Gishwati Mukura National Park

Gishwati Mukura National park was established in 2015 by the government of Rwanda giving out law in an effort to protect the chimpanzees in this park.it is located in the western part of Rwanda on the ridges of the Congo basin with Gishwati forest in the north and Mukura forest in the south covering an area of 34 square kilometers making it small and least visited tourist attraction in Rwanda. The park gives you an opportunity to experience some species of the Albertine region. Gishwati Mukura is blessed with some animal species of the Albertine region, primates, reptiles,100 beautiful bird species like the mountain yellow warbler, white headed wood Hooper, old world warbler and tree species.

Gishwati forest

Gishwati forest is found in the north part of Rwanda and is the largest between the two forests which make up Gishwati Mukura national forest.it was part of the greater forest that spread from Nyungwe forest touching those in Uganda and central Africa.Gishwati forest combined those large forests to Nyungwe thousand years ago before human activities left it alone.

Mukura forest

This forest is situated in the southern region and it is small in size compared to Gishwati forest. Encroachment reduced the 2000 hectares of the forest to 1200 hectares with no chimpanzees but the formation of the forest corridor to Gishwati and Nyungwe leads the primates into this forest. Mukura forest is seated on a vast deposit of Cotton a mineral used to make cellphones, computers and other electronic devices. This mineral is not as important as gold but somehow profitable forcing communities go for it however much they detain them in jail if caught.

The two forests had been destroyed due to the genocide that took place in 1994 in Rwanda, people were displaced and later came back to the country settling around these areas of the forest which had lost its vegetation through poaching, logging and opening up of farm sites in this forest.

ATTRACTIONS IN GISHWAT MUKURA NATIONAL PARK

Primates watching: the park lost most of its chimpanzees because of lack of homes and poaching but their numbers have increased due to the government intervention and support from wilderness safaris plus other international wildlife conservation agencies in case they visit the park. You can sight some of the primates in Gishwat Mukura national park like the baboons, golden monkey, l’hoest monkeys, blue monkeys and the chimpanzees. Wilderness safaris have introduced habituation practices which makes sure that the chimpanzees are not dangerous to humanity in that they can be with them for some good period of time, you can also encounter some other features like duikers, wild cats and forest birds among others. Therefore, the park is becoming the leading tourist destination in Rwanda.

Birding:  Gishwat mukura national park is the best destination for bird watching in Rwanda.it is blessed with over 83 colorful bird species among 15 are found in the Albertine Rift like the martial eagle, mountain yellow warblers, purple-breasted sunbird, grey crowned crane, red-throated alethe, Rwenzori batis, weaver birds, regal sunbird, wood hoopoes and the Rwenzori turaco. Birding activity can be carried out on foot because its small.it is good to hire a professional guide who will help you in spotting and identifying them.

Hiking and guided nature walks: park authorities have put some trails to help travelers explore the inside parts of the park. You can get opportunity to explore the natural beauty of the forest and also sight some creatures like chameleons, birds, butterflies, insects etc. Gishwat mukura provides you with a cool quite environment characterized by beautiful sounds from the bird species and the primate calls. During hiking you can spot over 60 species of trees including bamboos, macaranga kilimand, mahogany, ferns and orchids though there are some new tree species introduced in the park like the eucalyptus, abyssinica, polyscias fulva, hagenia and dombeya torrida.the best hiking trail in Gishwat mukura national park is that leading you to kazeneza waterfall which is located in the middle of the park because of its beautiful scenery and impressive character.

Biking or cycling

The Congo Nile trail gives you the best biking experiences in Rwanda and east Africa at large. This trail was formed to pass through the shores of lake kivu then through Nyungwe forest. The Congo Nile trail is next to the Gishwat mukura national park providing opportunities to visitors to explore the rural areas and also learn the life of people living in rural Rwanda.

Cultural encounters

The park management works together with the community people towards the development of the park making it a high-end eco-tourism site. Due to that patternship, more cultural activities are done to sustain the community welfare which allows travelers to experience the culture of the local people. Cultural encounters help travelers to interact with the locals giving them chance to know how they make crafts and preparing the local foods, attend local performances like dancing, drama, singing, storytelling mention but a few. Therefore, if you want you can go to one of the homesteads and have an overnight stay with them learning their ways of living especially the adventurous traditional healers and they teach you how they collect herbs in the forest and how to use them. You can visit the Great Ape Trust which works together with Rwanda Development Board to support cultural activities and promote local art.

How to get to Gishwat Mukura National Park

The park is situated in the northwestern region of the country between volcanoes and Nyungwe forest national park. From volcanoes national park it is approximately 27 kilometers and then reach the park. The park can be accessed by both the road and air transport.

By air: a chartered flight to the park takes 45 minutes from Kigali international airport to the park through using the Rwanda air with the help of the Akagera Aviation service.

By road: you can easily access the park from Kigali international airport by road which is 84 kilometers and takes 2 to 3 hours but when coming from Rubavu the distance is approximately 54 kilometers.

Gishwat mukura national park can be reached through the use of Uganda’s Mgahinga and Bwindi impenetrable forest national parks so gorilla trekking in Uganda and a visit to Gishwat mukura national park can be combined. You can also hire public means like the bus or mini bus tax or a 4×4 safari vehicle from trusted licensed operating tour company.

Best time to visit Gishwat Mukura National Park

Gishwat mukura national park is gifted with good weather due to its mountains and high altitude unlike the others which are very cold during some months of the year.it receives two dry and rainy seasons in the year therefore dry seasons are experienced in the months of December to June and June to August giving you clear view of the whole park and a big chance to sight various animals like the chimps and other primates with much ease since there is no mud, overgrown bush and slippery roads.

The rainy seasons are in the months of march to May and October to November where by plants grow up at a high-speed providing plenty of food for the animals and other primates. Therefore, the best time to visit Gishwat Mukura National Park is throughout the year.

To book a Rwanda Safari to Gishwati Mukura national Park this season, please to don’t hesitate to get in touch with our reservations team by sending an email on info@gorillaugandasafaribookings.com or call us directly on +256-775630809 or +256-701343598  to speak directly to our reservations team.