Mgahinga​‍​‌‍​‍‌ Gorilla National Park

Mgahinga Gorilla National Park is the tiniest park in the list of National parks in Uganda. It lies about 2227m to 4127m above sea level and has a land area of 33.7km2. The park is located in the south-western part of Uganda, in Kisoro district, in Virunga massif, on the border with Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda and Virunga National Park in Congo. These both parks are famous for conserving the rare mountain gorillas and the volcanoes. Mgahinga gorilla national park is a famous site for Nyakagezi gorilla family which can be seen at any time of a Uganda safari.

The origins of Mgahinga National Park as a sanctuary date back to 1930 but it became an official national park only in 1991. This was the park’s legal status transformation aimed at saving the endangered mountain gorillas that were on the verge of disappearance. Uganda Wildlife Authority is the park’s management body. There are 3 volcanoes in the park from the 8 volcanoes within Virunga massif and these are Mt. Mgahinga at 3474m, Mt. Sabinyo at 3669m and Mt. Muhabura at 4127m. Besides that, the park features caves and has a good variety of wildlife.

Things to see in Mgahinga Gorilla National Park

Mountain Gorillas

Mgahinga gorilla national park boasts over 80 gorillas however, only one family of gorillas which is composed of 10 members, is habituated and used to humans while the other gorillas are still living in the forest. The 10 habituated gorillas in Mgahinga are the members of the Nyakagezi gorilla family. This is the only habituated gorilla family within the Ugandan side of the Virunga conservation area which is a common border between Uganda, Rwanda, and Congo. The ten members of the Nyakagezi gorilla family are; Bugingo who is the oldest member and grandpa of the family, Mark the silverback/boss of the group is supported by his brother Mafia. Rukundo and Ndugutse are the other silverbacks, and Nshuti and Nyiramwiza adult females only. There are also three young gorillas in the Nyakagezi family making it a total of 10 gorillas.

Golden Monkeys.

All of the most magnificent animals can be found in the bamboo forest in the park. In Mgahinga gorilla national park, two groups of golden monkeys are accessible for people to trek and watch. The Golden monkey is one of the 20 Primate species in Uganda. It is in Mgahinga Gorilla National Park a part of the Virunga Mountains which is its only habitat. If you look at the different monkeys, golden monkeys are the most appealing in appearance. They possess a gorgeous fur color, and the long golden hair is mixed with orange in the fur of the animals.

Bird species

Mgahinga Gorilla National Park is home to more than 180 different types of bird species thus making it one of the best places to go on a bird watching safari. Some of the birds present in the park include Ibis, African olive pigeon, Alpine swift, Blue-headed coucal, white-necked ravens, waxbills, Moorland chat, Olive woodpecker, speckled mouth birds, Ruwenzori turacos, dusky crimson wings, grey-capped warblers, fire finches, fly catchers, and many ​‍​‌‍​‍‌more.

Activities​‍​‌‍​‍‌ to do in Mgahinga Gorilla National Park.

 

Gorilla trekking.

Gorilla trekking is the most popular safari activity for visitors and is therefore a must-do safari trip. The activity begins with a guide on the rules to be followed in the presence of gorillas.
Immediately after the briefing, you will be divided into different groups with a maximum of 8 people in each group. The park ranger who is familiar with the Gorilla trekking routes will lead you. Depending on the location of the gorillas, gorilla trekking can take from 30 minutes to 6 hours because gorillas keep on moving deep in the forests to find food. When going in search of the gorillas you will get to enjoy the beautiful nature of the place. You are allowed/given one hour to interact with the gorillas after which you will have to come down and get a certificate of the gorilla trekking journey that you did.

Golden monkey trekking.

Among the several wildlife species found in Mgahinga, you will discover that only in Mgahinga National Park is there a golden monkey trekking safari. After a short communication of the golden monkey trekking safari rules by the park official, the golden monkey trekking lasts from 30 minutes to 4 hours depending on the time taken to find the golden monkeys. You will see a lot of animals on the way as you trail the golden monkeys. But only one hour of golden monkey viewing is provided in the same way to that of gorilla trekking where the monkeys are seen doing their natural activities such as feeding, playing, and moving among the trees.

Bird watching.

Besides enjoying a gorilla trekking safari, you can also choose to do a bird watching safari as there are many birds in Mgahinga Gorilla National Park and the majority are most likely to be spotted in the bamboo forest, on the ridges, and at the base of the mountains. Best bird watching outings are organized in the months of April to May and October to November when the birds are nesting and hence a lot of food is available in the forests to attract migrating birds.

Volcano hiking.

Further, there are 3 mountains that one can climb in Mgahinga national park to view different safari attractions. On the way hiking the volcanoes you can also see around you the different habitats and animal/ plants species such as wildlife, swamps, crater lakes among others. Mt. Muhavura is a 7-8 hour-long round-trip hike to and from the summit from where you get an unobstructed view of other volcanoes within the Virunga massif. Another mountain is Mt. Gahinga, which can be reached through a bamboo forest in about 6 hours. Hikers get a chance to see some primates like the golden monkeys and gorillas but most of the time the primates are hostile since they have not been habituated. And finally, Mt. Sabinyo whose circular walk through the ridge is about 8 ​‍​‌‍​‍‌hours.

Batwa trail.

The batwa of Mgahinga national park take the tourists on a forest walk and demonstrate different activities that they used to do in the forest before they were evacuated. The batwa are the shortest clan of people who were forest residents within Mgahinga and they lived next to gorillas and used to survive by hunting animals and gathering fruits and honey. There is a batwa trail that takes you on a walking safari through different paths in the forest and lead to sights like caves. Besides the batwa trail, there are numerous walking paths to be found in the park which lead to different places and take anywhere from a few minutes to many hours.

Best time to visit Mgahinga Gorilla National Park.

Long dry season in Mgahinga is definitely the best time to visit and lasts from June to August. Short dry season comes in the months of January and February, and is once again a very good time to visit Mgahinga Park.

How to get to Mgahinga gorilla National Park.

Mgahinga is accessible from several places either by air or by road.
By road: From Kampala, the capital of Uganda, you can take a 10 to 11 hours car trip to Kabale and then to the park in Kisoro area. A drive 4 hours from the Buhoma section of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park will get you to Mgahinga, and it takes about the same amount of time to drive to Kigali, Rwanda, from Mgahinga.
By air: Tourists have the opportunity to take a flight from Entebbe international airport or Kajjansi airfield to Kisoro airfield and from there they can take a car to the Mgahinga gorilla national park.

Where to stay in Mgahinga Gorilla National Park /Accommodations.

The tourists who come for a visit to Mgahinga Gorilla national park are given the opportunity to choose from fascinating lodges, well facilitate, and these are arranged in categorized into Budget, Mid-range, Luxury lodges. Some of the accommodations in Mgahinga are; Mountain Gorilla lodge, Kisoro tourist hotel, Mount Gahinga Lodge, Amajambere Iwacu Camp, Kisoro travelers rest camp, Virunga hotel and campsite, Amahoro guest house and among others.