Nature walk/ hiking in Bwindi impenetrable national park

Nature walk or hike in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. This is one of the most popular national parks in Uganda, and it is in the southwest, in the districts of Kanungu, Kisoro, and Kabale. Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is famous for being home to rare mountain gorillas, as well as l’hoest monkeys, black and white colobus monkeys, forest elephants, bush pigs, and many types of birds. During your trip, you can do many things in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, such as gorilla climbing, gorilla habituation experience, bird watching, a Batwa traditional tour, and guided nature walks or hikes.

Hiking or going on a nature walk in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is a great way to see the park. You can explore it on foot with the help of an experienced park guide and armed park guards who will keep you safe. You will follow different hiking trails in the forest during the organized nature walk. These are some of the paths:

The path to Munyaga Falls

A trail called the Munyaga waterfall trail can be found in the Buhoma section of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. The waterfall walk takes about three hours to complete. At the park offices, you will first learn about the rules, laws, and what is expected of you. As you go on the organized nature walk, you can see different kinds of primates and birds, take in the beautiful scenery and waterfall, listen to the sweet sounds of birds and roaring water, and do many other things.

Path through Mubwindi Swamp

The Mubwindi Swamp Trail in the Buhoma Sector of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is one of the best wildlife walks. The trail goes through a swamp and rainforest for four to five hours. Along the way, you can see primates, different animals, views of the Virunga massifs, and many bird species, including the African fish eagle, black crake, and African jacana. It is one of the best trails for birdwatching.

Loop walk in Muzabajiro

You can find the Muzabajiro loop tracks in the Buhoma section of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. The trail goes through Rushura hill and takes about three to four hours. From there, you can see the Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, the Virunga range, the Great Rift Valley, and other places.

The path up Rushura Hill

In the northern part of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, in the Buhoma region, there is another hiking trail that leads to Rushura Hill. The most difficult trail in the Buhoma region is the Rushura trail. It takes about three hours to hike and offers beautiful views of the forest canopy, Lake Edward, Lake George, and the Rwenzori mountain peaks, among other things.

The walk along the Ivy River

It takes seven hours to walk the Ivy River Trail in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. You can start the trail at either the Buhoma or Nkuringo park offices. It’s called Mukempunu, which means “a place where wild pigs are often seen.” As part of the organized nature walk, you will have the chance to see animals, monkeys, birds, plants, and talk to locals, among other things.

The Habinyanja trail

There is also the Habinyanja track in the Buhoma sector, which is in the northern part of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. The Habinyanja trail is about 4 to 6 hours long and goes along the Munyanga river and the Riyoyi hills, which have views of the Buhoma river. As you walk along the Habinyanja trail, you may see different kinds of birds, plants and trees, bugs, and other things.

The Kashasha River Trail

The Kashasha River Trail is fun. It can begin in Buhoma Sector and end in Nkuringo Sector, or it can begin in Nkuringo Sector and end in Buhoma Sector. It takes about 4 to 5 hours to walk the trail, which goes through steep terrain, community land, and connected rivers like the Kashasha and Ivi. Along the way, you can see many kinds of birds.

A bamboo path

Hiking or taking a nature walk in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
A walk through nature in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
One of the difficult hiking trails in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is the Bamboo Trail, which is in the Ruhija section in the eastern part of the park. The bamboo trail is one of the longest trails in the park. It takes about 7 hours to hike it. There are different types of plants and animals along the trail, such as afromontane plants, bamboo plants, and tropical plants. You might see different primates, animals like duikers and forest elephants, and birds like the African jacana, brown snake eagle, and woolly necked stork.

How much does a nature walk in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park cost?

A nature walk in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park costs 30 USD for foreigners who don’t live in Uganda and 15 USD for foreigners who do live in Uganda. East African citizens pay 10,000 UGX per person. The price of the nature walk does not include the entrance fee to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, which is 40 USD for foreigners who are not residents of Uganda and 30 USD for foreigners who are residents of Uganda. East African citizens pay 20,000 UGX per person.

When is the best time to go on walks in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park?

You can go on a nature walk or hike in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park at any time of the year, but the best time is during the dry season, which is from June to September and December to February. This is because the park gets less rain during these months, so the hiking trails will be dry and easy to use. During the rainy season, the hiking trails are muddy and slippery, making nature walks harder.

Other things to do in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park

Not only does Bwindi Impenetrable National Park offer nature walks and hikes, but it also has other fun things to do. You can go gorilla trekking and spend an hour with mountain gorillas, watch birds and see different kinds of birds, gorilla habituation experience and spend four hours with gorillas in the habituation process, and batwa cultural experience and interact with the batwa people who used to live in Bwindi forest before it was declared a national park.

Follow these steps to get to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park.

The Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is in the southwestern part of Uganda. To get there, you can drive from Kampala through Masaka, Mbarara, Kabale, and finally to the park offices, which will take you about 8 to 9 hours.

You can also get to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park from Rwanda. To get there, you’ll need to fly to Kigali International Airport and then drive for four to five hours to get to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park through the Cyanika Border in Kisoro or the Katuna Border in Kabale.

It is also possible to get to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park by regular or special internal flights from Entebbe International Airport to Kihihi or Kisoro airstrips. From there, you can take a road to the park offices.