A testament to vital conservation work, more than 1,000 mountain gorilla now live peacefully in the wild. They call the forested slopes of the Virunga Mountains in central Africa home, and the easiest places to view them are in Uganda’s Mahinga and Bwindi National Parks.
The Bwindi Impenetrable Forest - the gorilla’s preferred habitat - is on the edge of the Albertine Rift. It’s a UNESCO World Heritage Site, one of the most biologically diverse areas on Earth, and half of all mountain gorilla live here.
A number of luxury lodges have recently been established in Bwindi, and you will use one of them as your base when you are gorilla tracking. Bwindi Lodge serenely overlooks the forest canopy, and you won’t have to go far to see the gorilla: on occasion they wander into camp! Mahogany Springs has a similarly stunning setting, and it’s a superb location for birding and community visits, as well as gorilla spotting.
Uganda’s mountain gorilla have been habituated by researchers, who study them for conservation purposes. On each trek you will spend around an hour with the gorilla, but the hike to reach them is just as enjoyable and you’ll see a diverse array of flora and fauna along the way.
