What to Wear For Mountain Gorilla Trekking Tour in Uganda Rwanda and DR Congo in Africa

Mountain Gorilla Trekking tour in Uganda, Rwanda and DR Congo is one of the most popular wildlife experience in Africa. Mountain gorilla trekking in Africa is done in Bwindi impenetrable forest and Mgahinga gorilla national parks in southwestern Uganda, Volcanoes national park in the northwestern part of Rwanda and Virunga national park in east of Democratic Republic of Congo. Mountain gorillas are the most endangered primates in the world and cannot be found anywhere apart from Uganda, Rwanda and DR Congo. One of the mistakes that most people have made on their mountain gorilla trekking tour in Uganda, Rwanda and DR Congo is to go for gorilla trekking dressed unsuitably such as wearing sandals, sleeveless and shorts which is not appropriate for the activity. Therefore, when planning for a gorilla trekking tour in Uganda, Rwanda and DR Congo, it is always important to wear the appropriate attires to protect you from thorn pricks, insect bites such as flies and soldier ants during tracking and coldness. So, below is the list of what we would recommend you to wear for Gorilla Trekking in Uganda, Rwanda and DR Congo”.

Wear Waterproof Hiking Boots

The hiking boots are highly necessary to make you comfortable, stable, balance and support to your ankles during forest hiking to search for the mountain gorillas this is because the hiking trails used during gorillas trekking are very slippery and muddy especially when it rains therefore, a pair of waterproof hiking boots is required. With good hiking boots, you have also wear long cotton socks to be more comfortable. When tracking, we advise you to tuck your trousers into your socks this will protect ants and other insects from entering you.

Wear Long Sleeved Shirts and Long Trousers

During gorilla trekking you need to put on a long sleeved shirt and long trouser, these should be thick or Khaki and for a trouser, it would be better if you can get waterproof one. These will protect you from being crushed by tree branches, thorns and hurtful insects or anything else that can scratch you. Cotton undergarments are recommended since during gorilla trekking, you walk unpredictable distance sweating is unavoidable and ladies should wear comfortable bras since the hike may be tough.

A Rain proof Jacket

Since Gorillas are trekked in the huge rainforest and during morning hours, therefore, the forest is always very wet with mist and it might fall at any time of the day whether it’s a dry season or not. So, the rain jacket will protect you from getting wet and should come at handy. It would be better if your jacket has a poncho.

Strong Gardening Gloves

The strong garden gloves will help you in case you want to support yourself on a tree or anything else during gorilla trekking by giving you protection against nettles such that you don’t get hurt. However, when you meet Gorillas you can take them off in order to take excellent photos.

Wear a Hat

During gorilla trekking you need to have a good wide-brimmed hat than a Tilley Hat, this gives protection to your head and neck from the sun, mist and tree branch scratches since you hike through a huge forest then after gorilla trekking you can decide to wear a baseball cap but will not protect your neck from the sun.

A Warm Sweater

This looks like weird thing to wear a sweater in Africa! But the truth is, it is important to carry one when going for a gorilla trekking safari because it really gets so cold in the morning and at night. In Mgahinga Gorilla national park in Uganda and Volcanoes national park in Rwanda the temperature goes as down as at10°C/50°F and in Bwindi Impenetrable forest national park of Uganda its at11°C/52°F and sometimes lower than this. This is the reason why most lodges have fireplaces in rooms, other lodges have campfires at restaurant and bar areas and others provide hot water bottles all these are done to provide extra warmth to guests at night.

Wear enough Insect Repellent

During the trek you have to apply enough insect repellent mostly on your hands and legs to protect you from dangerous insects since in the course of gorilla trekking you come across different insects such as mosquitos, safari ants and others. For visitors who are on a Gorilla Habituation Experience that takes almost a full day in the forest, we would advise you to carry insect repellent in their daypack.

What is the right color for your safari clothes?

Bright colors should be avoided while carrying out safari activities in the jungle however, they can be used during dinner, transiting and other activities outside the jungle. So, neutral colors like green, Khaki and light brown are good to put on during your safari activities and they are extremely recommended colors all over Africa during safari, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, South Africa, Rwanda, Botswana and so much more. Black and blue colors are not good and not recommended because they are attractive to insects such as tsetse flies and other insects.