What to do in Kibale Forest National Park?

What to do in Kibale Forest National Park? The park is home to about 13 species of primates which has made the park to be regarded as the  primate paradise.

Chimpanzee tracking safaris at Kibale National Park

Most of the visitors to Kibale forest national park have gone there because of the presence of well-habituated chimpanzees. The activity of chimpanzee tracking is popular in Kibale forest National Park and has been done in this park for the last 30 years. Chimpanzee tracking involves tourists accompanied by the guide walks via the forest to look for the habituated chimpanzee group. There are over 1400 habituated chimpanzee individuals that can be seen in Kibale forests and this makes the chances of seeing chimpanzees high. At Kibale Forest National Park, there are two sessions of chimpanzee tracking; the one starting very early at 8 am and another one starting at 2 pm. So, there is an option for the visitors whether to track in the morning or afternoon. The time taken during chimpanzee tracking is not known because it highly depends on the movements of the chimpanzee family that you are tracking. However, once you meet the family that is allocated to you, you will have a maximum of 1 hour to stay with the family and you will be free to take as many photos as you would want, ask as many questions as you would like to know about chimpanzees. You need to be physically fit as you may walk for a long distance for this activity.

Chimpanzee habituation safari at Kibale forest National Park

This activity, makes visitors spend much time with the chimpanzees as compared to when a visitor is involved in Chimpanzee tracking. The activity of chimpanzee habituation is done on less terrain landscape and the fact that the forest is less dense then, the visitors will be able to see how chimpanzees jump into trees as the researchers are training them how to interact with human beings. During chimpanzee habituation, the visitor can spend a maximum of four hours while engaging in the chimpanzee habituation process in Kibale Forest National Park.  Kanyanchu chimpanzee group has been well habituated and is available for tourism.

Bird watching safaris at Kibale Forest National Park

Kibale National Park is one the best birding destination in Uganda with about 370 bird species that are recorded in this park with 6 of them known to be endemic to Albertine Rift areas. Most of the birding destinations in Kibale forest National Park are done at Kanyanchu and outside the park in Biogodi wetland. The major bird species your likely to encounter in these birding destination areas include papyrus Ganolek, Yellow-spotted Barbet, Yellow-throated Nicator, Red-headed Malimbe, black bee-eaters among others.

Cultural safari tours at Kibale Forest National Park

Visitors visiting Kibale national park will get a chance to participate in cultural tours of the villages near the national park. The cultural safaris tours are usually done by tourists visiting Bigodi community village where tourists can learn the lifestyle of the local people, visiting their plantation farms especially vanilla, crater lakes around the Rwenzori Mountains as well as tasting on the local people prepared cuisines. Batoro are the people dominating the park and they have a rich culture with their king Omukama. You can as well opt to go to for portal and visit the king’s place as you continue to learn more about the Batoro culture.

Bigodi wetland sanctuary

This is a biodiversity wetland that is located just outside the Kibale National Park how many kilometers south of the park. It offers a great opportunity for the tourists to enjoy different attractions and activities most importantly the birders. The wetland harbors over 138 species of birds such as the great blue turaco, the hornbills among others. You can also spot some mammals on a lucky day in the wetland and some of the mammals you can spot include forest elephants, mongoose, bushbucks, and others. Vervet monkeys can also be spotted here. Tourists also can enjoy the night walks with ranger guides to spot some of the nocturnal animals such as bushbabies and some bird species. This is a good destination in addition to Kibale forest National Park.

Interesting activities for children at Kibale forest National Park

The fact that Kibale National park is a primate park, children below 13 years are not allowed to follow their parents for chimpanzee tracking or habituation activities and sometimes children are left home. However, in Kibale forest national park, such children are well oriented in several activities that they can engage In as their parents are on for chimpanzee tracking safaris. Well trained guides will ensure that children engage in activities such as photography, pond dipping, batik making, and moving around the forest to see different animals and bird species.

The nocturnal walk at Kibale Forest national park

Nocturnal walks in Kibale forest National park are conducted in the night starting at around 7:30 pm and last for one or two and a half hours as you enjoy the night moments of Kibale Forest National Park. you will be first briefed at the headquarters by the range guide and then after you swing into action by following the designated trail in the forest. A nocturnal walk in the forest is an interesting and rewarding activity as the tourist will be able to see various creatures which cannot be easily seen during the day. Creatures like bush babies, cricket, nightjar, tree hyrax, and serval cuts can be sighted in the night in Kibale forest National  Park. Nocturnal walks are geared by head torch lights and visitors will get a chance to enjoy more time in the jungle with night silence waiting to spot bush babies, Patos as other heavy primates like chimpanzees are in deep sleep. Come and enjoy the night walks in Kibale Forest National Park.