Gorillas were considered worthy protection and the American Carl Akeley persuaded the Belgians to protect their Congolese and Rwandan Volcano slopes in the new Parc National des Albert, Africa’s first national park in 1925. The Uganda slopes were declared a gorilla game sanctuary in 1931 but it was still not until 1960 that anyone bothered to observe gorillas sufficiently to appreciate their true nature.

The Mountain Gorilla Conservation Fund (MGCF) is devoted to the preservation and protection of the highly endangered Mountain Gorillas in Africa, their habitat, and working with the people around the National Parks. The Denver Gorilla Run is a charity fun run with a difference. Everyone who takes part wears a full gorilla costume - from feathery head to hairy toe and helps raise funds for the Mountain Gorilla Conservation Fund, the international charity working to save the world's last remaining mountain gorillas and keeping Dian Fossey's dream alive for the past 21 years. The World Bank and the UN have recognized the initiative of the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) in the protection of the globally endangered mountain gorillas in Uganda. Uganda is the only country in which gorilla populations have been time after time on the rise and where the population is part of effective matter. Legislation that recognizes its habitats within a gazetted national system of protected areas. An excellent way to help protect the last remaining mountain gorillas is to adopt a gorilla. The Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International (DFGFI) makes this possible with profits from adoptions directly going to support research on the mountain gorillas and the local communities living in the periphery of protected areas. How you are contributing to the conservation of the mountain gorilla The threats to the mountain gorilla population and its habitat are many. One of these threats is the possibility of disease transmission to the gorillas and reduces behavioral disturbances to this fragile population; these gorilla rules have been developed. By following these rules and through the purchase of a permit, you are contributing to the conservation of the mountain gorilla. The protected area authorities use the funds generated from the sale of this permit for the management of national parks and wild reserves. A percentage of the funds raised from the park entrance fees and community levy permits is shared with the local communities living adjacent to the parks to contribute to their development projects and to improve natural resource management in the region. Goals of the conservation The detection of the Mountain Gorillas took place in the Virunga Mountains, on October 17th, 1902, by Captain Robert von Beringe. In festivity of this event and to promote the preservation of the Mountain Gorillas, the Mountain Gorilla Conservation Fund (MGCF) is undertaking several projects to achieve the celebration of this event and to promote the preservation of the Mountain Gorillas, the Mountain Gorilla Conservation Fund (MGCF) is undertaking several projects to achieve the goal of saving these gorillas from extinction. The Current Projects section gives a brief description of eight of these projects. The "Preservation through Visualization" portion of this project promotes the number one task set before the MGCF. In 1987, only 248 Mountain Gorillas lived in the wild. Because of projects coordinated by the Mountain Gorilla Conservation Fund, there are now over 700 living in the wild. The Mountain Gorilla Conservation Fund is devoted to ensuring the future of the Mountain Gorillas of Rwanda, Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. By providing a partnership of business, wildlife conservation, and community development, MGCF addresses the single biggest challenge facing preservation of these animals today; how do we help communities in developing areas grow and prosper without destroying precious habitat or the Mountain Gorillas, who call it home. Read more facts about gorillas: Mountain Gorilla Diet Breeding of the Gorillas By Fred Bukenya

