Ntokou-Pikounda National Park

Ntokou-Pikounda was gazetted in 2013 after surveys found a very large population of western lowland gorillas in the forest between the Sangha and the Likouala, an area that had been little studied because much of it is seasonally flooded and hard to move through. The park covers around four thousand square kilometres of swamp and terra firma forest, and it also holds forest elephants and chimpanzees.

What you actually see

• The gorilla population - the concentration the surveys found before gazetting.
• The swamp forest - the flooded ground that kept the area unstudied for so long.
• The forest elephants - the population using the park.
• The 2013 designation - one of the country's newest national parks.

When to go

June to September is the drier season and the only practical window. Flooding governs access for much of the year. The area is extremely remote.

Honest expectations

There is no visitor infrastructure of any kind and access is by expedition with permits and guides. Gorilla sightings are very unlikely; the animals are unhabituated. Getting there takes days.

Nearby

Ouesso is north, and Nouabalé-Ndoki is beyond it.