Mountain biking is one of the ways to explore Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. You can enjoy a mountain bike ride to support the Ride for a Woman organization in the park.
You can ride through the village countryside or within the forest. These rides take place in the Buhoma sector of Bwindi National Park.
The Ride for a Woman program is managed by a women’s group that provides trained guides and a bike repair shop. Every participant in this program directly supports women in Buhoma while enjoying the ride in Bwindi.
Ride for a Woman was started to help women struggling with domestic violence, HIV, and poverty. The organization now has over 300 members. It started by renting bicycles to tourists but has expanded to sewing, weaving, and offering accommodation.
Ride for a Woman also has a craft shop near Buhoma Hospital and provides sewing classes to visitors for 30,000 Ugandan shillings.
Below are some of the trails used by the Ride for a Woman organization:
- Village Bike Ride: This ride takes you through the village, offering views of farmlands and plantations. During this approximately 2-hour ride, you can see villagers going about their daily activities.
- River Ivy Ride: The River Ivy trail is an interesting route where you can see primates like vervet monkeys, black-and-white colobus monkeys, red-tailed monkeys, and blue monkeys. Other wildlife such as squirrels, duikers, and various bird species can also be spotted.
- Forest Trail Ride: The forest trail offers sightings of birds, wildlife, and primates. This ride takes about three hours through Bwindi Impenetrable National Park.
In addition to biking, Bwindi has several walking trails where visitors can take guided nature walks. These walks range from 30 minutes to half-day or full-day experiences.
Gorilla trekking is a dream activity for many travelers visiting Africa. Bwindi Impenetrable National Park offers an opportunity to trek the endangered mountain gorillas. Gorillas share about 95% of their DNA with humans, making them close relatives.
There are over 15 habituated gorilla groups in Bwindi, and 8 permits are available for trekking each family per day.
Gorilla permits cost $800 per person per trek, and gorilla habituation permits cost $1,500 per person per trek.
Only people aged 15 years and above are allowed to trek mountain gorillas.
Adults with communicable diseases like flu are not allowed to trek mountain gorillas.
