Nyungwe Forest National Park
Nyungwe forest national park is situated in Rwanda, its one of Africa’s primate leading national parks where you can see various primate species not forgetting chimpanzees. It’s also the largest montane forest remaining in Africa. The park covers an area of 1000 kilometers squared.
Nyungwe forest national park also boasts with a canopy walk which is one of it’s kind in the whole of east Africa, the park receives over 2000 mm of rain yearly. Nyungwe forest national park boasts with 38 reptile species, 32 amphibian species, 85 mammal species, 13 primate species (25% of Africa), 300 bird species and 1068 plant species.
Nyungwe forest national park reaches a maximum altitude of 3000 meters above sea level, with a very thrilling flora and fauna dominated with various rolling hills and waterfalls revealing the true nature of Africa.
Nyungwe forest national park is also home to one of the river Nile sources, the park was gazetted in 2004 composed of waterfalls, grasslands, montane rainforests, bamboo, bogs, swamps and so much more.
There are a lot of activities that visitors can engage in while at Nyungwe forest national park some of this can be seen below:
Chimpanzee trekking
Nyungwe forest national park in Rwanda is the only place where tourists can trek chimpanzees from, chimpanzee trekking is a unique experience not to be missed while on safari to Rwanda. Encountering chimpanzees while eating playing and so much more is very rewarding.
Chimpanzee trekking only costs $90 and tourists should be at the headquarters by 5:00 for a short meeting and briefing, tourists will be required to be physically fit as trekking can get hard sometimes then carry raincoats, good hiking boots, warm clothing’s and so much more.
Primate watching
Nyungwe national park is gifted with various primates some of which you can see without outing any great efforts some of the primates seen are; red tailed monkeys, silver monkeys, Dents Mona monkeys, grey cheeked mangabeys, vervet monkeys, olive baboons, L’ Hoest monkeys and Hamlyns monkeys to mention a few.
Bird watching
Nyungwe national kaprk is endowed with over 300 species of birds, for bird lovers, this is a paradise of unique species some of which are endemic to the Albertine region. Some of the bird species in the forest are; Rwenzori turaco, red breasted sparrow hawks, paradise flycatcher, Batisdiops, Ruwenzori apalis, Neumann’s warbler, Cossyp haarcheri, Ruwenzori nightjar, Red throated, Red collared barbler, strip breasted tit Paris perciventer, \Shelley’s crimson wing and Handsome Francolin to mention a few andit would be advisable to take a guide who can easily identify the bird by the chattering and introduce you to many birds you never knew.
Hiking
There are various hiking trails established at the nyungwe forest national park that tourists can explore the magnificent forest canopy, the walking trails can take up to 1-8 hours of exploring the stunning forest canopy. You will spot various primate species, bird species, plant species, butterfly species and so much more.
Tourists at Nyungwe national park can stay for long and explore different trails per day, some of the trails take you to the parks highest point of 2950 m elevation at the mountain peak, tourists can choose trails of their choice according to their fitness and what their interested in.
Canopy walkway
The Nyungwe forest canopy walk way is the only one you can use in east Africa, the walk way reveals the breathtaking beauty of the ancient montane forest from above. The walkway is 50 meters above the ground and starts with a thirty minute walk from the Uwinka visitors’ center. Walking at the nyungwe forest canopy walkway is one of the things that should not miss in your list to Rwanda.
Golden monkey trekking
Golden monkey trekking is fun, the golden monkeys are very playful and unlike gorillas and chimpanzees tourists can trek them and observe for more than an hour, the golden monkeys also love cameras with flashes. They move in large groups are Avery beautiful sight to behold.
Congo- Nile divided trail
This trail covers a distance of 227 kilometers long and can be explored in a number of days on foot or biking though there are also one day options up to ten days. This trail separates the water catchment areas of Nile River and River Congo, camping grounds and canteens are available along the trail.
Tourists exploring Nyungwe forest national park can sleep in various accommodation units such as; mount Bigugu peak campsite, Nyungwe top view hill hotel and Nyungwe forest lodge to mention a few.
Nyungwe forest national park can be reached from the town at 90 km, 55km from Cyangugu. The main entrance is at Uwinka headquarters.
