Ugenda gorilla family / group
Ugenda gorilla family is among the 10 fully habituated mountain gorilla families in volcanoes national park northwest of Rwanda and these can be visited by tourists across the world at any time of the year. Among the 10 habituated mountain gorilla families of volcanoes national park is Ugenda gorilla group. The group stays on the slopes of Mountain Bisoke where it has found its comfortable home.
Ugenda gorilla family as of today has 11 members with 1 dominant silverback but as years go by we are sure that the numbers will increase due to so many reasons such as giving birth, new members joining the group, and much more.
The word Ugenda means departure or mobile in Kinyarwanda language and the group was named so because it used to move and could not settle in one place for a long time which made trekking this group difficult. Trekking Ugenda mountain gorilla family can be done on the slopes of mountain Bisoke and now it’s not hard to trek because it does not over move.
Trekking Ugenda gorilla family in Rwanda
Trekking Ugenda gorilla family is the same as trekking any other gorilla family in volcanoes national park Rwanda. The activity starts with trekkers waking up early in the morning and moving to the briefing point. Here they will meet other trekkers and will listen to the rules and regulations of the gorilla trekking activity from the rangers. Later grouping will be done and the trekkers group you with those going to trek Ugenda family because your tour operator would have informed them already.
After grouping, driver guides will transfer you to the starting points where you will meet armed ranger guides to lead you into the jungle and in case of heavy luggage, there are porters available to help out on carrying your stuff. After hours of searching and locating Ugenda gorilla family, the trekkers will be given 1 hour to be around the group members and during this time, they will be able to take photos, learn about their habits and watch them do daily activities. During the search, you will meet different park mamas, birds, and primates.
Gorilla trekking permits for Ugenda gorilla family
The gorilla trekking permits for Ugenda gorilla family do cost $1500 per person per trek and they are sold to persons above the age of 15 years. You can get the permits for Ugenda gorilla family from the Rwanda Development Board or a local tour operator at the same fee. The permits enable the trekkers to be around Ugenda gorilla family for only 1 hour and this will enable them to know about their habits as you watch them do daily activities. Volcanoes national park has a total of 80 permits and Ugenda gorilla family has only 8 permits which means only 8 people can trek this gorilla group according to rules set by the Rwanda Development Board.
Booking gorilla permits for Ugenda gorilla family
Africa Adventure Vacations limited does help clients on booking gorilla trekking permits for volcanoes national park so we can help you secure that of Ugenda gorilla family from the Rwanda Development Board. Travelers who want to trek Ugenda gorilla family will have to send us an email containing the dates they want to trek this family and using these days we shall check for the availability of the permits with the Rwanda Development Board.
When the permits are available, we shall send you an email containing different ways you can send us and after we have received it we shall secure a permit for you and then on the day of trekking we shall inform the rangers to join you with those who are going to trek Ugenda gorilla group. Travelers that want to encounter Ugenda group can also book the permits for themselves from the Rwanda Development Board and on the final day of trekking they can inform the rangers that they want to trek Ugenda family.
What is the best time to visit Ugenda gorilla family?
Trekking Ugenda gorilla group can be done at any time of the year but there are months that are better than the rest and these are the dry months. The dry months do occur from June to October and December to February and they are characterized by little or no rainfall and this makes the trekking trails less muddy, the vegetation is always short giving clear views of the park animals and the roads leading to the park are passable
Travelers can still visit the volcanoes national park and encounter Ugenda gorilla family in the rainy season which happens from March to May and October to November and this favors the budget travelers because lodges always give huge discounts. During the rainy season, the trekking trails are muddy and slippery, the vegetation is tall which leads to unclear views of group members and the roads leading to the park are impassable.
Packing list for trekking Ugenda gorilla family
There are several things to pack for Ugenda gorilla family trekking but the most important ones include waterproof hiking shoes, a pair of gaiters, a pair of binoculars, gardening gloves, a camera, and extra batteries, sunglasses, sweater, scarf, a hat, rain jacket, long-sleeved clothes, reusable drinking water bottle, energy-giving snacks, insect repellents, facemask, sanitizer, first aid kit, and much more.
Activities you can do before or after trekking Ugenda gorilla family
Hiking
Tourists on a gorilla trekking safari in volcanoes national park can spare someday and hike any of the Virunga volcanoes within this region. The are 5 Virunga mountains in the park and 4 of these are available for hiking such as Muhabura, Bisoke, Gahinga and Karisimbi.
Hiking starts early in the morning with a briefing and the armed ranger guides takes you through the hiking trails spotting different park animals, birds and passing through different vegetation covers. At the summit of these mountains, you will aerial views of the surrounding places, mountains, lakes, and there is a crater lake on top of Mountain Bisoke.
Golden monkey trekking
Tourists can have an opportunity to trek the endangered golden monkeys of volcanoes national park before or after trekking the mountain gorillas of Ugenda family. Golden monkeys will be found in the bamboo shoots on the slopes of Virunga mountains and on spotting them, you will be given 1 hour to be around them as you watch them do daily activities, learn about their habits as you take photos.
Encounter birds
Encounter over 178 bird species in volcanoes nati0onal park with a help of a well-trained ranger guide after or before trekking Ugenda gorilla group. The ranger guide will take you to the best birding spots in the park, you just have to come along with a birding book, and a pair of binoculars to spot birds such as handsome francolin, scarlet-tufted malachite sunbird, brown necked parrot, Ruwenzori turaco, Rwenzori apalis, lagden’s woodland warbler, Ruwenzori batis, Rwenzori nightjar, Ruwenzori double-collared sunbird, strange weaver, and Archer’s robin-chat, etc.
Cultural encounters
The cultural tours can be done before or after trekking the Ugenda gorilla group in volcanoes national park and they will take you to Iby’Iwau cultural village. The cultural tours are led by the local people who take you around their homesteads, watching people do day to day activities, you can taste their local foods and drinks, be part of their ceremonies, support their business, and get entertained by the local people.
