Gola Rainforest National Park

Gola Rainforest National Park protects the largest block of lowland rainforest remaining in Sierra Leone, extending to the Liberian border. It shelters pygmy hippopotamuses, western chimpanzees, forest elephants, and over 330 bird species, including several Upper Guinean endemic species.

Access is from Kenema, which serves as the main gateway. The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) and the government manage the park jointly; guided walks can be arranged through local contacts in Kenema or through the national park office. Basic accommodation exists at ranger stations inside the park. Conditions are remote and infrastructure is minimal — go with local guidance.

things to do nature hiking
A story
Gola is one of the last surviving fragments of the Upper Guinean rainforest, a forest type that once covered most of West Africa from Guinea to Nigeria. It survived partly because Sierra Leone's civil war (1991–2002), which devastated the country, inadvertently reduced logging pressure on the eastern forests during the conflict years.