Chimpanzee trekking in Queen Elizabeth national park is conducted in Kyambura gorge located on the Eastern side of queen Elizabeth National Park. Kyambura gorge provides a wonderful spectacular view and it is referred to as the valley apes. The Kyambura gorge shelters chimpanzees and it is only here in Queen Elizabeth national park where you can go and do your chimpanzee trekking safaris. The gorge is just one kilometer across and it’s just sixteen kilometers long with the deepest point at one hundred kilometers. The gorge is composed of savannah grassland which sometimes dominates the queen Elizabeth National park. River Kyambura is the only river that crosses the gorge and thus draining the Gorge. The Kyambura Gorge is covered by thick rain forests with a dense canopy defying sunshine penetration. The forest around the gorge supports different vegetation types and different animal and unique bird species.

Activities while in Kyambura

Kyambura wildlife reserve has got a lot of tourism activities that one can do while visiting the forest. However, the famous activity within the park is known as chimpanzee tracking and this activity makes the highlights of any safari in Uganda.  There are still a lot of activities you can do in Kyambura Gorge another chimpanzee tracking that can keep you so relaxed and your expectation high. These are the general activities that you can do in Kyambura Gorge.

The valley of primates I mean the Kyambura Gorge has got 16 habituated chimpanzees according to the research, despite this, the activity still offers a fantastic experience to the traveler who goes for gorilla tracking. Other visitors can do chimpanzee trekking in other places such as Kibale Forest National Park, Kalinzu Game reserve, and Budongo Game Reserve. Kyambura Wildlife  Reserve offers a fantastic experience more than just a chimpanzee trekking experience as it is with un queen Elizabeth national park and you can do game drives in Queen Elizabeth National park to compliment your gorilla trekking experience.

Chimpanzee trekking is one of the most experience-rich activities that most of the visitors run to participate in. This is one of the best primate safaris in Uganda. Chimpanzee trekking safaris are best possible only when chimpanzees are well habituated. Kyambura Gorge is the only place where you can go for chimpanzee trekking in Queen Elizabeth National Park.

Visitors will need to book a gorilla trekking permit from the Mweya visitor information center, chimpanzee trekking begins early in the morning as you being passed through the rules and regulations for chimpanzee trekking. You need to follow different rules and regulations when you’re doing chimpanzee trekking as you will be told what to do and what you should not do in the forest.

The chimpanzee in Kyambura wildlife reserves was well trained to get used to human beings by a team of researchers in the process called the chimpanzee habituation process. You can go and see these primates when they are not in fear because they have been trained and are familiar with you. There are other primates other than chimpanzees that you can encounter on your chimpanzee trekking safaris and these include the likes of olive baboons, vervet monkeys, black monkeys, and white monkeys among others. Enjoy the jumping games of the monkeys as they jump from one tree to another. Upon spotting the chimpanzees, you will be allowed only one hour to see them while standing 7 meters away from them.

How much does it cost to do chimpanzee trekking in Kyambura Gorge?

Yes, the costs of chimpanzees in Kyambura gorge in Queen Elizabeth National Park are cheaper compared to chimpanzee trekking in Kibale Forest National park. visitors will be required to pay $ USD50.00 per person per trek and this is a result of the success rate because as there is only one habituated chimpanzee family in the gorge sometimes you can miss it but this is rare. Visitors need to book early the chimpanzee trekking permit for Kyambura to avoid missing the opportunity for seeing these great apes. Six permits are available to track the group per day and therefore you don’t need to miss out on this great opportunity.

Other activities include;

Bird watching safaris in Kyambura Gorge: The Natural environment surrounding the Gorge including the forests, savannah plains, and the rivers favors the birds to stay and enjoy this gorge as their home. Kyambura Gorge is known as an enjoyable place for birders because of the different bird species that the Gorge contains.  Visitors need to park their safari vehicles and walks on food as you’re doing the birding watching activity. While in the forest, you will be led by the experienced guide as he or she guides and helps you to identify the bird’s presents.

Guided Nature walks. Apart from bird-watching safaris and chimpanzee trekking in Kyambura Gorge, visitors can still engage in guided nature walk safaris conducted within the same gorge. Guided Nature Walks in the Kyambura gorge will enable you to get insights into the first and physical hand information about the gorge as you traverse the Kyambura forested escapements. There are different trails that visitors use when doing their nature walk safaris in Kyambura Gorge. An experienced guide will guide you to which site to use as you encounter different bird and primate species. Birds such as Martial Eagle, African skimmer, bar-tailed Godwit, blue-headed Bee-eater, less and greater flamingoes all can be spotted while on guided Nature walk safaris in Kyambura gorge.

How to get to Kyambura Gorge for chimpanzee trekking

Visitors accessing Kyambura gorge can use Kampala Mbarara Kasese road with about 420kilometer distance or visitors coming from Kampala using Fort Portal at a distance of 410kilometers. Visitors can as well access Kyambura Gorge through Kigali if they decide to start their trip from Rwanda. Chartered flights are available from Entebbe international airport/Kajjansi airfield to Kasese or Mweya airstrips and then link up to your hotel /lodge in Kyambura Gorge. On the road trip, you will spend about 6 hours accessing Kyambura Gorge.

Where to stay around Kyambura Gorge while on Chimpanzee trekking?

The whole of Queen Elizabeth national park, there are various lodges and hotels where you can stay whole on your chimpanzee trekking safaris in Kyambura Gorge. Lodges range from budget, midrange and luxury so you choose the lodge basing on your budget. Around Kuambura Gorge, Visitors can stay at lodges such as Kyambura Gorge Safari Lodge, Jacana Safari Lodge, Kingfisher camp, and Elephant Hab Lodge among others.

Other areas of interest in Queen Elizabeth National Park

Apart from Kyambura Gorge, visitors can also visit other sections of the park for various activities such as visiting the Kazinga channel for the boat cruise, Kasenyi plains and Mweya for safari game drives, Ishasha section of Queen Elizabeth National Park for tree-climbing lions, visit the crater lakes in Katwe and Kasoga community for the cultural experience. Just inquire from us at Africa Adventure Vacations and we shall give you the best of a whole based on your interests.