Cycling in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
Everything you need to know about cycling in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. Bwindi Impenetrable National Park was established in 1991 and is located in the southwestern region of Uganda in the districts of Kabale, Kisoro, and Kanungu. Bwindi has about 160 tree species. Additionally, the Park can be accessed both by air from Entebbe and by road. By road, the park can be accessed from Queen Elizabeth National Park to the north in just 2-3 hours, from Kampala through Mbarara 6-8 hours drive. On the way from Kampala to Bwindi, visitors can make a stopover at the equator in Kayabwe for a photo moment.
Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is home to the endangered mountain gorillas. About 50 mountain gorilla families live in the four different sectors of Ruhija, Rushaga, Nkuringo, and Buhoma. Within the park, there are different activities done, and these are; cycling, birding, community tours, nature walks, gorilla habituation experience, and gorilla trekking.
Cycling in Bwindi
Biking within Bwindi Impenetrable National Park abides by a well-kept trail from the park headquarters at Buhoma. Cycling is 13 kilometers, where you will encounter several wildlife species. They include; bushbucks, red-tailed monkeys, black and white colobus, and forest elephants. The trail is a 6-hour ride. It is managed by an organization known as ‘Ride 4 a Woman’. More so, it is carried out within and around Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. When you think of renting a cycling bike within the forest, then you are helping to support and develop the local community, especially the organization of ‘Ride 4 a Woman.’ Embarking on a cycling experience in the park is one way of giving back to the community.
Cycling gives visitors an opportunity to sight board species, wildlife, primates, and butterflies when cycling around and within the forest. Bikes used for cycling are offered to riders by the women’s organization in Buhoma. Visitors will ride through the park exploring and enjoying the beautiful scenery of the park with a trained guide who will guide them through the experience.
The biking or cycling experience takes half a day or a full day so it’s advisable to carry plenty of drinking water. More so, cycling experiences in the sectors of Ruhija, Buhoma, Nkuringo, and Rushaga depend on the choice of the bikers. The guides are well informed and trained in identifying all attractions sighted while biking and all bikes offer the best experience at the high altitude because Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is on the higher spots.
What to see while cycling in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park?
Primates such as chimpanzees, blue monkeys, mountain gorillas, red-tailed monkeys, and baboons can be encountered by visitors as they explore the park on a cycling experience. Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is known for its variety of primate species, and encountering them is expected.
Different species of plants include bamboo, ferns, and trees, this is where the lowland and montane vegetation zones meet. Bwindi is composed of abundant foggy rainforests accompanied by an intense variety of bird species, wildlife, and butterflies.
Batwa and Bakiga communities are the original forest keepers who depend on the forest for food. The Batwa people depended on the forest for their survival such as getting medicine for healing. After their abolishment from the forest they adapted to civilization and visitors can experience their culture while on a cycling experience. They are hospital people henceforth welcoming visitors with folk songs and traditional dances. Visitors are taken through the various survival skills they used while in the forest such as hunting and firemaking. The Bakiga are well known for growing coffee in both Robusta and Arabica. Visitors can experience the great culture of the Bakiga community. A tour around the community of the Bakiga people will unveil their culture such as norms, values, and beliefs, and also taste of their traditional cuisines.
Experience art and craft by visiting the craft center to grab some artistic souvenirs to keep as a tale through the incredible experience while in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park for a cycling adventure.
What to do in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park?
Other than the cycling adventures in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, the park has a lot in store on display for visitors across the world to exploit. Some of the interesting activities in the park include the following.
Cultural tours
The Batwa and Bakiga experience in Buhoma is the most popular cultural experience in Bwindi. The Batwa community before the park was gazette lived inside the park, and they are the indigenous people of this forest with incredible tales to enlighten your experience. The Bakiga, on the other hand, live on the edges of the park. Recognized for their hard work in cultivation, visitors can experience the vivid culture and hard work of the Bakiga people.
Gorilla habituation experience
Bwindi offers a gorilla habituation experience where tourists spend more time with the gorilla family in their natural habitat. Bwindi is the only place in Africa where one can spend 4 hours with the gorilla family. They be alongside researchers as they prepare the primates for human interaction observing. This is time for learning about the mountain gorilla lifestyle.
Bird watching
Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is a true definition of a bird haven for bird lovers. It is blessed with different bird species that call the park their home. Endemic resident bird species are blue-headed sunbirds, short-tailed warblers, African green broadbill, finely banded woodpeckers, collared Apalis, African emeralds, and White-tailed blue flycatchers among more. The best time to go birding is the morning hours when the birds are out feeding.
Gorilla trekking
Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is home to the world’s surviving mountain gorillas and trekking can take 4-6 hours depending on the movement of the gorillas the previous night. Trekking begins with a briefing at the park headquarters at 8 am by the guide and allocation of gorilla families. A maximum of 8 people are allowed for a particular day for each gorilla group. Bwindi has about 50 groups of gorillas. Only 26 are habituated and ready for trekking in different locations. Once the gorillas are found the visitors are allowed an hour in the presence of the primates as they watch them go by with their daily chores.
Guided nature walks
Guided nature walks in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park take about 1-4 hours through steep slopes and community land. There are different trails designated in the park. They include the Mubwindi swamp trail, which is found in the Buhoma gorilla sector. This trail takes about 5 hours to go through the swamp and rainforest to see different species of birds, the Virunga Mountains in the backdrop, and primates. The Rushura Hill trail is another walking trail in the park. This trail takes 3 hours with incredible sights of Rwenzori Mountain, Lake Edward, and Lake George.
The Muzabajiro loop trail takes you through Rushura Hill with magnificent views of the rift valleys. Virunga, Ivy River trail, Kashasha River trail, and Bamboo trail. The bamboo trail is located in the Ruhija sector. Hiking this trail takes 7 hours, making it the longest trail in the park. It passes through several vegetation zones. These include; bamboo vegetation and afro vegetation where different animals such as forest elephants, brown snake eagles, and duikers are sighted.
