Chimpanzee trekking in queen Elizabeth national park
Queen Elizabeth national park is found in the southwestern part of Uganda in the Kasese district. It covers an area of 1978 sq km. it was known as Kazinga national park but in 1956 it was renamed queen Elizabeth national park after Queen Elizabeth’s visit. The park has a diverse population such as savannah grasslands, savannah woodlands, wetlands, tropical rainforests, lake Edward and lake George that are connected with the Kazinga channel, the crate lakes, Kasenyi plains, Maramagambo forest, Kyambura gorge valley in which different activities are done
The park is commonly known for the unbelievable tree-climbing lions found in the Ishasha sector of the park, there are also other wildlife animals like elephants, buffaloes, hippos, nocturnal leopards, zebras, antelopes, Uganda Kobs, giraffes, warthogs, crocodiles, bushbucks and tree climbing lions in the Ishasha sector among others. The park is also home to great primate animals like chimpanzees, white and black colobus monkeys, grey checked mangabey, blue monkeys, red-tailed monkeys, L’Hoest’s monkeys among others that are found in the tropical rainforests of Kyambura valley gorge and Maramagambo forest.
Chimpanzee trekking in Queen Elizabeth national park is one of the great adventure experiences that several travellers prefer to enjoy when they visit the park.
Where to go chimpanzee trekking in Queen Elizabeth national park?
In Queen Elizabeth national park, Chimpanzees are found in two forest destinations namely Kyambura gorge and Maramagambo forest, but since Maramagambo forest has not yet been declared for chimpanzee trekking and has no habituated chimpanzees, trekking is only carried out in Kyambura gorge
Chimpanzee trekking in Kyambura gorge is an exciting and interesting activity since travellers get an opportunity to explore wildlife animals such as the elephants, the hog forest hogs, the buffaloes, and bushbucks among others that visit the valley for water and other primates like white and black colobus monkeys, blue monkeys, L’Hoest’s monkeys, red-tailed monkeys and grey checked mangabey
Chimpanzee trekking in Kyambura gorge is done in two phases the morning phase and the evening phase which both have different experiences. chimpanzees are more active in the morning as they wake up, hunt for food in the forest when there is less sunshine and even they are resting in the tree shades as well as making nests for the night. The activity can take hours without locating the chimpanzees since chimpanzees are mobile creatures. On locating a chimpanzee family, visitors are allowed to spend only one hour with the chimpanzees, learning their behaviours, watching them breastfeeding their babies, playing, resting, and making nests for the next night among other behaviours of the chimpanzees in the jungle.
Tourists are also able to see different bird species like white-winged warbler, African broadbill, falcon flycatcher, papyrus gonolek, and African Skimmer among others.
What is the cost of chimpanzee trekking in Queen Elizabeth national park?
Chimpanzee trekking in Queen Elizabeth national park is one of the best alternatives for chimpanzee safari adventures because the trekking permit is more affordable than in Kibale forest national park and Budongo forest.
The chimpanzee trekking permit in Kyambura gorge is USD 50 per person per day while in Kibale it is USD 200 per person making it cheaper. The permits are acquired through the Uganda wildlife authority or through a trusted tour company where travellers provide their details and some payments and after booking an invoice is sent to them confirming their payments. The permits can also be got from the Mweya information centre in the park
Best time for chimpanzee trekking in Queen Elizabeth national park
The best time to visit Queen Elizabeth national park for the chimpanzee trekking adventure is during the dry season in June, July, August, September, December, January and February when there is little rainfall, the trails are passable that are not muddy and slippery and the vegetations have not overgrown making the tracking less complex.