SCHEDULE AND COST:
Dates: October 30 to November 8, 2020
Duration: 10 days / 9 nights
Number of participants: 6 – 12
TEAM RECRUITED
TRAVEL PROGRAM: TOUR TO DR CONGO AND UGANDA
Day 1. October 30, 2020. Arrival to Rwanda
Departure to Kigali.
Arrival to Kigali, the capital of Rwanda. Rest.
Overnight stay at Five to Five Hotel or similar.
* Recommended departure by Turkish Airlines on October 31 with an arrival in Kigali at night from October 30 to 31 (at 1:25 on October 31)
Accommodation included: Five to Five Hotel or similar
Meals included: no
Day 2. October 31, 2020. Lake Kivu
After breakfast we drive along the picturesque roads of Rwanda with its mountain slopes covered with coniferous forest and tea plantations. We move to the suburb of Gisenyi, on the border with DR Congo.
Check-in at the hotel, located on the shore of Lake Kivu, which is one of the lakes of the Great Rift Valley chain. In the clean water of the lake you can swim, restoring energy before an intensive expedition program. Overnight at the Paradise Malahide Hotel.
Accommodation included: Paradise Malahide Hotel
Meals included: breakfast
Day 3. November 1, 2020. Ascent to Nyiragongo volcano
After breakfast, we cross the border in Gisenyi and move to Goma, the capital of the province of North Kivu of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Ascent to Nyiragongo (3470 m above sea level), the most active volcano of the continent which has one of the five, and at the same time the world's largest, active lava lake on Earth. Ascent does not require special training and takes 6 – 7 hours. Distance is 10 km long, elevation gaining is 1500 meters.
Sunset and late evening at the crater, contemplating the bizarre view of Nyiragongo magma – one of the most liquid in the world.
Overnight in cozy mountain shelter on the edge of Nyiragongo caldera.
Accommodation included: mountain shelter
Meals included: breakfast, lunch, dinner
Day 4. November 2, 2020. Descent from the volcano and transfer to Uganda
Sunrise near the lava lake. After breakfast at the caldera we make a descent from the volcano, passing through several climatic zones.
Moving to Rwanda and crossing the border with Uganda. Transfer to Kisoro, accommodation in a hotel in the town of Kisoro, near the Bwindi Impenetrable National Park.
Overnight in Kisoro Tourist Hotel or similar one near Bwindi National Park.
Accommodation included: Kisoro Tourist Hotel or similar
Meals included: breakfast
Day 5. November 3, 2020. Gorillas in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
After breakfast at the hotel, we go to one of the most exciting adventures, the quintessence of any expedition to Central Africa – visiting one of the families of gorillas living in Bwindi National Park. Eastern gorillas are the largest primates living on Earth, reaching a height of about 2 meters and weighing more than 200 kg, and, at the same time, some of the rarest. Their population is slightly more than 700, with more than half currently living in Uganda, in the Bwindi forest. Mountain Eastern Gorillas are the endemics of Central Africa, with tiny populations also in Virunga NP in the DRC and Volcanoes Park in Rwanda, the visit costs a lot of money, but it's worth it!
Trekking in Bwindi Impenetrable is a thing in itself, and the name of the national park speaks for itself. In addition to a large number of herbivores and forest elephants, here you can find a huge number of other primates, including chimpanzees.
Those who want to take a day rest, can spend it in a lodge in the vicinity of the park.
Evening and overnight in the The Crested Crane Bwindi Hotel or similar one near Bwindi NP.
Accommodation included: The Crested Crane Bwindi Hotel or similar
Meals included: breakfast
Day 6. November 4, 2020. Queen Elizabeth Park and Twa Pygmy village
After breakfast at the hotel, a short drive to Queen Elizabeth National Park, located on the border with DR Congo, around Lake Edward, which, along with Tanganyika and Kivu, is part of the East African Rift Valley.
Safari in the Queen Elizabeth Park, where besides large herbivores - elephants, buffaloes, hippos and giraffes, you can meet lions and leopards.
Transfer to the Semliki National Park area, to the village of Twa (Batwa) Pygmies tribe. Ethnic evening in the village of Pygmies by the fire and overnight in tents.
Accommodation included: tents
Meals included: breakfast
Day 7. November 5, 2020. Football with Pygmies
After breakfast in the outdoor, we play a football game Russia vs Twa Pygmies in the vicinity of Semliki NP to take revenge for the defeat from another pygmy people - Mbuti in Ituri Forest 6 years ago. Football with the locals is usually a real show, regardless of whether you are fans of this game or not. On this occasion, the whole village comes to look at the outlandish football players (that is, at us).
In the afternoon, a long drive (about 300 km) to Masindi, a town near the Murchison Falls National Park and the Budongo Forest inhabited by chimpanzees. Check-in at the Kabalega Resort.
Accommodation: Hotel Kabalega Resort
Meals included: breakfast
Day 8. November 6, 2020. Walking safaris with chimpanzees and rhinos
In the morning we set off for the Budongo Forest National Reserve, where we will go on foot safari with chimpanzees. We will stroll through the amazing rain forest, where we will certainly find several chimpanzee families. Chimpanzees are social animals who live in communities and are constantly moving. They are not as easy to shoot as gorillas, but believe me, not less interesting. Chimpanzee is the primate closest to humans; our DNA is 98% identical.
In the afternoon, transfer to the Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary (90 km). The reserve was created in 2005 for the reproduction of black rhino and southern white rhino. Starting with 6 individuals, today in the park there are more than 20 animals. This is the only place in Uganda where rhinos live in the wild. We take a walk and take the best shots of these giants.
