Chimpanzee trekking in Rwanda

 

The chimpanzee trekking in Rwanda takes place at nyungwe forest national park and this is an early morning activity so you are advised to keep time. you will arrive at uwinka which is the park’s headquarters.

After a simple briefing, you leave the headquarters with several rangers and trackers who will help you allocate the chimpanzees and after finding them you will spend some time with them and then head back to your starting point.

Nyungwe forest national park

The park is located southwestern part of Rwanda towards the Burundi border in the rusizi district.

Nyungwe national park has got only two groups of chimpanzees with the large one having 60 members and it’s found at uwinka and the small one has 30 members and its located at cyamudongo.

Leaving aside the chimpanzees, nyungwe national park is home to 1,068 tree species, 85 mammal species, and 300 bird species.

Chimpanzee trekking

Chimpanzee trekking in Rwanda is the second most done activity in Rwanda after the top done that is gorilla trekking.

Chimpanzee trekking can take you an hour hiking or walking around the nyugwe forest and three hours of being entertained by the different birds and primates in the trees.

The time and distance to take you during the process are surely based on how far you will locate these man’s closest.

What to carry for chimpanzee trekking in Rwanda.

As you are preparing and packing for your safari or vacation to Rwanda you ccan’tmiss out on  the chimpanzees at nyungwe national park too enjoy the chimpanzees with less or no hardships there are, certain things that you have to put first in your cargo, and these include;

Binoculars to enjoy the distant birds and primates

Rain gears

Hiking boots

Water

Hats

Snacks

Insect repellants

Long-sleeved clothes

how to get to nyungwe national park for chimpanzee trekking in Rwanda.

Getting to nyungwe national park by air is very fast and easy as Rwanda airs have got different domestic flights.

By road, it only takes you 8 hours to drive from Kigali to nyungwe national park via the different towns enjoying the beautiful sceneries along the way.

 

The best time to visit Rwanda for chimpanzees

The months of June, July, and August are the appropriate ones for chimpanzee trekking at nyungwe national park

By this time the fig tree is well-packed with fruits that the chimpanzees feed on. Do not forget that each group of chimpanzees is only visited by 2 groups of tourists each day.

The chimpanzees can be easily seen early morning.

 

Other activities to do at nyungwe national park.

Besides chimpanzee trekking, there are many more activities that you can engage in while at nyungwe national park and these are;

The canopy walk

This is a unique and fancy activity that gives you the best aerial view of the forest enjoying the several primates and birds as they play around the trees.

Around east and central Africa, the canopy walk can only be found in Rwanda and it’s only 60 USD taking you through the 130 km constructed trails.

Tea plantations

the park is surrounded by several tea plantations and these include gisakura and gisovu tea plantations where you get a chance to test on the local tea and also interact with the works, getting to know the process of how to plant, harvest, and process the tea.

Nature trails

Nature trails/walk/hiking at nyungwe national park takes 4 hours. The park has got well-constructed hiking trails and these include the Congo Nile, imbaraga, igishigishigi, and many more.

Colobus monkeys in gisakura

after enjoying the chimpanzees, you can add on a visit to the gisakura tea plantation but mainly focusing on the forest located in the middle of this tea plantation which is home to the colobus monkeys.

The forest is less than a square kilometer.

 

Bird watching

Nyungwe national park holds over 300 bird species and this makes it a potential birding site with 29 Albertine endemic species. At only 50 USD you will enjoy several birds that include the Shelley crimson wing, the Grauer’s warbler, and the kungwe apalis.