Chimpanzee trekking in Uganda is the second biggest tourist attraction in Uganda with more than 5,000 chimpanzees in Uganda, chimpanzee tracking is best and mainly done in Kibale forest national park, a moist ever green forest containing diverse array of landscape. Kibale forest is one of the remaining rainforests containing both lowland and mountain forests in Africa with 13 primates species including Chimpanzees and about 70 mammals and about 375 different bird species.
Chimpanzee tracking is a popular activity that allows visitors to have personal encounters with human’s closest animal cousins. In Kibale National Park alone, there is an estimate of about 1,500 chimpanzees while other forests complete the remaining population, these include, Budongo forest, Kalizu forest, Kyambura forest, Ngamba Island, Bugoma forest reserve, and Semiliki national park. An encounter with chimpanzees allows one to reflect on how their behaviour - thoughtful, vocal and social behaviour is related to human ways of life. Learning about their ways of life from the experienced guides is something many more people should be able to experience.
| For extended time with the chimps in the wild you can take on the chimp habituation experience which lasts longer than chimp trekking experience. Ngamba Island Chimpanzee sanctuary and Uganda wildlife Education centre are some places to view orphaned rescued chimps. Enjoy the sight of chimpanzees going about their daily life, eating fruit, watching and grooming each other. |
Chimpanzees are man's closest relatives, sharing around 98.7% of his DNA. They, like humans, adapt to their environments over time, creating tools for survival. By visiting one of the chimpanzee trekking sites in Uganda, you will spend an hour with these species in their natural habitat. You'll be able to follow them with your ranger in order to obtain fantastic photos and learn more about the chimps. The success rate of finding chimps while trekking is approximately 95%. There are options for Chimpanzee trekking twice a day: in the morning at 7 a.m. and in the afternoon at 2 p.m. with up to six groups tracking each day, each with six members. There are roughly 13 types primates in the forest, including black and white colobus, red-tailed monkeys, red colobus monkeys, grey checked mangabeys and baboons.
The Kalinzu forest is home to about 300 Chimps, with approximately 40 of them habituated for visitors. The chance of seeing chimps when trekking is roughly 60%, but the jungle has much more to offer than just chimp trekking. While on this chimpanzee trekking safari, take in the magnificent surroundings and running streams. This walk is usually long and thus demands good fitness levels.
Budongo forest in Murchison Falls National Park's Kaniyo Pabidi region provides a rewarding chimp trekking experience. The forest is home to the most Chimpanzees, although just a few are habituated for tourism. Unlike in Kibale forest where permits must be obtained in advance, you can notify the park officers the day before your chimp walk at Kaniyo Pabidi. Queen Elizabeth National Park's Kyambura Gorge is a rare underground forest in the center of the otherwise Savannah park. The forest includes a few chimps, who can be difficult to see at times, but the woodland walk is gratifying, and the views of the canyon from a vantage point are priceless. There is a risk of encountering hippos and elephants on your trek but the armed rangers are there to keep you safe. These interactions however are rare.