4 Days tour safaris in Uganda

Besides Mountain gorilla trekking in Uganda , Uganda offers a variety of attractions . Uganda is rich cultural country, lots of wildlife of primates, big five forests for lots of bird watching , mountain trekking of Rwenzoris and mount elegon and many more offer challending terrain. Our uganda safaris will assist you to enjoy our tours and safari holidays around the country. our 4 days gorila and wildlife tour will conduct a sample of many attractions uganda can offer 4 DAYS GORILLA TREKKING BWINDI AND WILDLIFE VIEWING SAFARI Safari outline Day 1: Will be picked by our guide in Kampala & drive to Bwindi National park with a stop at the equator. Day 2: After breakfast shall trek gorillas at Bwindi Day 3: Drive to Ishasha-Queen Elizabeth National park, with game drive viewing climbing lions and a boat cruise at Kazinga channel Day 4: Drive to Kyambura for primate walk viewing chimpanzees and then proceed back to Kampala Gorilla safaris Sliverback gorilla of Bwindi Day 1: of 4 Days Gorilla safari: Kampala – Bwindi National park. This Morning, you will be picked from your hotel/residence in Kampala at around 7.00 am and proceed to the south western part of the country. Stop at The equator for land mark photo taking and continue to Mbarara. Break for lunch on the way then proceed to Bwindi National Park the home of Mountain Gorillas. It is estimated to half of the world’s surviving population of mountain gorillas –300 live within these boundaries shared by Uganda, Rwanda and Congo. The drive is long but enjoyable. Proceed south to Buhoma viewing the terraced hills of Kigezi Highlands once known as Switzerland of Africa. Arrival at Buhoma will be in the evening. You will then settle in at your lodge for Dinner and overnight as you prepare for tomorrow’s event! FB Budget: Buhoma Community Bandas: Bwindi View Bandas: Nkuringo campsite tents: Virunga Hotel: Nkuringo safari centre Middle: Nkuringo camp site: Wagtail Eco lodge: similar/Gorilla Mist Camp: Shongi Gorilla Resort Up market: Lake Kitandara Lodge: Engagi lodge: Mahogany Springs Lodge: Gorilla Resort Camp: Traveler’s Rest Camp: Silver Back Lodge: Gorilla Safari lodge Luxury: Gorilla Forest Camp: Buhoma Lodge: Clouds LodgeGahinga: Volcanoes Bwindi Safari Lodge. Day2: Of 4 Days Gorilla safari: Gorilla Tracking Bwindi Morning after breakfast with packed lunch, you will be escorted to the starting point for briefing by your guide. you will be allocated guides to track gorillas with, and then will be off to begin your adventure. A briefing from your local guides and then it’s off! the time taken and the terrain vary (1- 8 hours) this depends on the movement of these gentle giants. the thrill of meeting face to face takes away the pain of some times long and arduous trek. Each encounter is different and has its own rewards, but you are likely to enjoy the close view of adults feeding, grooming and resting as the youngsters frolic and swing from vines in delightfully playful manner. After tracking will walk back to your lodge for overnight stay fb. You will need to carry long pants like light type, sturdy shoes to help you hiking steep and slippery slopes, long sleeved shirts and blouses to protect your bodies from thorns and itching plants. You may not rule out raining on you and at least a rain coat is needed to protect your bodies and any equipment carried along with like cameras. Also carry insect repellants and sun cream Day 3 : Of 4 days Gorilla wildlife safari: Bwindi national park _ Ishasha – Queen Elizabeth National park After early breakfast head for ishasha, which is the southern sector of Queen Elizabeth national park, carry out a game drive where you may sight tree-climbing lions and viewing other wildlife like elephant buffalo, hyena etc. Ishasha sector is dominated by acacia woodland and scrubland and features the meandering ishasha river, banked by a riparian forest. After Game drive in Ishasha sector proceed to Mweya peninsular where will do most yielding boat cruise on Kazinga channel. Will have chance of viewing at schools of hippos,herds of elephants,lots of birds and many more . After check in at your lodge for dinner and overnight. Budget: Albertine Camp: Farmland Resort Moderate: Hippo Hill Camp: Simba Safari Lodge: Bufallo Safari Lodge: Bush Lodge : Engazi lodge Up market: Mweya Lodge standard rooms: Katara Lodge Luxury: Mweya Safari lodge: Jacana safari lodge: Wilderness Safari Camp Day 4: of 4 days Gorilla wildlife safaris: Queen Elizabeth park – Kampala This day will be driven to Kyambura gorge for Chimpanzee tracking while doing a nature walk. The Kyambura gorge is famous for a primate walk where you will see chimps and other primates e.g. Columbus & velvet monkeys and baboons. After the chimp walk drive back to Kampala with your packed lunch. Arrival will in the evening END OF SAFARI Please Noe the safari cost will include: Meals and accommodation at full board for the agreed dates Gorilla permits 1 permit per person Game drive — Ishasha , park fees, 1 tracking chimpanzee permit per person safari driver /guide and 4×4 vehicle Park fees Applicable government taxes Drinking bottled water while driving on safari Excluded are: Beverages and bar bills, phone calls, personal insurance and any other services of personal nature like souvenirs, tips, laundry etc HIGH SEASON RATES: Dec-Mar:, Jun – Oct COST 2 People sharing: US$ 2320 per person luxury lodge : SRS 290 COST 2 People sharing: US$ 1955 per person Upmarket lodge : SRS 250 COST 2 People sharing: US$ 1400 per person Middle lodge : SRS 185 COST 2 People sharing: US$ 1300 per person Budget lodge : SRS 80

