D.R. Congo Safaris – Formerly the Republic of Zaire, D.R. Congo has lots of stories that have gone down in history. The country was initially inhabited by the central Africans before the Bantu raided the nation. Belgians under the rule of King Leopold II colonized the country and called it a free state after personalizing it. The country obtained her independence on 30th June 1960 but the country has had a series of conflicts that have affected the country. In 1971, Mobutu the then president renamed the country to its present name after attaining power through a coup d’état. He was later overthrown after the first Congo war. The second Congo war also registered over 5.4 million people.
Relief in the war was observed under the rule of President Joseph Kabila and 2018 was the first smooth transition of power by election. The country is blessed with a variety of natural minerals like gold, tin, Copper with about 63% of the world production of cobalt coming from the 11th largest country in the world and Africa’s second largest.
Congo gorilla national parks.
D.R. Congo is among the countries that are well blessed with fantastic views of the rare mountain gorillas. While in the second largest country in Africa, spoiler alerts are on sighting both on wondering at the mountain gorillas and the rare eastern lowland gorillas.
Virunga national park.
Gazing at a gorilla family in Virunga NPP is a very unique and an exhilarating activity because these gorillas are uncommonly close relatives to humans. Gorilla trekking in Virunga is an early morning activity because it involves tourists trekking through the thick vegetation of the park to appreciate the beauty of these gorillas. Visitors are first briefed about trekking the gorillas and they are sent in groups of 8 members to track a gorilla family with the guidance of experienced armed rangers and guides.
The park has 8 gorilla families that are fully habituated and two are in the process which makes the chances of glancing at them reliably high considering that there are always trackers who move ahead of the touring team to look for them and usually they track them a day before to find out where they spent the night. Once the gorillas are spotted, tourists get the chance to take photos of the gorillas, watch mothers feed their infants, stubborn semi-adults climbing and roaming around and tourists who spend the evening in the forest chance watching the epic forest creatures make their nests for the night.
While the hour for wondering at the gorillas is done, tourists walk through the thick shrubs to the main entrance where they get to disperse off to their resting places.
Kahuzi- Biega national park.
Visiting this national park guarantees tourists a chance of spotting eastern lowland gorillas which is a sub- species of the gorillas. The park has nine eastern lowland gorillas however 5 families are habituated and available for trekking. A female eastern lowland gorilla weighs about 100kgs and a male about 210kgs.
Trekking these gorillas is similar to any gorilla trekking where the activity resumes with meeting from the headquarters for a brief discussion about the rules and regulations, hitting the forest and wandering at the animals for an hour.
Mpungwe the largest gorilla family in the park has 21 members and is the most appreciated by the trekkers. The second largest gorilla family is chimanuka gorilla family with 19 members, this is the most interesting according to trekkers. Silver back Mugahuka broke away from Chimanuka interestingly forming a one-man family. Trekkers who prefer short trekking distances should consider visiting this gorilla family.
Nganwe gorilla family has 10 individuals but it is not yet available since its still under habituation. Bonnani gorilla family has 5 members and is the recently habituated gorilla group available for visitors.
Things to do in D.R. Congo.
Gorilla trekking in Virunga national park.
Gorilla trekking leads tourists to fantastic gorilla that are long known for being endemic and Virunga has 8 habituated gorilla families. The families include the Kabirizi family with 25 members, Bageni family has 48 members, Mapuwa boosts of 26 members, lulengo family has grown to 15 members, Munyaga has 12 members, lulengo has 14 members, Silverback Humba protects the lives of 15 members in the Humba family and Nyakamwe family has grown to 15 members.
Lowland gorilla trekking in Kahuzi-Beiga national park.
The park is blessed to have nine lowland gorillas however the tourists only have a chance of spotting on the four that are habituated. The gorilla families include Mpungwe gorilla family that has 21 family members, Chimanuka has 19 members, Mugahuka is a one-member gorilla Bonnani with five members and Nganwe has 10 members that tourists are pleased to enjoy while in the park.
