Mount Bigugu Trail

Mount Bigugu Trail – Nyungwe forest national park

Mount Bigugu Trail : The Nyungwe forest national park is one of the national parks of Rwanda and is located within the Nyungwe forest, one of the oldest rain forests of Africa. Nyungwe forest national park is a currently a home to a quarter of the total primate species found in Africa and there have been 13 primate species recorded in this forest and among those are the chimpanzees, an endangered animal species according to the International Union of Conservation of Nature.

There are a number of trails in the Nyungwe forest that guests can take on for an experience in the wild while on a Rwanda safari in this part of the country. There are currently 15 nature trails that are being sold in the Nyungwe Park and each of these trails has a unique attraction or experience offered/ attached to it.

The Mount Bigugu trail is one of the trails and the other trails are the Ngabwe trail which is famous for birding, the Congo Nile Divide trail which marks where the waters of the River Nile and Congo River separate, the Muzimu trail with the great views of the Lake Kivu, the volcanoes and the Nyungwe forest park, the Rukuzi trail, the Igishigishi trail which leads to the canopy walk way of the Nyungwe forest national park, the Buhoro trail a short trail of the park, the Imbaraga trail, a difficult but rewarding for those looking for a physical challenge.

The other trails of the Nyungwe forest national park are the Irebero trail which gives you the view of Burundi at a distance, The Umuyove trail that takes guests to the waterfalls of this park, the Kamiranzovu marsh trail leading to the park’s largest wetland, the Isumo waterfall trail leading the Isumo waterfalls, the biggest in the park, the Karamba trail great for birding and finally the Uwinka trail starting from the Irebero railhead to the Kamiranzovu marsh trail beginning.

The Mount Bigugu trail

The Mount Bigugu trail is the focus of this write up and this is a physically challenging trail and once it is physically challenging, it will definitely be emotionally demanding. The Mount Bigugu trail is great for the visitors looking to take part in a more engaging hike as this takes you to great altitudes of up to 2,950 meters above sea level being the highest point with a lower point at 2,367 meters above sea level.

The Mount Bigugu trail is a 6 hour trail estimated to cover a distance of 13.2 kilometers heading out to great birding points of the forest. The common bird to expect on this trail is the collared mountain babbler, a not so common bird among the other 275 bird species that have been recorded in this forest. This trail leads up to the highest point of the park and this is at the summit of the Mount Bigugu of the Nyungwe forest national park.

Get to explore the beautiful flora and small forest animals of the Nyungwe forest and this trail is best done in the dry season. Get to pass through the fiery blossom flowers that go all the way to the top blending in with the disa robusta and the other plant life. Another great plant you will spot on this hike is the small Lobelia petiolata found at an elevation of 2,400 meters and 3,000 meters.

The hike up the Mount Bigugu starts at 150 meters above sea level with almost a kilometer long stretch of steep mountain slopes to conquer, pass by the roadbed that was set up in the contours on the long shoulder of the mountain.

There is a flat and area of this hike that stretches up to 3 kilometers and is great to enjoy the hike with less strain. Once guests get to the summit of this mountain, they are able to have a 360 view of the Nyungwe forest national park from the top. On a day with clear weather, you may spot the Lake Kivu at a distance and also some mountains of the DR Congo or even spot further to the Kabira national park of Burundi.

A visit to the Nyungwe forest national park can be topped up by a hike to the Mount Bigugu, get to enjoy the primate safari as well as the mountaineering safari and this may be a more close experience to that of the Volcanoes national park where guests do mountain gorilla trekking and top it up with a mount Bisoke hike.