3 Days Murchison Fals Safari itinerary

3 DAYS MURCHISON FALLS NATIONAL PARK FOR ANITA BELLKOM X 2 PAX 1 TWIN Day 1. Kampala - Murchison Falls National Park. Your driver/guide will pick you from Kampala at 7:- 8.30am from where you will start the drive to Murchison Falls National Park with lunch en route in Masindi town. Murchison falls National Park covers 3,840-sq km and has recorded 76 mammal species and 450 bird species. The altitude is 619m at the delta and 1,292 at Rabongo Hill. The mean temperature is 29 ºC-high and 21 ºC-low. Overnight at Red Chili camp budget facility bandas.

Day 2. Murchison Falls National Park. Morning after an early breakfast, cross with ferry and drive in the northern bank of River Nile start the day with an early morning game drive. You will most likely be able to view those animals that are unique to the African Savannah like giraffe, antelope, lion, elephant, hyena, buffalo and the Uganda Kob.. After lunch you will take on a launch cruise on the Nile River. The cruise takes you to the Bottom of the thundering falls where you will see huge crocodiles, schools of hippos, buffaloes, elephants and a variety of water birds like herons, cormorants, ducks, bee-eaters, kingfishers, skimmers, fish eagles and sometimes the rare shoebill. Return to the lodge for dinner and overnight. Day 3. Murchison Falls National Park - Kampala. After an early breakfast, visist top of the fall if you do not do it on day 1 and later Continue to Kampala with lunch stop on the way and be dropped at your home stay in Kampala. END OF SAFARI:

Domestic Tourism on the Picking Trend in Uganda Safaris

Domestic tourism is growing in East African countries Uganda in Particular. East African tour operators and experts say domestic tourism is slowly catching up . All East African tourism experts and government agency, reported that in the first half of 2019, the number of domestic tourists was higher compared to the same period last year. The number of tourism-related agencies also has grown. There are currently increasing number of organisations with a tourism licensed in all 5 countries in East Africa. With more than Organisations are getting established in the past year. “The licenses are very difficult to obtain, and it is even more difficult to keep up with the competition and stay afloat,”said some of the directors of Travel industry. However, according to them, it is worth the risk, because interest is growing and this year has seen the number of customers at his firm jump 25% from last year.

Fred runs Travel Hemispheres his own small travel company, which, in addition to the standard services, offers city tours, gorilla safaris rwanda safaris in East africa “Generally the city tours are offered on weekends, have a special theme, and are quite affordable,” he said. His marketing method has also allowed him cheap advertisement. “I advertise the tours on the company’s website: www.travelhemipheres.com and on a social network page, and generally the people themselves invite their friends and family so they can spend quality time together,” Charles said the marketing director his business has built a solid following. “I almost never miss a tour organized uganda safaris , and there are many others like me. We even organized a Facebook group of tour safari enthusiasts, and as a result people are becoming more interested in the history of our country Uganda interest in the history of the region.”

One may wonder, why travel around your own city when you already pay to see it every day from the window of a bus or car. But as it turns out, taking a tour can lead to the discovery of amazing secrets that even a long time city residents. “I loved history at school, but thanks to these to East African wildlife tours and safaris I have become interested in historical literature, and in addition, it turns out that the ordinary places that are familiar to me from childhood are in fact historical monuments,” said Proffesor of History from Makerere university who added that the tours are appealing because of their low prices. Small tourism companies and mini-hotels, which successfully blend a European standard of service, oriental flavour and low prices. But we need support from the state. International tourists makebackbone of f our industry and tourist are welcome in the country Uganda to enjoy many safaris we offer. Companies also noted that problems with obtaining visas, for example,the number of tourists from abroad are also increasing doing uganda tours.