Hiking Nyiragongo mountain
The beauty of this mountain is sighted from a far with the smoke and the red top of the mountain brought by the lava in the mountain. Nyiragongo is an active volcano whose eruption that occurred fourteen years back went down in history and attracts tourists worldwide. The mountain poses with a crater lake that spans 2km wide and has boiling lava underneath with makes it more interesting to watch.
Getting to the summit of the mountain exposes the boiling lava lake and gives tourists fantastic views from the surrounding including views from Virunga National Park, the surrounding among others including the unbelievable history of the prestigious mountain.
Top attractions in D.R. Congo.
Lake Kivu
It is amazingly beautiful how one of the smallest lakes among the African Great lakes happens to be the third deepest and has the highest altitude among them all. The scenic beauty of Kivu is undeniably amazing and while on the lake tourists get to participate in kayaking, sport fishing, mountain biking, island and coffee hoping.
Lola ya Bonobo sanctuary
Bonobos are special from the commonly known primates because their groups are led by females. Claudine Andre felt the need to stand by orphaned Bonobos hence creating the sanctuary in 1994.
Congo flora and fauna
The unique biodiversity in the country gets it the crown of having the highest number of animal species and being the second in plant species after South Africa. Over 50% of Africa’s tropical forests are found in the country, Congo also harbors glamorous endemic animal species like bonobo, Congo peacocks, eastern lowland gorillas, okapis with an estimate of about 3500 okapis leaving in the world, as well as mountain gorillas.
Birds
This country is not only the second largest country in Africa but also has the highest number of bird species in Africa with about 1,189 bird species as a country. Wondering through the Albertine Rift mountains and the Eastern D.R. Congo plains are the endemic areas and tourists get a chance of spotting on endemic birds while in these areas. 20 bird species are endemic to the country and include cucookshrine, Itombwe night jar, Congo baby owl, helmetshrike, Congo martin, Congo sunbelt.
The country has a variety of other species that include 29 of the 54 Sudan Guinea savannahs, 47 of the 67 Zambezian species among others. The birds can be viewed from different national parks like Kahuzi, Virunga, Salonga, game reserves Bombo lumene among others.
Livingstone waterfalls on Congo River
The expansive rapids on River Congo were named after David Livingstone and the wondrous cataracts made of 32 series fall between Kinshasa and Matador. Minor rapids fall over 85 miles and the big drop is over 260m. Tourists get to enjoy the falls and the dams that have established on along the cataracts.
Best time to visit Congo.
The dry season comes with plentiful conditions for holidays that’s why its very important for tourists to mark the dry months of May to September because these months have less rains, low temperatures and the bright skies offer wonderful pictures for keeping memories.
Facts about D.R. Congo.
- This is the country that has two species of the gorilla family.
- While in DR Congo the tourist can spot both the eastern lowland gorillas and the presitigous mountain gorillas in the same country. The eastern mountain gorillas are watched from Kahuzi Beiga national park and the mountain gorillas are enjoyed from the Virungas.
- R. Congo holds a place among the countries with large population because it is the second largest in Africa and holds the position of the position of the 11th largest in the world.
- This country has the oldest national park in Africa. The Virungas National Park was formed in 1925 being the first national park in Africa and holds dear the lives of endemic species like the mountain gorillas.
- The biodiversity in the country is on one side and its natural resources is very crucial to the country to the rest of the world. The country has gold, tin, uranium, cobalt in abundance.
- The country boosts of having rare wildlife species. D.R. Congo is among the countries that have phenomenal wildlife. Besides the rare mountain gorillas, the country also has the rare endemic okapis.
- Mayonnaise is a must supplement on every meal in the country. This character is courtesy of the Belgians who colonized the Congolese.
- The world’s second largest French speaking city is Kinshasa.
- Dikembe Mukombo who was an NBA star of his time was a DR. Congo born and he established a humanitarian service that was formed to purposely improve the health status of the country.
