Activities

Volcanoes Safaris offers a wide range of activities and excursions from each of our luxury lodges. These activities include the popular gorilla and chimpanzee tracking, games drives as well as cultural visits to local communities, villages, workshops and to the several projects supported by the VSPT. Hiking is a popular pursuit over the impressive mountains and hills that feature some impressive calderas and tracks. Wildlife is nothing if not abundant in the verdant landscapes around our lodges, with the opportunities for birding here being among the best in the world, not to mention the various larger animals that can be sought out, including tree-climbing lions, golden monkeys and many of the traditional sights on a savannah safari if you're staying near the Queen Elizabeth Natural Park.

This broad range of options have been designed to allow you to build your itinerary to give you exactly what you would like from your visit and to help make the experience as memorable as we can. For more information on these activities, read the short descriptions below.
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Batwa Trail and Garama Cave

Batwa Trail

Formally known as ‘Pygmies’, the Batwa are widely regarded to be the oldest surviving peoples of central Africa and their culture is one of the most ancient and endangered. For thousands of years they have survived in the dark forests of the African Great Lakes region and over generations built up a symbiotic relationship with their natural home in which skills were passed down throughout their history.  Traditionally hunter-gatherers, Batwa people also had a vast knowledge of forest plants, especially for medicinal purposes, they could track bees to find their hives and collect honey and had a whole range of techniques for hunting and gathering.  It was customary for this knowledge to be passed on orally through dancing, song and storytelling.  Sadly, the plight of the Batwa people has not been a happy one in modern times as both the gazetting of national parks and times of civil unrest in the 19th and 20th centuries have forced them from their forest homes, putting much of their traditions at risk as they struggle to both adapt and be accepted by the modern world.

The hike starts at a base camp a 30 minute drive from our Mount Gahinga Lodge, which is also the starting point for those setting out on the stunning hike up the sides of the Muhavura or Gahinga volcanoes. Members of the Batwa community and guides from the Ugandan Wildlife Authority take travelers through the dense forest and teach about the Batwa way of life. Activities on the trail include seeing traditional huts, shooting bows and arrows, seeing how they collected honey and hunted, a tour of medicinal and edible plants and concludes in Garama Cave for a song / dance performance. Not very strenuous but an all-day activity, lasting 6-8 hours.

Garama Cave

This is one of the caves where once the crafty Batwa (who were renowned warriors) lived and fought their neighbors, the Bantu. The distance to the cave entrance from the park headquaters is 3 km and it takes about 4 hours to walk there. Your guide will show you how the Batwa lived and fought out of the cave. The cave is 342m in length, 14m deep and is now inhabited only by bats.

Both from Mount Gahinga Lodge

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Iby'Iwacu Cultural Village

The village is located on the edge of Volcanoes NP and the local community displays the traditional ways of living: traditional dances and songs (Intore, Ikinimba, Batwa dances and many more), local fire making, a visit to the Kings' House replica, Batwa shooting arrows, a traditional healer (with Kubandwa/Nyabingi experience), grinding millet on traditional stones, banana-beer making experience and many more events besides. A visit to this cultural village will let you into a living piece of history and culture.

From Virunga Lodge

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Local Community Walks

Visit Local Community / School

The walk to visit the local community is only 2 to 3 hours in all and is not that strenuous, suitable for a more easy-going day. Along the way it takes you through local villages where stops can include a basket maker, blacksmith and school among others.

Both from Mount Gahinga Lodge

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Buhoma Village Walk

The Buhoma Village is the first community initiative in Uganda’s eco-tourism zone. It starts and ends at the Buhoma rest camp located at the entrance to BINP. The sites on route are: Local womens' handcraft centre, a waterfall, tea plantation, banana-beer brewing demonstration site, local traditional medicine healer,  school, bird-watching in a community woodlot, local gin (waragi) brewing site and a Batwa (pygmies) music and performance site. It takes approximately three hours to visit all sites, however visitors are free to choose sites of particular interest and opt for a shorter itinerary.

From Bwindi Lodge

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Border Trail

This hike takes you toward Sabinyo, a large extinct volcano on the borders between Uganda, Rwanda and the DRC. The trail climbs up the base of Sabinyo towards the Congo, where you'll have a great view of the gorge and peaks. Upon reaching the Congo you'll cut back along the international border. The return leg to the Park Head Quarters is a great section for birding. The two rest huts along the way are good places for a break. Look closely for the Golden Monkeys and signs of elephants. Hiking time is 5 hours and the distance is 10 km.

From Mount Gahinga Lodge

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Lake Bulera / Village Walk

The walk is at least a 3 hour round-trip. Leaving the lodge and going down the side of the mountain, you spend the time weaving through and around quaint villages where local points of interest are pointed out along with interesting facts about local history and culture. It gives you a varied experience of the local area around Lake Bulera. The trek there is downhill and easy-going with a long semi-difficult walk back up to the lodge on the return journey. The walk is over 5 km in length.

From Virunga Lodge