Chimpanzee trekking in East Africa

Chimpanzee trekking in East Africa : While on a safari in East Africa usually means seeing big five games, many regions also cater to wildlife lovers with a difference – those who come here to see our closest living relatives, the great apes. Over centuries, Western countries have developed many epic hikes to see gorillas and chimpanzees living in African rainforests, the good news is that African countries such as Rwanda, Uganda, Tanzania, and the Democratic Republic of Congo have areas of protected forest, and tours to see the big apes are organized so that groups of trekkers are allowed access to the habituated primates for just one hour each day. In Gombe Stream National Park in Tanzania, there is no other way to see the chimpanzees other than by trekking. Despite both Gombe and Mahale in Tanzania offering treks for wild chimpanzees, the two are very different experiences. Gombe has the oldest chimpanzee trekking program – the apes here have been studied since 1960 and are fully habituated to human presence. Because of complicated police controls in the border park, travellers in Tanzania and Rwanda pay the same price for chimpanzee trekking. But in Kibale and Budongo Forest, trekkers visiting Uganda who book chimpanzee trekking during their safari will be charged an entrance fee to the park in addition to a chimpanzee permit fee. In the DRC, a chimpanzee trek costs for international tourists, while Tanzanian residents are also charged for the class.

Chimpanzees are one of the four types of non-human great apes and are the closest living relatives to humans. The others are bonobos, orangutans in Asia, and gorillas. Their genetic similarities with humans are around 97 percent, and their DNA is almost the same as that of humans. To counteract this, chimpanzees have facial expressions, which can also be used as communication. They are mainly protected in Uganda, Rwanda, Congo, Gabon, and West Africa’s Senegal, Guinea-Bissau, Gambia, and Guinea. However, chimpanzees have recently been ranked as endangered around the world.

Chimpanzee activities are in national parks, wildlife reserves, and wildlife sanctuaries, where human activities are restricted. The Ngamba Island Chimpanzee Sanctuary is a chimpanzee protection centre that nearly takes care of orphaned chimpanzees. Some places allow visitors to experience chimpanzees, such as watching, interaction, and chimpanzee tracking activities, which are the most popular outdoor activities. In Rwanda and Congo, the activities are allowed in the Nyungwe Forest National Park and the Gishwati Forest Reserve’s chimpanzee trails. In Uganda, there are several chimpanzee tracking locations in the Queen Elizabeth National Park’s Kyambura Gorge, Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, Kibale Forest National Park, and the Semuliki National Park’s chimpanzee walkway.

Chimpanzee Trekking in Tanzania  

Tanzania is a chimpanzee trekking destination in East Africa where visitors or tourist can trek down these majestic primates, there are two National Park in Tanzania mainly for Chimpanzee trekking due to their population of chimps, such as Mahale Mountains National Park and Gombe National Park which are open for trekking activities. However please note that Gombe can only be accessed by boat, Gombe National Park is 13 square miles – a fragile strip of chimpanzee habitat that skirts the steep slopes and river valleys that hem the sandy northern shore of Lake Tanganyika. Gombe National Park homes around 95 chimps, with different habituated communities that can be trekked on safaris.

Mahale Mountains National Park is also at shores of Lake Tanganyika at the south side of Gombe as another amazing destination for Chimpanzee trekking in Tanzania. Chimpanzee trekking in the Mahale Mountains can also accessed by boat.

Chimpanzee trekking in Uganda

Uganda is also another popular chimpanzee destination, this incredible country homes a good population of these beautiful primates which are around 5,000 of them that can be found in different National Parks and reserves of this country’s tropical rainforest. Uganda is also one of the few African countries where you can go for chimpanzee habituation experiences.

Kibale National Park in Uganda is ranked the best National Park in Uganda too see and trek the Chimpanzees which is named as ‘‘ Primate Capital’’. Kibale alone is home to about 1,500 chimpanzees making it a heaven for chimpanzee’s trekkers offering high chances of sighting these majestic primates in the country. The chimpanzee population in Kibale is divided into at least a dozen communities, four of which are habituated and ready for trekking. Kibale has been a primate trekking destination since the early 1993.

  Chimpanzee trekking in Rwanda

Rwanda is another popular destination for Chimpanzee trekking  just like her neighbor, Uganda. Although Rwanda is generally known for gorilla trekking, the country is also home to habituated chimpanzees it its tropical rain forests.Nyungwe National Park  is a popular chimpanzee trekking destination in Rwanda.Nyungwe National Park is a high altitude and mountainous protected area in Southern Rwanda. This National Park is home to an estimated population of 500 wild chimpanzees that can be seen raucously ply the tightly woven closed canopy of the tropical rain forest. There are two habituated chimpanzee troops in Nyungwe which are ready for tracking.

Chimpanzee Trekking in Rwanda is a major highlight of safaris in the country and a must include for primate lovers. Just like many other chimp trekking destinations in Africa, Rwanda restricts the number of people who can visit to see chimpanzees. Only 8 members are allowed to trek a chimpanzee troop per day.

 Chimpanzee trekking in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Regardless of the fact that D.R Congo faces security and instability challenges, chimpanzee trekking is still possible in Congo. The Virunga National Park, located on the eastern edge of the Democratic Republic of the Congo is home to chimpanzees. The Virunga National Park was also the first ever National Park to be established on the African continent in 1925. This National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and an important conservation Area in Africa. Although Virunga is popular for gorilla trekking, the National Park is also home to a considerable number of chimpanzees.

Chimpanzee habituation in Virunga started in 1987 but decades of civil unrest closed Virunga to tourism until 2014 when the park officially reopened. The Habituation efforts are supported by the Frankfurt Zoological Society endure. The National Park has habituated chimpanzee communities that you can enjoy trekking during your tour.