- The Congolese have had over a decade of political unrest since 1960 with over 5.4 million people losing their lives.
- The country is blessed enough to have over 200 ethnic groups with about 250 languages spoken in D.R. Congo.
How safe is D.R. Congo for safaris?
- The question about whether to have safaris in D.R. Congo or not can’t be missed by tourists who wish to discover hidden treasures of the country because of its long known political unrests. Therefore, visitors should learn about some safety tips to follow while in the country even though it has had a bit of relief; –
- It is very important for visitors to obtain visa before entering into the country and key to note that they cannot obtain one from the airport while in the country.
- Before landing into the country, visitors should have had their yellow fever vaccine and carry their card with them to have access into the country.
- Visitors should take not that it is not advised to take public transport like railways, busses due to the crime rate in the country. Rather visitors should opt for private means of transport like hiring safari vehicles, use of hotel shuttles among others.
- The embassy media platforms are very crucial in giving updates to intending visitors about the general security in this country hence one should endeavor to follow them keenly.
- Always have travel documents like passport and visa with you because it becomes much easier to be easily recognized and it’s an offense to not show them to the officials if asked.
- Taking pictures of presidential convoys, presidential offices, government buildings or taking photographs near these buildings is an offense hence visitors should take caution.
- It is illegal to continue walking or driving incase the presidential convoy is passing by.
- Dual nationals should enter and exit the country using the same passport because the country doesn’t recognize dual nationality.
- There is a high risk of some infectious diseases like Malaria in the country therefore visitors should take caution and carry anti-malaria drugs, or at least get vaccinated before their travel.
- Visitors should carry insect repellants and insect proofs to guard against bush bugs, and other stinging insects.
- This country has active volcanoes hence it is advised that visitors immediately seek medical assistance if they have difficulty in breathing, have contact with volcano ash for medical support.
- Walking alone is risky especially in the night hence it is advised that tourist stay in secure accommodation or move with colleagues if moving at night is necessary.
Where to trek gorillas from in D.R. Congo?
While in the vast lands of D.R. Congo, visitors get to spot two different types of gorilla species that can be viewed from the prestigious forests of the country’s National parks. The rare talked about mountain gorillas are only spotted from the glorious Virunga National park and the huge Eastern lowland gorillas are specially chanced from Kahuzi-Biega national park.
About Virunga National park.
The prestige that the park has is for being the first national park on the continent of Africa. Formed in 1925 as Albert national park, the wondrous scenery in the park protects the lives of the fantastic mountain gorillas. The passed years brought a backlash due to the political unrests in the country. The park is rich in biodiversity and because of that it was listed among the UNESCO heritage sites on 1979. The park has not only the endemic mountain gorillas but also other attractions like two active volcanoes that include Nyamuragira and Nyiragongo, birds, and wildlife.
Kahuzi-Biega national park
This park is another UNESCO heritage site and was declares so in 1980 due to its unique biodiversity and the rare eastern lowland gorillas. The park has a special touch of both the lowland and mountainous landscape and is among the biggest national parks in the country. The park was formed by a Belgian photographer in 1970 and the park was name after the two dormant volcanoes in the park that is mount Kahuzi and Mount Beiga.
Congo Gorilla permits
Gorillas are rare animals and because of their unusual beauty precautions is meant to be put in place to ensure that they are not depleted him tourists are supposed to first get documents that permit them to see the gorillas.
Prices
Gorilla permits in Kahuzi-Beiga and Virunga National park allow visitors to spot both mountain and eastern lowland gorillas. Virunga gorilla permits cost USD 450 and 400 USD for permits in Kahuzi-Biega NP for foreign non-residents per person.
How to book gorilla permits in D.R. Congo?
Visitors should book Congo gorilla permits three months prior the day of trekking the gorillas.
The permit is valid for only the day of trekking therefore if tourists miss out, they can’t claim a refund of the money.
50% of the gorilla permit price is refunded if a visitor gets to the park with cough, flue or sick on the day of trekking.