How to do Gorilla trekking safaris in Uganda

 

Gorilla trekking in Uganda  is and Incredible experience. You need to arrange tour with us - Travel Hemispheres Uganda Safari company and we arrange for you a best safari holiday with us. Uganda safaris combine as many  as you may think that it is just a walking, driving, trekking, name it. . But gorilla trekking is carried out in an impenetrable forest of Bwindi forest that has existed for thousand years and is among the African tropical forests that are still intact and exist in south western  Uganda as a country. You will be trekking hills up and down as the topography  of the area is hilly and  with wide valleys . The day begins with briefing from rangers post or park headquarters. The assembling will be  composed of rangers to guide you, trackers and guides. Also strong Bakiga men who work as porters whom individual trackers will hire their services to  help them carry their back packs and even can support you to give you push if will get tired before getting out of the forest.   Will also need good walking shoes  and a jacket call it rain coat as rain may not be ruled out on every day while still deep in the forest. At times this real African rain forest because you may not miss rain almost on daily basis what a blessing. Gorilla trekking takes place under the canopies of Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National park.

View Golden Monkeys at Mgahinga park in Uganda

 

 

Uganda is ranked among the best wildlife safari destinations in African safaris offered by many African countries. Mgahinga Gorilla national park does not only offer mountain gorilla trekking but also offer Golden Monkeys trekking a rare activity in Africa. Golden Monkeys are fascinating creatures and stay together with mountain gorillas in this park. In Uganda Golden Monkeys are viewed here only. https://www.travelhemispheres.com/uganda/mgahinga-gorilla-national-park.html. Apart from this will enjoy viewing volcanic views of volcanic mountains of Muhavura, Sabinyo and Mt Gahinga. Also will get to know or do Batwa trail giving you an experience of batwa people and their lifestyle.

 

Travel Hemispheres offer many safari packages   of different tastes and Mountain Gorilla trekking is the gist of Uganda safaris and tours taking place in Uganda. will enjoy over 12 species of primates in Uganda viewd at different parks. Chimpanzees ranked second to Mountain Gorillas in viewership. Will experience walking safaris in primates parks and will carryout game drives in wildllife national parks viewing the Big five lion, elephant, buffalo, rhinos,  and many more. Uganda offer variety of attractions- mountain trekking of the Rwenzoris, Mount Elgon, all give special mountain climbing challanges.

 

Uganda Cultures Today

UGANDA’S CULTURES TODAY 

 Uganda is one East Africa country that is greatly endowed by nature in terms of culture and history. While here, you will be surprised to see and take pictures of the most endangered group of people; the pygmies locally referred to as the Batwa in the rain forests of south western part of the country. These people have the most interesting behaviors and characters and you will love to spend time with them even a single second will leave a broad smile on your face. This group feeds on bush meat and fruits. This makes hunting and fruit gathering their main activities carried out to ensure their survival. It’s interesting to see and interact with a group of people that lives in forests and has to go hunting wild animals and collect fruits for food. This group of people is also talented when it comes to the local dances. They have  rich culture organized traditional dances that are done in their language, they are very hospitable to an extent that they even fight to appear on the picture scene; they indeed love to interact with visitors

 Uganda also has a diverse range of ethnic groups in addition to the pygmies / Batwa. These include the Baganda and several other tribes. In the north live the Lango and the Acholi, who speak Nilotic languages. To the east are the Iteso and Karamojong, who speak a Nilotic language. Lake Kyoga forms the northern boundary for the Bantu-speaking peoples, who dominate much of east, central and southern Africa. Lake Kyoga serves as a rough boundary between Bantu speakers in the south and Nilotic and Central Sudanic language speakers in the north. Despite the division between north and south in political affairs, this linguistic boundary actually runs roughly from northwest to southeast, near the course of the Nile. However, many Ugandans live among people who speak different languages, especially in rural areas. Some sources describe regional variation in terms of physical characteristics, clothing, bodily adornment, and mannerisms, but others claim that those differences are disappearing.

 Bantu speakers probably entered southern Uganda by the end of the first millennium. They had developed centralized kingdoms by the fifteenth or sixteenth century, and after independence from British rule in 1962, Bantu speakers constituted roughly two-thirds of the population. They are classified as either Eastern Lacustrine or Western Lacustrine Bantu. The Eastern Lacustrine Bantu speakers include the Baganda people whose language is Luganda, the Basoga, and many smaller societies in Uganda, Tanzania, and Kenya. The Western Lacustrine Bantu speakers include the Banyoro, the Batoro, the Banyankole, and several smaller populations in Uganda. 

