Nyungwe is one of the oldest rainforests in Africa, covering 1,019 km2 of dense Afromontane forests, bamboo-covered slopes, grasslands and wetlands. The park feeds two of the world’s largest rivers, the Congo and the Nile, and provides 70% of the country’s freshwater.
The park is also a regional biodiversity hotspot, supporting 1,068 recorded plant species, 322 bird species, 75 known mammal species and 13 different primate species. For those unaffected by a fear of heights (and even, perhaps, for those searching for a new and innovative way to overcome them), the three separate bridges offer unparalleled views of one of the most scenic national parks in Africa. This extraordinary vantage point forms part of the Igishigishigi Trail (a word that refers to the tree-ferns below but doubles as a tongue-twister), and the forest below is resplendent, often draped in a blanket of cloud that only adds to a sense of the surreal. As a mostly forest-dominated park, it is only natural that one of Nyungwe’s significant draw cards is its extensive primate populations and its treetops are dominated by several species of monkey and troops of chimpanzees. There are two habituated troops of chimpanzees within Nyungwe and chimpanzee trekking is popular with visitors. Given the distances chimps can cover at any one point in time, visitors should prepare for an early morning and a long day spent walking through the forest. However, this will be rewarded by an hour spent in close proximity to our closest relatives.