It is quite easy and seamless for visitors to book through a licensed local tour company or directly through the park authorities.
Other things to do in Virunga National park.
Nyiragongo hike
Nyiragongo raises with glam among all the other volcanoes because of its red summit due to the magma boiling underneath. Climbing the mountain is challenging but nevertheless the rewards of the summit are surely worth it. There are porters who carry for the tourists their luggage throughout the journey. The hike starts off with a briefing to prepare the tourists throughout the 5 segments until they reach the summit.
Hiking through the first segment tasks tourists into hiking through the low altitudes, the altitude keeps on increasing for each segment and tourists deal with small loose lava rocks in the second segment. The third segment comes with hiking through higher altitudes than the previous segments and slippery stones. The fourth segment tasks with steep slopes and the cold is not something to joke about as it also rains sometimes. Hiking this mountain is a two-day adventure which entails spending the night at the top of the mountain.
There are well prepared cabins at the top that tourists use for shelter while at the summit. The smell of the bubbling lava is smelt quite well by visitors while in the cabins and they get to enjoy the top as tea, breakfast is all prepared from there. It’s a night to remember and all the tourists need to do is to keep warm. Descending down is definitely interesting as well after getting the fabulous looks of the boiling lava until they reach the starting point of the mountain.
Senkwenkwe gorilla orphanage
Just inside the pristine environment of Virunga NP happens to hold a comforting place for orphaned gorillas. Visitors who have a courtesy visit to this place pass by during or after gorilla trekking to appreciate how gorillas are well taken care of by their care takers to guide them through the trauma, they have been through due to different massacres that have ended lives of their dear ones
Enjoying the history of this gorilla orphanage is something that tourists shouldn’t miss while in the park.
Goma city tours
There are lots of amazing safari destinations in Goma city. The presitigous Lake Kivu is on the northern side of the city which gives tourists endless views of the lake. While in the city, visitors can engage in a variety of activities like hiking Mount. Nyiragongo, city walks that entails enjoying market walks, cultural places, beach activities, hakuna matata safaris, and canoe rides.
Other things to do and see in Kahuzi-Biega National Park.
Waterfalls
The trails of Tshibati falls leads visitors to three thundering falls that are mind blowing and tantalizing. While on the hike of gazing at the thunderous falls, tourists get to enjoy the cool breeze brought by the falls, the beautiful scenery and lots of exquisite nature collections.
Mountain Biega
Mountain climbers should come well prepared to flex their muscles while hiking this tantalizing mountain that happens to be the second highest in the park with a height of 2790m. Tourists have a privilege of enjoying the surrounding with a bird’s eye view as they get to hike Beiga. Ascending and descending the mountain takes six hours that are filled with splendid joy that is given off with the spectacular views given off by the scenic surrounding.
Mountain Kahuzi
Kahuzi the highest peak in the park has an altitude of 3308m above sea level and its worth a challenge to take and hike up to the peak of the mountain. This inactive mountain is not only home to the prestigious gorillas but also offers fantastic views to tourists who risk to the top of the mountain.
Lwiro chimpanzee sanctuary
The sanctuary is home of a variety of different endangered species including 105 monkeys, 83 chimpanzees other endangered animals include porcupines, parrots, turtles that tourists get a chance of enjoying as the orphaned animals are given a second chance to live. The sanctuary has a team of well equipped and trained personnel who take care of the chimpanzees that are in trauma due to the loss of loved ones.
There are other organizations that have picked a lead from Lwiro like NGOs and have come in place to join hands and prevent chimpanzees from being killed.
Bukavu city tours
Bukavu city is a hidden gem in Congo with bountiful sources of happiness that visitors get to enjoy. The breathtaking scenery of the city is highlighted by the splendid culture of the Congolese that include various tribes like the Bashi.
Captivating cultural dances, tantalizing music. The natural wonders of the city are served by the sights of the vast Lake Kivu, crystal-clear water of the lake, beautiful noise of the people in market places, worship areas to mention but a few.
