufted malachite sunbird, Rwenzori apalis, Rwenzori turaco, African long-eared owl, and strange weaver among others.
Plan to visit volcanoes national park in Rwanda with Africa Adventure Vacations.
If you are out there stuck with how you can get to volcanoes national park and do some of the tourism activities in the park. Well, Africa Adventure Vacations Limited is here to help any traveler that is out there stuck with how they can visit the park. All you just have to do is tell us the number of days you have on your safari and the activities you are interested in doing and we shall use them to organize for you a memorable safari.
If you want to have gorilla trekking on your safari to Volcanoes national park Rwanda, you will have to first book a gorilla trekking with us and what we always do is first check for the trekking permit with Rwanda Development Board and once they are available you will send us money and we book them on your behalf. We have got good safari vehicles and well-trained driver guides ready to transport you to the park and for accommodation, we do book according to your budget if you intend to visit Volcanoes national park in Rwanda.