Nilotic language speakers probably entered the area from the north beginning about C.E.1000. Thought to be the first cattle-herding people in the area, they also relied on crop cultivation. The largest Nilotic populations in Uganda are the Iteso and Karamojong ethnic groups, who speak Eastern Nilotic languages, and the Acholi, Langi, and Alur, who speak Western Nilotic languages. Central Sudanic languages, which arrived in Uganda from the north over a period of centuries, are spoken by the Lugbara, the Madi, and a few small groups in the northwestern part of the country. 

Linguistic Affiliation.Introduced by the British in the late nineteenth century, English was the language of colonial administration. After independence, it became the official language, used in government, commerce, and education. Official publications and most major newspapers appear in English, which often is spoken on radio and television. Most residents speak at least one African language. Swahili and Arabic also are widely spoken. History and Ethnic Relations. 

 After independence in 1962, ending a period of colonization that began in 1885, there was little indication that the country was headed for social and political upheaval. Instead, Uganda appeared to be a model of stability and progress. It had no white settler class attempting to monopolize the cash crop economy, and there was no legacy of conflict. It was the African producers who grew the cotton and coffee that brought a higher standard of living, financed education, and led to high expectations for the future. Independence arrived without a national struggle against the British, who devised a timetable for withdrawal before local groups had organized a nationalist movement. This near absence of nationalism among the country's ethnic groups led to a series of political compromises. National Identity.Ethnic and religious divisions as well as historical enmities and rivalries contributed to the country's disintegration in the 1970s. 

There was a wide gulf between Nilotic speakers in the north and Bantu speakers in the south and an economic division between pastoralists in the drier rangelands of the west and north, and agriculturists, in the better-watered highland and lakeside regions. There was also a historical division between the centralized and sometimes despotic rule of the ancient African kingdoms and the kinship-based politics elsewhere. The kingdoms were often at odds in regard to the control of land. During the colonial period, the south had railways, cash crops, a system of Christian mission education, and the seat of government, seemingly at the expense of other regions. 

There also were religious groups that had lost ground to rivals in the past, for example, the domination of Muslims at the end of the nineteenth century by Christians allied to British colonialism. All these divisions precluded the formation of a national culture. Ethnic Relations.After independence, there were conflicting local nationalism. The Baganda's large population, extensive territory in the favored south, and self-proclaimed superiority created a backlash among other Ugandan peoples. Nubians shared little sense of identification with other groups. The closely related peoples of nearby Zaire and the Sudan soon became embroiled in civil wars in the 1960s and 1970s, drawing in ethnically related Ugandans.

 Today relations are relatively harmonious. However, suspicion remains with the president believing to favor certain groups from the west of the country over others. Major Industries. When the present government seized power in 1986, industrial production was negligible, consisting mostly of the processing of crops and the production of textiles, wood and paper products, cement, and chemicals. Industry was a small part of GDP in the late 1980s, operating at approximately one-third of the level of the early 1970s. Under #Museveni, there has been some industrial rejuvenation, although this has amounted to not much more than the repair of damage done during the civil war to the industrial infrastructure. The sugar industry was rehabilitated through joint ventures involving the private sector and the government. By the 1990s there was a refining capacity of at least 140,000 tons of sugar annually. Other rehabilitated industries include beer brewing, tobacco, cotton, and cement. About 4 percent of adults worked in industry by the 1990s. During the 1990s, industrial growth was 13.2 percent. Tourism industry: #Tourism in #Uganda is focused on Uganda's landscape and wildlife Safaris. 

