Amazing Interesting facts about the Volcano National Park: Volcanoes National Park is famously known as a tourism destination in Rwanda, where you will find rare endangered mountain gorillas that can only be found in Virunga National Park of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Mgahinga National Park, and Bwindi Impenetrable National Park of Uganda. The park was gazetted as a national park in 1925, purposely to protect and conserve the endogenous mountain gorillas of Rwanda. Volcanoes National Park is located in the northwestern part of the country in Musanze, earlier known as Ruhengeri. Volcanoes National Park covers an area of approximately 160 square kilometers of rainforest, comprising five of the eight volcanoes in the Virunga Mountains, such as Sabyinyo, Gahinga, Muhabura, Bisoke, and Karisimbi. Volcanoes National Park covers Rwanda’s share of the Virunga Conservation Area and is bordered by Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Mgahinga Gorilla National Park in the Pearl of Africa.
Volcanoes National Park is home to five of the eight volcanoes making up the Virunga mountains, such as Mountain Bisoke, Mountain Karisimbi, Mountain Sabyinyo, Mountain Muhabura, and Mountain Gahinga, shared by Mgahinga National Park and Volcanoes National Park. Besides gorillas, Volcanoes National Park is home to golden monkeys, a variety of birds, reptiles, amphibians, and insects, among other creatures, which together make a complete Rwanda safari package.
Volcanoes National Park offers visitors a number of amazing things and activities, including gorilla trekking, golden monkey tracking, birding, Dian Fossey grave, cave exploration, guided nature walks, picnics, and volcano hiking, among others. Here are some of the amazing interesting facts about the Volcano National Park.
Home to endangered mountain gorillas
For those who are interested in seeing endangered primates and apes, then Volcano National Park is the perfect place for you. The park is home to a huge number of the remaining world’s endangered mountain gorillas. involves walking in the lush forest along the jungles of the Virunga Mountains, hiking, and trekking these fascinating primates. Besides the Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda, these fascinating primates can also be seen in Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Mgahinga Gorilla National Park, and Bwindi Impenetrable National Park in Uganda. Mountain gorillas in Volcano National Park can be seen in the Virunga Mountains, which act as a home for 10 habituated mountain gorilla groups such as Amahoro gorilla group, Sabyinyo gorilla group, Hirwa gorilla group, Kwitonda group, Umubano group, Karisimbi group, Agashya group, Ugenda group, and Bwenge group, among others. Besides the endangered mountain gorillas, the Volcanoes National Park is home to endangered golden monkeys, which are also some interesting primate species dwelling in the Virunga Mountains, particularly in the Volcanoes National Park.
Home to endangered golden monkeys
The Volcanoes National Park is one of the remaining national parks in East Africa, where these captivating endangered golden monkeys are found. Seeing them is safe and easy since the golden monkeys feed on the lower slopes of the Virunga Mountains. fascinating golden monkeys are very unique and loving primates characterized by having a beautiful golden color body only found in Mgahinga National Park in Uganda and volcanoes themselves. Rwanda gorilla tours can join Rwanda golden monkey trekking tours since they all involve walking along the jungles of the Virunga mountains. Hiking and trekking these fascinating primates are interesting, and you will have a chance to see the monkeys feed, groom, and swing from one baboon to another. Trekking is an amazing and nice-looking creature always done in the morning, just like any other activity carried out in the park.
Home to the smallest mountains in the Virunga region
Volcanoes National Park is home to the smallest volcanoes among the volcanoes in the Virunga region. Mountain Gahinga is the smallest of the Virunga volcanoes in Rwanda. It is also a dormant volcano with a crater at its summit and swampy vegetation on the floor of the crater. Mount Gahinga lies between Mount Sabyinyo and Mount Muhabura and sits at an altitude of about 3,474 meters above sea level. It comprises a beautiful afro-montane forest and bamboo that shelter mountain gorillas. But we are blessed with some fascinating wildlife species and birds that make up the Mt. Gahinga eco-system, including golden monkeys. This is part of a chain of eight volcanic mountains in the Bufumbira range. The volcano chain spans across Uganda, Rwanda, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Hiking this mountain takes a day, and it offers unmatched scenic views of the vegetation on the slopes. You will also get a great opportunity to see wildlife species such as buffaloes and primates. And golden monkeys are notable for these.
Home to the Virunga Mountains
Volcanoes National Park is home to 5 out of 8 Virunga Mountains, and these include Mountain Karisimbi, Mountain Sabyinyo, Mountain Gahinga, Mountain Bisoke, and Mountain Muhabura, which act as homes for 15 gorilla families that can be spotted: the Susa gorilla family, Karisimbi gorilla family, Amahoro gorilla family, Titus gorilla family, Kirwa gorilla family, Kwitonda gorilla family, Sabyinyo gorilla family, Umubano gorilla family, Agashya gorilla family, Uganda gorilla family, and Bwenge gorilla family, among others. Trekking mountain gorillas gives you fun facts and interesting characteristics about primates that will be learned when you visit a particular gorilla group while taking a park gorilla trekking in Volcanoes National Park, which will make your wildlife safari in the park interesting.
Volcanoes National Park is home to Rwanda’s twin lakes.
Lake Ruhondo and Lake Burera are stunning lakes based between Mount Musanze and the Uganda border. The lakes are famously known as Twins Lakes because of their closeness to each other’s. These lakes are fed by rivers in Uganda, and the lakes share a combined surface area of 2800 hectares of land and were formed as a result of volcanic eruptions in the Virunga massif. It’s believed that the two lakes were formed after volcanic glaciers from the erupted volcanoes blocked the river Nyabarongo that was flowing towards the northern part of Rwanda and later diverted its channel and started flowing in an eastward direction where it joined the River Akanyaru and the River Akagera. The twin lakes Ruhondo and Burera are separated by a 1km stretch of land that was formed after the eruption of Mount Sabyinyo. The twin lakes offer amazing activities to visitors, such as boat cruises and canoeing, fishing, where you will get to spot some of the water bird species such as herons, kingfishers, cormorants, Hamerkop, and darters, among others. You will also get a chance to interact with the different local people from the Iby’iwacu cultural village, see how the villagers rush to the lakeside, dance and sing happily on the island, and visit the Musanze Cave.
This concludes the Amazing Interesting facts about the Volcano National Park
Contact our trusted tour operators for more information about Rwanda safaris in Volcano National Park, and then book with our tours and travel companies, such as Achieve Global Safaris, who offer the best tour packages while on your safari in Rwanda.