'''Bwindi Impenetrable National Park''' is in Uganda.
Understand
History
Landscape
Flora and fauna
Climate
The climate varies - Uganda is wet most of the year, with dry periods from june to august. It can be a scorching 30 degrees celcius, or a chilly 9 degrees celcius, depending on the weather. If you go gorilla tracking, be sure to bring a sweater, at least 2.5 liters of water, long-sleeved t-shirt/trousers, a hat, rain-clothing and decent hiking boots. The tracking takes you through the dense rainforest, where you go up and down steep hills, often with no visible path. If it rains, it will be extremely muddy, if it's dry and the sun is out, you will need a lot of water. Bring insect repellant for the mosquitos, and consult your doctor for vaccinations and malaria-pills.
Get in
Getting into Bwindi Impenetrable National Park requires a permit - the best place to get that is from the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA). They have an office in Kampala, on Kiira Road. Check out the [http://www.uwa.or.ug website]. Tour operators can also make reservations, but you only pay on arrival. There is no point in going to Bwindi without a permit, as you will be refused entrance.
The best way to get there is to get a bus from Kampala - the daily Post Bus takes about 8 hours from Kampala to Kabale, a nearby city with several hotels and hostels. From there you can arrange private transportation, for which you have to reserve another day of travel - leave early in the morning; you'll need to get transporation to Butogota, and from there to Buhoma, where hotels are available only a short walk from the starting point of the UWA gorilla tracking.
Fees/Permits
As of June 2007 all gorilla tracking costs US $500 for a non-resident - though worth it as it is an unbelievable experience.
Get around
The roads in Uganda are bad - you will redefine your idea of what is a 'good road' after a visit. Paved roads are few and far between. If you can rent a car, be prepared for a bumpy ride (and make sure you have a spare). You can hire a ride on a 'bodaboda' - a motorcycle with a passenger seat, but beware that many (fatal) traffic accidents involve bodabodas.
You can also get a 'private hire' - which is often very expensive, or get a ride in the back of a pick-up - which you will have to share with enough people to make standing up the only option. On these roads, that is only fun for so long, but it is cheap and a common method of transportation. If you catch a ride on a bus, beware that because of bad roads, vomiting fellow passengers are more rule than exception: store your luggage safely.
See
Bwindi Impenetrable Forest
Do
Gorilla tracking - the only option available, here. It is expensive ($500 in 2008, but rumored to go up to $1000 in 2009 and $2000 later on). Still, it is worth it. There are three groups of gorilla's, with group H being the largest. Tracking can take from anywhere between 15 minutes to a full day, depending on where the gorillas are. They move often and far - one group of tourists can be back at the UWA camp within two hours on one day, while they next day, tracking the same group of gorillas can keep you walking until night falls. There is no way to say how easy or difficult it will be - elderly people should carefully consider how fit they are and how long they are willing to hike ''and'' climb: paths can be so steep you have to hold on to bushes and grass to prevent you from slipping, and climbing a hill can require hands and feet. There are no 'exits' while trekking, no shortcuts back home. Beware that refunds are only given in extraordinary circumstances, and are only partial refunds.<br>
Registration for tracking starts at 8.30 am, briefing is at 9. The trackers leave before that, and will communicate with your guides to let them know if and where they have found the gorillas. After getting there, you will have a maximum of 1 hour near the gorillas. You can get up to several meters of them, but you can be instructed to move further away should the gorillas get restless. Considering the terrain, it is not always possible to get this close, so bring a camera with a zoomlens, and remember the use of flash is not allowed. While in the rainforest, you are also asked to keep your voices down.<br>
Should you be ill or have a cold, do remember that you may be refused participation. Since gorillas are genetically so close to humans, they are susceptible to many of the same diseases. As there are only about 700 mountain gorillas left in the world, their safety comes first.
Buy
Eat
Drink
Sleep
The Gorilla Resort. uhoma, Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. ext to the park . ww.gorillaresort.com. S$375 per person per night. This Intimate exclusive high end safari camp with a breath-taking view of the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest is located at Buhoma - Bwindi Impenetrable Gorilla National Park on a Mountain side.
The camp has been constructed and built to the highest standards whilst retaining sympathy with the local surroundings.
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Lodging
Stay inside the UGA quarters which offers 2 reasonable accommodation lodges, with hot water, decent breakfast and they prepare a nice lunch pack to take to the gorilla tracking. The whole point is leave the money in the community and preserve the region.
Camping
Backcountry
Stay safe
Get out