Batwa Trail

A welcome diversion from the usual trail is to visit the impoverished Batwa/Pygmy community. This new initiative provides a genuine opportunity to experience something of traditional Batwa culture. The event follows a trail along the lower slopes of Mgahinga Volcano to Garama Cave and involves visitors and their Batwa guide in a range of practical interactions such as fire lighting using the traditional tools, building, target practice with a bow and arrow and food gathering.

The trail ends with a memorable performance of Batwa songs and music in Batwa’s council chamber in Garama Caves, a dramatic setting with powerful acoustics.

Importantly, the Batwa trail is no ‘pretty pygmy’ celebration; the day should conclude with a Frank discussion of the Batwa’s current plight, living as squatter in bivouacs on Bakiga owned farmland along the forest margins. Hopefully this component will survive efforts by the culpable authorities to suppress it.

The Batwa trail is a partnership between the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) and the Organisation for Batwa Development in Uganda.

Prices:

The activity is likely to cost US$70 per person including park entrance, of which a generous percentage should go to Batwa welfare. Book with a local tour operator or at the center.

History of the Batwa

The Batwa cultural trail of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park came short after the Batwa people had severely grieved with the effects of eviction from their ancestral land. Being one of the people who lived harmoniously in the tropical rain forests with the mountain gorillas, the government never minded about their good relationship with nature but evicted them forceful from their traditional land without compensation. This left a great number of the Batwa gnashing teeth, most of them lost their lives, all lived as squatters on their own land, and other observed within the neighboring communities.

The Batwa people today are living as conservation refugees on the outskirts of volcanic tropical forests which was their owned for centuries. This was a result of many nature conservationists who thought that the Batwa presence in the forests was a threat to the endangered species, which hurried the government by 1991 to force the people out of the Bwindi Impenetrable forest to gazette it as a National Park.

The Batwa pygmy forest people are among the few indignant people in Uganda who lived in the forests about 500, 000 years before any other. Considering taking the Batwa cultural experience one has a just to traverse through the ancient life of Africa. As the experience is aimed at disclosing the Batwa culture to the global community and revamping back their lost glory.

Great thanks to Dr. Scott and Carol Kellermanns who came to rescue in 2001, the two bought land and start several programs that aimed at improving the lives of the Batwa who were squatters by then. They built and developed clean water sources, health facilities, education facilities and finally formulized a way on how the Batwa out of their cultures could generate income. They started the Batwa Developed Program (BDP) which is managed and operated by the local Batwa people working closely with the Batwa communities to ensure that the indigenous rights of the Batwa are highly observed and respected.

The BDP initiative of the Batwa cultural experience was started by the evicted Batwa people with the aim of educating their young ones their cultural heritage and as well making it visit to the world. With the initiative is an opening that visitors can reach out to these communities and learn of how these people co-lived with wildlife in the tropics. A moment for this cultural experience is a fantastic one with the forest dwellers in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park which brings closer the ancient reality to present.

The trek through the slopes of Bwindi solids under the lead of the Batwa guide leads you seeing through various traditional considerations of how these people lived in the forest, how they practiced beekeeping, hunting and mushroom gathering, fire making through demonstrations as well even guests can tryout as hunting technics as they teach. Visiting their homesteads and learn how to prepare, cook and serve traditional meals. Learn how they make cups out of bamboos, local herb medicine and as well listening t0o their traditional tales, song, and dances.

The Batwa cultural experience is so different from other cultural villages you have visited in Africa. This experience brings to live what sued to happen in the ancient life as well and even most of the practices are still hold to by the present Batwa.

Though the majorly travelers go to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park for the incredible gorilla trekking safaris but adding the Batwa cultural experience to one’s travel list makes the adventure so lively.