Gorilla trekking in Nkuringo is the most adventurous and toughest trail. The Nkuringo sector is located in the southern part of Bwindi impenetrable national park. Nkuringo sector gorilla safari is the best and the most exciting but challenging because of the hilly trails but gorillas if found give the best experience.
The Nkuringo sector was established in Bwindi forest national park in 2004 as the second pioneeer sector for gorilla tourism after buhoma. Nkuringo is popularly known for being the home to the most elegant and fiercely silver back Rafiki suddenly silverback that was killed by poachers in June 2020 during the Covid 19 breakout.
Nkuringo is complementary to the other three sectors of Bwindi impenetrable national park which are best for gorilla trekking activity. Nkuringo sector has an incredible view of Virunga national park, and volcanoes national park and the crater lakes in the sector will offer the best lifetime memorable experience to visitors. For tourists who are fit and focused on gorilla trekking and prefer more hours looking for mountain gorillas, the Nkuringo sector offers the best.
Detailed information on gorilla families in the Nkuringo sector
Nkuringo family
Named after its sector, the family initially the family was sighted at Nkuringo hill with 19 members and 1 silverback called Nkuringo. Nkuringo died four after they were open for tourism and Rafiki took over the leadership. Rafiki was also killed in 2020 and the safari the dominant silver back took over the family and successfully led the family.
Christmas Family
This is the newest and the latest gorilla family in the Nkuringo sector with about 7 individuals led by Christmas the dominant silver back. Located within the southern part of Bwindi impenetrable national park and has one silver back, 4 females 1 black back, and 1 infant. The introduction of this family to tourism increased the number of permits in the Nkuringo sector to 24. This means 24 tourists can track Nkuringo the gorillas sector per day.
Bushaho gorilla family.
Bushaho was the second gorilla family to be habituated and open for tourism in the Nkuringo sector after the pioneer Nkuringo. Currently, Bushaho has 11 individuals headed the silver back Bahati and it consists of 11 members. The number of gorillas per family can increase depending on the aggressiveness of the silver back to raid some new members and shire offspring’s
Nkuringo sector has one posho gorilla which is still under habituation and is not yet opened for tourism it is still under the monitoring of researchers and rangers, the silver backer leader is not yet known and the number of individuals is not known, when it is ready for tourism it will increase of several gorilla families in Nkuringo to four.
Other activities in Nkuringo
Besides gorilla safaris, the Nkuringo sector offers other activities that include birding
Birding
Bwindi impenetrable national park that has about 200 bird species and this has it the best destination for a bird-watching safari while on a Uganda tour. Birds can be seen on the trails while doing gorilla trekking activities. the most common birds to be seen are starling, great blue turaco bird, egrets, kingfisher, ring-necked dove ring-necked heron, long-horned, owl, grey crown crane wagtail among others. A gorilla trip in Nkuringo coupled with a birding safari will give a fantastic memorable experience.
Hiking
Apart from gorilla trips, Bwindi offers yet other interesting activities like nature walks and hiking that will offer visitors a chance to see various attractions in Bwindi impenetrable national park. The hiking starts from the north part of Bwindi to the south of Bwindi and this will offer you a chance to see nature.
Community walks
On special arrangements with your tour operator, local community walks can be arranged and during your gorilla safari in Nkuringo you can visit Batwa’s local community. These are natives of Bwindi impenetrable forest. They live near the forest. And after them being removed from the forest they set up a site where they showcase and demonstrate how they used to live in the forest. Interesting activities include showcasing their hunting techniques, dances, and how they used to depend on forests for food.
How to access the Nkuringo gorilla sector
Nkuringo is located in the south of Bwindi impenetrable national park and can be accessed by road by either tourist from Uganda or Rwanda about 9 hours from Kampala city the capital of Uganda
Where to stay while in the Nkuringo gorilla sector
Bwindi impenetrable national park offers the best of accommodations ranging from budget, midrange, and high-end. As illustrated below
- Clouds Mountain Gorilla Lodge
- Lake Mulehe gorilla lodge
- Crested crane Bwindi hotel
- Nkuringo Bwindi gorilla lodge
- Virunga campsite
This is located behind and adjacent to Mgahinga national park and can be accessed easily by visitors from Bwindi impenetrable national park in the Nkuringo sector and Mgahinga national park.