Shoe-bill stork

Mountain gorilla Sliverback

Murchison falls in Uganda

Map of Uganda

uganda tours

 

Uganda has a very diverse culture, landscape, flora, and fauna. In the late 1960s, Uganda had a prosperous tourist industry with 100,000 visitors each year. Tourism was the country's fourth largest earner of foreign exchange. The tourist industry ended in the early 1970s because of political instability. By the late 1980s, Uganda's political climate had stabilised and conditions were suitable for reinvestment in Uganda's #tourist industry. However, the loss of charismatic wildlife in previously popular safari parks such as Murchison Falls National Park and Queen Elizabeth National Park prevented these parks from competing with similar tourist attractions in neighbouring Kenya and Tanzania. Uganda's tourist industry instead promoted its tropical forests. The keystone of the new industry became Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. With more than 400 Mountain Gorillas safaris, #Bwindi Impenetrable National Park has approximately half of the world's population of Mountain Gorillas. Tourist attractions in Uganda Uganda is one of only three countries where it is possible to visit mountain gorillas . The others are Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Mountain gorillas are Uganda's prime tourist attraction. The vast majority of these are in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, with a few others in Mgahinga National Park both in southwestern Uganda. In Bwindi, visitors have been allowed to view the mountain gorillas since April 1993. 

The development of gorilla safari  tourism and the habituation of gorillas to humans is proceeding very carefully because of the dangers to gorillas, such as contracting human diseases. Geography:The Republic of Uganda tours is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered on the east by Kenya, in the north by Sudan, on the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, on the southwest by Rwanda, and on the south by Tanzania. The southern part of the country includes a substantial portion of Lake Victoria, which is also bordered by Kenya and Tanzania. Uganda is mostly a plateau, a compact country occupying an area of 236,580 square kilometers, roughly the size of Great Britain or the state of Oregon in the United States. It lies astride the #Equator and has a fine mild climate with copious rainfall that is experienced three times a year and sunny months. Although generally equatorial, the climate is not uniform as the altitude modifies the climate. Southern Uganda is wetter with rain generally spread throughout the year. 

At Entebbe on the northern shore of Lake Victoria, most rain falls from March to June and the November/December period. Further to the north a dry season gradually emerges; at Gulu about 120 km from the Sudanese border, November to February is much drier than the rest of the year. The northeastern Karamoja region has the driest climate and is prone to droughts in some years. Rwenzori in the southwest on the border with Congo (DRC) receives heavy rain all year round. The south of the country is heavily influenced by one of the world's biggest lakes, Lake Victoria, which contains many islands. It prevents temperatures from varying significantly and increases cloudiness and rainfall. Most important cities are located in the south, near Lake Victoria, including the capital Kampala and the nearby city of Entebbe. Although landlocked, Uganda contains many large lakes, besides Lake Victoria and Lake Kyoga, there are Lake Albert, Lake Edward and the smaller Lake George. Trade.In 1998, the country exported products worth $575 million. The main export commodities were coffee (54 percent of the total value), gold, fish and fish products, cotton, tea, and corn. The countries receiving most of these products were Spain, Germany, the Netherlands, France, and Italy. The main imports include chemicals, basic manufactured goods, machinery, and transport equipment. Religion Religious Beliefs.One-third of the population is Roman Catholic, one-third is Protestant, and 16 percent is Muslim; 18 percent believe in local religions, including various millenarian religions. World religions and local religions have coexisted for more than a century, and many people have established a set of beliefs about the nature of the universe by combining elements of both types. There is a proliferation of religious discourses centering on spirits, spirit possession, and witchcraft. Religious Practitioners.

Religious identity has economic and political implications: church membership has influenced opportunities for education, employment, and social advancement. Religious practitioners thus are expected to provide a range of benefits for their followers. Leaders of indigenous religions reinforce group solidarity by providing elements necessary for societal survival: remembrance of ancestors, means of settling disputes, and recognition of individual achievement. Another social function of religious practitioners is helping people cope with pain, suffering, and defeat by providing an explanation of their causes. Religious beliefs and practices serve political aims by bolstering the authority of temporal rulers and allowing new leaders to mobilize political power and implement political change. Rituals and Holy Places.In Bantu-speaking societies, many local religions include a belief in a creator God. Most local religions involve beliefs in ancestral and other spirits, and people offer prayers and sacrifices to symbolize respect for the dead and maintain proper relationships among the living. Mbandwa mediators act on behalf of other believers, using trance or hypnosis and offering sacrifice and prayer to beseech the spirit world on behalf of the living. Uganda has followers of Christianity, Islam, and African traditional religions. Ugandan #Muslims make pilgrimages to Mecca when they can. Followers of African religions tend to establish shrines to various local gods and spirits in a variety of locations.