Are you looking for a place to track the thrilling chimpanzees in Uganda? Kibale Forest National Park is the best place in Uganda any visitor cannot miss and one of the most rewarding areas to explore. The park is the only Uganda’s’ remaining tropical moist rain forest and home to chimpanzee. The park is located in western Uganda, 5 hours’ drive from Kampala the capital city.
Kibale Forest lies in the shadow of the Rwenzori Mountains along the Albertine Rift Valley covering varied tracts of tropical rainforest which is home to wide diversity of wildlife. Kibale is situated ideally in the heart of the Toro kingdom in western Uganda, near fort portal, the park lies close to the tranquil Ndali Kasenda crater area and is within a half days’ drive od queen Elizabeth, Rwenzori mountains and Semuliki national parks. The park becomes a government forest Reserve in the early 1940s.
The park can be accessed from Kampala, along a newly surfaced road via Kasese near Queen Elizabeth national park. The park can also be reached from Kampala via Mubende and fort portal or through Mbarara and Kamwenge.
There is daily public transport between Kampala and fort portal. Kibale National Park has access to two Airstrip; Nyakisharara Airstrip in Mbarara about 98km through Kamwenge from Kanyanchu and Kasese airstrip, 75km from fort portal town. It can also be reached from the airstrip in Toro/ Semuliki wildlife reserve, only 86km from Kanyanchu.
Kibale National Park’s major attraction are chimpanzees who’s population goes up to 1,450 hence making Kibale forest national park a big habitat for chimpanzees in Uganda and Africa at large, the delightful apes, most closest to humans than to any other living creature.
Kibale Forest National Park is home to 13 species recorded including the famous chimpanzees, rare red tailed monkey, the grey checked mangabey, black and white colobus monkeys, olive baboons, and barbet monkey among others. The forest also offers great chimpanzee tracking and Habituation Experience, bird watching, cultural experiences, and striking scenic beauty.
The Park also contains over 375 species of birds. Kibale adjoins Queen Elizabeth National Park to the south to create a 180km long corridor for wildlife between Ishasha, the remote southern sector of Queen Elizabeth National Park and Sebitoli in the north of Kibale National Park.
The Kibale-Fort Portal area is one of Uganda’s most rewarding destinations to explore. The park lies close to the tranquil Ndali-Kasenda crater area and within half a day’s drive of the Queen Elizabeth, Rwenzori Mountains and Semuliki National Parks, as well as the Toro-Semuliki Wildlife Reserve.
Because of its forest transitions, Kibale Forest National Park has a diversity of wildlife and tourists come to this park basically for chimpanzee tracking (permit $200 USD per person) and chimpanzee habituation experience (permit $250 USD per person). Other people come for nature walks and bird watching.
All treks start from Kanyanchu head office. 13 species can be sought and a good variety of diurnal monkeys invariably encountered, but the stars of this trail are the chimpanzees. Kanyanchu’s chimpanzees have been tracked since 1993 and the chances of locating them are excellent. Guided walks start at 8am and 2pm and last an average of three hours, depending on various factors.
The full day Chimpanzee Habituation Experience works with a chimp community which is undergoing habituation. Early visitors can watch chimps leaving their overnight nests between 6:00-6:30am before feeding, copulating, hunting, breastfeeding, resting, patrolling and displaying until it is time to build new nests around 7pm.
A primate safari in Kibale Forest National Park departs from Kampala after breakfast and head west Uganda to Fort Portal and continue to Kibale where you will go for either a community walk or visit the crater lakes region for a spectacular view. Dinner and overnight will be at your reserved lodge.
The following day you will report to Kanyanchu Tourist Centre at 8:00am for briefing before your primate tracking adventure in the forest. The forest is only accessible on foot and the walk will provide you with the opportunity to see chimpanzees and other variety of other primates and animals as well as birds and butterflies plus other insects.
You can choose between the half day tracking or a full day chimpanzee habituation experience. As you search for Kibale’s resident chimpanzees, keep an eye out for other primates such as grey checked mangabey along with L’Hoest’s monkeys, red colobus, red-tailed and blue monkeys.
Your expert guide will share the secrets of the forests flora and fauna ensuring that the trail is both informative and enjoyable. After lunch, for those not participating in chimp habituation, the Bigodi Women’s Group will take you on a fascinating boardwalk trail through the papyrus swamp of the Bigodi Wetland Sanctuary.
Bigodi wetland is an eco-site located at the edge of Kibale forest. It is looked after by the local community who previously occupied it. When the locals were encouraged to instead conserve the wetland as an eco-site, Bigodi wetland has managed to grow over the years, attracting an array of wildlife including several species of monkeys, birds, and other animals.
Often Chimps cross from Kibale into the wetland. On your visit to Kibale Forest you are encouraged to visit this wetland for a guided nature walk to not only observe the abundant primates and birds but also contribute to its conservation. All revenue accrued from the wetland goes to community.
