SAFETY OF GORILLA TREKKING IN RWANDA                                               

The safety of gorilla trekking in Rwanda is one of the main reasons that tourists from all over the world visit the country in order to see the endangered mountain gorillas in the wild.  Gorilla trekking in Rwanda is carried out in volcanoes national park a park where you can take part in golden monkey trekking to understand more about the endangered monkey species, you can also visit the musanze caves, participate in birding given the fact that the park is a home to over 350 bird species, you can also participate in monkey trekking where you will trek a number of monkey species in the park for instance the black and white colobus monkey, dent’s monkey, Hamlyn’s monkey, vervet monkey and many other interesting attractions that ca be seen when you participate in the different activities in volcanoes national park.

Some of the safety measures that the management of volcanoes national park has exercised to ensure that the activity is not only safe for the people that participate in the activity but also safe for the primates in the wild and these include measures like;

Briefing session

To ensure the safety of gorilla trekking in Rwanda, tourists are expected to take part in the briefing session before they embark on their hike of the Virunga mountains in Rwanda to access the habituated gorilla families in Rwanda. The session will help you to understand the rules and regulations to follow while participating in gorilla trekking in Rwanda which will give you the chance to have a safe gorilla trekking activity in the park. During the briefing session, it is important to pay attention to avoid any accidents in the park for instance they should avoid taking pictures of the gorillas using flash mode because they are light sensitive which can lead them to attack you and because the gorillas are quite strong primates compared to humans they can attack you which can be fatal, you should also avoid littering in the park to avoid choking on items this is because the mountain gorillas in Africa are endangered species that are being protected to avoid the depletion in their numbers in the wild among other rules and regulations to follow during gorilla trekking in the park.

Safety of Gorilla Trekking in Rwanda
Gorilla Trekking in Rwanda

An armed ranger

While participating in gorilla trekking in Africa, you will be accompanied by an armed ranger with a loaded gun that is used to protect you during gorilla trekking in Rwanda as you hike through the Virunga mountains in volcanoes national park.  It should be noted that volcanoes national park is not only a home to the endangered mountain gorillas but also a home to a number of wild animals species like the buffaloes, bush pigs, bushbucks, giant forest hogs, duikers, spotted hyenas, forest elephants that can easily attack you at any given time because they are wild animals this is why the gorilla group is accompanied by an armed ranger who will help you to scare the animals away by firing in the air to avoid them from attacking you making  gorilla trekking in Rwanda quite a safe activity.

Knowledgeable guide

For a person to become a guide in volcanoes national park, they should have undergone a number training sessions in the park which involves spending time with the gorilla families to understand their behaviour, hiking the different trails to avoid any surprises that can be fatal. The guide will not only provide all the relevant information about the endangered mountain gorillas in the wild but also ensure that activity is quite safe for you by taking you along the safe trails in the park for an amazing experience in the park to avoid any wild encounters with the different animal species that can be seen in the park.

Another interesting measure that is exercised to avoid the spread of corona virus  among the trackers and the primates is the maintaining of physical distance, tourists are emphasized to put on their masks during the activity and when they come in contact with the habituated gorilla families in the wild which are some of the standard operating procedures that the management has put in place to ensure that there is no window left to expose the tourists and the gorillas during the activity in the park.

Safety of Gorilla Trekking in Rwanda
Safety of Gorilla Trekking in Rwanda

Although gorilla trekking in Rwanda is the most famous activity in the country, there are a number of tourism activities that you can choose from to have the most rewarding Rwanda safari tours for instance hiking the Virunga mountains in Rwanda namely mount gahinga, mount bisoke, mount karisimbi, mount muhabura and mount sabyinyo that will lead you to a number of primate species in the park, you can participate in the canopy walk in Rwanda, chimpanzee trekking in Nyungwe national park, participate in the Rwanda genocide tour for the most rewarding experience in the country

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