Nyungwe Forest National Park is well known for chimp tracking though there are other striking activities such as the Canopy Walk, birding, and Forest walks among others. The land of a thousand hills is very famous because of her mountain gorillas located in the northern part of the country to be specific in Volcanoes National Park. The gorillas are found in the Virunga Ranges shared between Uganda, Rwanda and Democratic Republic of Congo and attract thousands of travelers who take Rwanda gorilla safaris all year round. Rwanda as per now has about ten gorilla families, which are located in her volcanoes that include Gahinga, Karisimbi, Bisoke, Muhavura and Sabyinyo side of Rwanda
Back to Nyungwe Forest, the Canopy walk is approximately a two km walk to and from. The actual canopy walk is around 170 meters. In the morning, after breakfast your guide/driver leads you to the starting point then after the walk, you walk back again. The canopy walk starts with a briefing by one of the guides at Nyungwe Forest National Park headquarters and then you proceed to the forest. This is a very rewarding walk, you will be able to see several primates and birds, plus many tree species. Then eventually you will reach the real starting point to begin your hike on a trail hanging and connecting one hill to another. It is on record that on this canopy walk you get to see several birds and primates but the truth is that when you start this walk, the aim changes immediately and many concentrate on completing the walk rather than viewing attractions in the forest. Just like bungee jumping, Walking on ropes and aluminum bars way high up there is so challenging that when clients complete this walk, they call for a bog celebration. During this canopy walk, you are advised not to look down as you may instead become scared especially those with “height-phobia”. The best way to enjoy the hike is to focus on what the forest has to offer and move normally otherwise you will miss out being in a hurry to finish the walk. Nyungwe canopy walk is such an experience so unique and is next to trekking gorillas if you have the guts to do it. Though it takes a strong heart to try it.
Apart from the outrageous canopy walk, there are other activities in Nyungwe Forest such as bird watching, chimpanzee trekking, forest walks, nature walks and community walks among others. Nyungwe National park can be accessed by road and one has to drive approximately 5-6 hours or you can fly from Kigali and land at Kamembe Airport, which is about 35 minutes from Kigali. The good news to those interested in flying, rwandair operates scheduled flights everyday so you may choose to fly though using this mode of transportation will make you miss the visit to Gikongoro for a tour of the Genocide Memorial of Murambi, Butare town which is the 2nd town in Rwanda and also considered the cultural capital. The city hosts the university and the National Museum with very rewarding handicraft shops where typical products made by Rwandan artisans are sold, visit the Royal Palace in Nyanza. Otherwise from Kamembe Airport, you may have to drive approximately 40 minutes to Nyungwe Forest Lodge or Nyungwe Hill top view Lodge, which are the popular accommodation properties in the area. The next morning, you will be required to drive at least 30 minutes to reach Nyungwe National Park headquarters to start any activity of your Interest.
