Approximately 10% of this national park comprises high mountain ranges – the two spectacular extinct volcanoes, Kahuzi and Biega. The park is therefore named after these two volcanoes that are within its limits. Kahuzi-Biega National Park has abundant and diverse fauna making it one of the biggest in the country.
Kahuzi-Biega lies west 30km from Bukavu town in the southern province of Kivu in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo which takes about a one-and-a-half-hour drive to the park. It nears the Rwandan Border and is located near the western bank of Lake Kivu. The larger part of the park is in the lowland terrain while the smaller of it is in the Mintumba Mountains. The park also hosts the single largest remaining population of the endemic and critically endangered Grauer’s gorilla. It also covers an area of about 6000 km2 (2,300 sq. mi) and is set in mountainous and lowland terrain.
The park was first established as a zoological reserve in 1937 before it was later gazetted as a national park in 1970 and discovered by Adrien Deschryver, a Belgian Photographer and conservationist. In the 1970s, the then Batwa Chief of the Bakanga was tricked into participating in what he didn’t know was sealing off his own fate by helping the colonialists to delineate a boundary of the forest using a surveyor chain. By the time he knew what was precisely happening, the Batwa were losing their ancestral lands that they had protected for so long.
The Batwa were evicted after its establishment about 50 years ago in 1975 by the colonial authorities. The prolonged insecurities especially on the border led to the loss of the park’s diversity and forests but worsened the Batwa’s situation and other local communities led to more displacements.
Because of its eastern lowland gorillas, rainforest habitat and the uniqueness of its diversity, it was inscribed by the UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1980. Because of the increasing wildlife exploitation, an increase in refugees, troubled insecurity border and political instabilities, it was engraved on the list of World Heritage sites in danger in 1997 by UNESCO.
There is a variety of tourist attractions in the park including Mountain Gorillas, Eastern lowland gorillas, mountains Kahuzi and Biega, lake Kivu, Lwiro chimpanzee sanctuary a variety of plant species.
LOWLAND GORILLA TREKKING IN KAHUZI BIEGA NATIONAL PARK.
Kahuzi-Biega is one of the two habitats of eastern lowland gorillas and the tour to this park takes you for an amazing experience to see the endangered Grauer’s gorillas. The first lowland gorilla trekking in this park was done in 1973 and today its gorilla trekking activities are rapidly increasing. Visitors are given options to trek either mountain gorillas or lowland gorillas and a number of them prefer the latter. All gorilla trekking activities in the park commence at 7am and the travelers are first briefed by the professional rangers at the park. All gorilla trekking activities start from Tshivanga station in Kahuzi-Biega National Park.
There are approximately 4,800 eastern lowland gorillas remaining in the wild and Maika National Park homes the remaining population. This park is one of the best places to see lowland gorillas. These Gorillas are the largest of the Gorilla subspecies and they are the closest in appearance to mountain gorillas.
Kahuzi Biega homes 4 habituated gorilla groups and one is very close to the park’s office while two of these tend to move deeper in the forests for food, especially during the dry seasons.
With over 36 gorilla individuals, the park has one of the largest Gorilla families in the world. The families are called Mugaruka and Chimanuka both named after a dominant silver back.
At the time of the trek, one is advised to be in their best health and fit as it involves getting through muddy trails, thick vegetation, and crossing rivers and swamps in search of gorillas. It also gives one a tremendous opportunity to encounter and sight gorillas for one hour in Rwanda, Uganda and Congo.
Gorilla trekking at this park is done in two groups of eight members each group and each group is accompanied by armed game rangers for the guaranteed safety of the travelers and gorillas. Minors and kids below 15 years of age are restricted from the area.
The process involves hiking activities so the travelers are advised to be in their best health and genuinely fit. The trekking of eastern lowland gorillas generally takes a limited time about 2- 4 hours and once gorillas are located, the visitors are only given one hour to spend with them.
The location of the lowland gorillas largely depends on the availability of food in the area.
In the month of September, the trekking can take about 3 hours or even more while in the months of Mid October till August, the trekking activities only last about 20 minutes to 2 hours due to the presence of enough food in the area.
EXPLORE AND STAY.
Budget options for lodges near Kahuzi-Biega National Park vary depending on the type and quality of the lodge one is interested in. Some of the lodges are Coco Lodge Bukavu and its fares range from $100-$200 a night per person, Hotel Begonias Bukavu, Exodus, Mount Kahuzi Hotel, Lake Side Hotel Bukavu among others and their prices range from $90-$100 per head and night. While the Luxurious ones include L’ Orchids safari club that ranges from $200-$400 per night.
BOOKING LOWLAND GORILLA PERMITS AND PRICES.
Lowland gorilla permits to Kahuzi-Biega NP go for $400 per person, and that’s during the favorable drier seasons for trekking and during low seasons prices slightly reduce to $200 per person. As compared to Uganda and Rwanda, Congo’s visitors are highly interested in gorilla trekking from this region.
HOW TO GET TO KAHUZI BIEGA NATIONAL PARK?
Visitors using Air Transport should choose to fly from Kigali International Airport in Rwanda to Kamembe International Airport in southern Rwanda near Bukavu town. It is here that they will be picked up and driven for 30-40 minutes to Bukavu town.
By road, travelers can access the park by driving about 40km west of Bukavu town and it takes about 2 hours to get to Kahuzi-Biega National Park.
There is also water means of transportation that some travelers can opt to use to reach the park. There are speed boats available to transport visitors from north Kivu to south Kivu in Bukavu town, and this takes about 3 hours.