In the evening, moving (280 km) to Jinja, a place on the White Nile, famous for its rafting. Overnight at Brisk Hotel Triangle overlooking Lake Victoria.
Accommodation: hotel Brisk Hotel Triangle
Meals included: breakfast
Day 9. November 7, 2020. Rafting on White Nile
After breakfast with a view of Lake Victoria, we are going for the whole day on the most interesting rafting in the upper White Nile. Rafting in Jinja is pretending to be the best in the world: we have to pass about a dozen rapids of 4 and 5 levels of difficulty and, most likely, wet the feet :) Experienced local instructors, who perfectly know the river and have various regalia, will accompany us.
In the evening transfer to Entebbe, the satellite city of Kampala, the capital of Uganda.
Overnight at hotel 4 Pinguins overlooking Lake Victoria. (Or a flight home from Entebbe airport if tickets for KLM flight are purchased).
Accommodation included: 4 Pinguins Hotel or similar
Meals included: breakfast
Day 10. November 8, 2020. Lake Victoria and return home
Transfer to the airport, flight home.
If time allows, a walk in the botanical garden and Lake Victoria: the largest lake on the African continent, its area is twice bigger than the area of Lake Baikal, and here the longest river in the world, the Nile, originates.
* Depart early in the morning at 4:55 by Turkish Airlines (recommended flight) or in the afternoon (at 18:15) by Qatar Airways. Also departure on 7 November at 23:30 by KLM airlines is possible, without an overnight in Entebbe.
Accommodation included: no
Meals included: breakfast
* If Virunga National Park in DR Congo is not open for visitors as of the dates of our expedition,
days 2 – 4 will be performed according to the following alternative program
(the cost of the alternative program is lower by USD 250):
Day 2. October 31, 2020. Getting into acquaintance with Rwanda
After a good night's sleep and breakfast, we leave our hotel before noon and visit the Genocide Museum in Kigali. We learn about the tragic events of 1994, when in more than 3 months the Hutu massacred almost a million Tutsi people, reducing the population of the country by 20%.
We will drive with stops along the scenic roads of Rwanda with its mountain slopes overgrown with pine forests and tea plantations. Moving to Kinigi, located in close proximity to the Volcanoes National Park. Check in at the Muhabura hotel, where the famous Diane Fossey lived and worked, who has devoted almost 20 years to studying the mountain gorillas of Virunga. After Diana's death, a film "Gorillas in the Fog" with Sigourney Weaver was shot, based on her book.
Overnight at the Muhabura hotel.
Accommodation: Hotel Muhabura
Meals included: breakfast
Day 3. November 1, 2020. Climbing Bisoke volcano
After breakfast, early departure to the Volcanoes National Park, which forms a single ecosystem with Virunga Park in the neighboring DR Congo. The team will split into two activities.
Fans of trekking and stunning views will go to the top of the Bisoke volcano. The volcano, 3711 meters high, stands on the very border with the Democratic Republic of the Congo, but still its main peak belongs to Rwanda. It is surrounded by 8 volcanic cones. In the summit crater there is a beautiful lake with a diameter of 450 meters. The ascent itself is a great adventure! You hike completely wild paths, overcoming a significant slope of the mountain. The gain of altitude is about 1500 meters, the ascent time is 3 - 5 hours. The beautiful view of the crater lake on the summit will reward our efforts. Bisoke volcano is also famous for the fact that mountain eastern gorillas live on its slopes, exactly those were studied here by Diane Fossey. The permit to visit gorillas today in Rwanda costs as much as $ 1,500. On this track, encounters with gorillas are very frequent. Of course, this is a different activity and no one will look for them (their visit is not included in the cost of our trip), but the opportunity to meet giants along the way will make us run at the forefront.
For wildlife fans, as an alternative to climbing Bisoke, we will offer trekking to golden monkeys - an endemic of these forests and a species that is on the verge of extinction. Golden monkeys live in large groups of 80-100 individuals. It's interesting to observe them.
After trekking in the Park National des Volcanos, short drive to the border with Uganda and crossing the border. We drive up to the mountains and reach the second deepest lake in Africa – Bunyoni. By canoe or motor boat we cross over to the greened Bushara Island.
Late dinner and overnight at the Bushara Island Camp tented hotel or cottages on Bushara Island.
Accommodation: Bushara Island Camp on Bushara Island
Meals included: breakfast, lunch
Day 4. November 2, 2020. Lake Bunyoni
After breakfast, we will surely appreciate the uniqueness and exclusivity of this place. It is a stunning green island in the heart of a mountain lake. Bunyoni is one of the lakes of the Great Rift Valley, second deepest in Africa after the famous Lake Tanganyika. The local landscapes resemble either Titicaca or Baikal, but the place is definitely iconic. Swimming in the lake and a trip by canoe or motor boat around the islands, of which there are as many as 28 on Lake Bunyoni. Bird watching, including the crowned crane - the symbol of Uganda. Here we meet the local people – the friendly Bakiga who inhabit the shores of Bunyoni.
Depending on the place we visit the gorillas in Bwindi, drive to Kisoro or Kabale. Accommodation at the hotel in Kisoro or Kabale, near the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park.
Overnight at the Cepha's Inn or Kisoro Tourist Hotel, or similar near NP Bwindi.
Accommodation: Cepha's Inn or Kisoro Tourist Hotel or similar
Meals included: breakfast