Uganda is disproportionately diverse for its small size. You find snow-capped mountains and sweltering swamps, cool Savannah, and dense jungles. The big five mega fauna here, as are nearly 1500 bird species. Add to that several dozen ethnic groups and around 45 languages from three major language families. You are free to travel anywhere in the country (even Karamoja is safe, despite information online). Uganda is amazing.
If you’re a first-time traveler like me and you’re planning to visit Uganda for the first time, your sorted gorilla safaris tours can erase your fear, we had fear when we were booking our first tour but finally this tour company did an amazing job for us. I asked him over and over but he never got tired of me and kept encouraging me with detailed testimonials and information that made us finally decided to go to Uganda.
Gorilla Safaris Tours is very responsive and supportive in customizing tours to fit schedule. Gorilla trekking has always been a high priority on my bucket list. My friend and I began our research for a trip to Uganda in October.
After corresponding with several companies, it was obvious that Moses, the owner of gorilla safaris tours, was the first person to go above and beyond answering every question (and there were many) that we put forth. He suggested we search for the best price for airfare and he would then suggest our itinerary. He did not disappoint!
A major hurdle at the beginning of the trip necessitated overnighting in Amsterdam as our flight from Newark was delayed by three hours to Brussels. We were delayed by one day and Moses managed to rearrange the complete trip. Just the task of moving permits for the Gorilla trek was a huge task not to mention our three other treks or hotel accommodations.
Finally arriving a day late and standing in line at lost baggage for over one and a half hours our adventure was to begin. As luck would have it the lost bag contained clothing I had sent to bring to the Batwa Village so my personal items were with me. Moses to the rescue again. When the bag finally arrived four days later he retrieved the bag from the airport and managed to deliver it to us along the route.
Everything from this point on can only be described as magical. From the time we met our driver Emma at the airport to the night he returned us luggage and gifts in tow he stood by until we had passed through the strict Covid testing procedure. The company scheduled our test and made sure we were taken to the sight. Just one of the many gestures that made the experience stress free.
From trekking to see Rhinos, Gorillas, Chimpanzees and the most beautiful Golden Monkeys in the Mgahinga Gorilla National Park (where the Gold meets the Silver) every day was a new and exciting adventure. Safari drives, boat cruises and excursions by canoe to the Mabamba wetlands to discover the elusive Shoe bill.
We began our epic journey at 8:30 am 10/16 in Kampala and drove to the Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary where we saw a number, including a mama and her very young baby, of the 34 Southern White Rhinos they have worked so hard to recover. We then traveled to Murchison Falls, and had 2 nights at Pakuba Lodge in Murchison National Park.
10/17 on safari we saw many giraffes, elephants, Cape Horn buffalo, different types of antelope (impala, kob, heartbeats, Oribi, kudu), a pride of 6 lions feeding on an Oribi, and a hyena! Murchison National Park is a beautiful green Savannah ecosystem with lots and lots of animals. We then traveled to the Bigodi community near the Kibale Forest National Park and stayed at Isunga lodge just 1 night (I would have e loved to have stayed there longer).
I was in heaven at the Bigodi Wetland Sanctuary with our guides who were so knowledgeable about the plants, their traditional uses, and the birdlife, followed by a community tour where we learned from different community members about traditional healing, basket/textile making, organic shade grown coffee processing, and how their banana based gin and beer is made.
The next day we tracked chimpanzees in Kibale Forest National Park (permits required) and encountered a large group of 30-40! It was so amazing to see so many. Then we traveled the long distance to Queen Elizabeth National Park and stayed 1 night at Engagi Lodge. We chose to skip the boat trip planned for that afternoon/evening because we were pooped from the traveling. The view from the lodge was expansive and gorgeous! That is another place I would like to have stayed another night.
From there we did a game drive in Queen Elizabeth National Park, were hoping to see Lions in trees but did not as the weather had turned. We did see a leopard in a tree though! So beautiful. Then we drove to Bwindi Impenetrable Forest located in the far south west corner of Uganda bordering the Democratic Republic of Congo. We stayed at Engagi lodge 2 nights in this higher elevation rain forest area.
The weather was cooler there. We woke the next day very early to trek to see the endangered mountain gorillas (a highlight of the trip). We drove to the Ruhija Sector and met our guides and porters to trek to find gorillas.
We were told that there was a family not too far that the trackers and guides would take us too (also requires permits in advance). After about 5.5 miles of trekking up and down steep and muddy terrain with lots of vines, and one creek crossing we came to the Oruzogo group of mountain gorillas.
These are one of 4 groups within that sector. There are 4 different sectors of the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest which have habituated family groups of gorillas that are adapted to being around humans. We wore face masks to protect from transmitting any viruses.
We saw almost all of 11 gorillas in this, a mama and her baby, a pregnant female, the 20 years old silver back, a 14 years old blue back male desiring to take the spot of the silver back, and many younger ones.
The lead guide was intimately familiar with each of them and answered my many questions at the end of the experience. My wonderful female porter took care of me ensuring I didn’t fall. This was a highlight of this tour and my life. Since the experience I have been read8ng everything I can about these incredible beings that share 98+ % of our DNA. I highly recommend gorilla safaris as a company to book with for experiences of a lifetime!
When we weren’t accompanied by a ranger our driver Emma was an excellent spotter and pointed out so many wonderful bird species as well as wildlife. Everything gorilla safaris tours promised was delivered and so much more. Thank you so much Moses and Emma. The people of Uganda are gentle and welcoming. This was my fourth trip to Africa and I have to say do not miss a chance to visit Uganda – “The Pearl of Africa”.
