Gorillas in the Mist

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Anyone fancy tracking animals through near impenetrable forest in teeming rain, while climbing steep slopes with slippery mud up to the ankles, and surrounded by nasty stinging nettles that will get ya for sure every time there's a fall? Well, if the final destination results in an intense face-to-face encounter with a silverback gorilla you can count me in! Tracking the rare eastern mountain gorillas is one of life’s great experiences, and I chose Rwanda as the base for this once in a lifetime adventure. There are only three countries in the world where it’s possible to track the gorillas, those being Rwanda, Uganda and Congo.

The journal continues, dear reader, from where we left off rather dramatically with riots engulfing Kampala. Obviously I needed to get out of town at the earliest opportunity, and to my great surprise, after I arrived at the bus station to purchase a ticket I bumped into a travel friend from Nairobi who lives in Rwanda. We bought adjacent seats for the next morning’s journey, and it wasn’t long before he took me under his wing with generosity, and in doing so paved the way for an unforgettable introduction to Rwanda. We dealt with the all day bus journey well, but I went through some sketchy moments with the border officials, before finally being granted a visa to enter the country. I learnt that Rwanda visas are not granted on arrival, despite the state of affairs contradicting the advice in my guidebook. I had to use all my persuasive powers in a separate interview room to talk the official around, while a busload of travellers were waiting on the outcome of my negotiation skills. Talk about a stressful situation!

After I sheepishly reboarded the bus we wound through beautiful mountainous country to reach Kigali, the capital of Rwanda. From there we jumped in my friend’s car to drive a few hours up in the mountains to Musanze where he lives, which coincidently is also the base for tracking the mountain gorillas. He welcomed me to a spare room in his house, and then we were off to a farewell party for the Bridge for Rwanda NGO, as they were closing operations at Musanze that night. I met over a dozen exuberant and friendly young American volunteers from Arkansas, and later kicked on for a sharpener with my new friends at a few local bars. The next day was an unforgettable experience; where we got to visit the school my friend teaches in, and were invited inside three village farm houses of his Rwandan friends including a village elder. We dealt with screaming, waving, dancing, smiling and running village kids who totally flipped out when they saw Mzungus in the car. We got to cruise up to enjoy the spectacular views at the five star Virunga Lodge, and finally enjoyed the opportunity to hang out with one of his young students. It was a rare insight into Rwandan life, and how an energetic and committed westerner can make a difference to people’s lives in a foreign country. One of his business ventures is with a local entrepreneur, who is rapidly expanding his chicken coop and other farming enterprises with finances provided under microloan arrangements by my friend. The day was long and memorable, and with all that was going on he still managed to get me booked to track the gorillas next morning.

We said our farewells at the crack of dawn, as he is flying back to Canada for a month, and the truck arrived early to take me to the check in station in the magnificent Volcanoes National Park. We were placed into teams without fuss, and before long had a wonderful introduction to the Agashya gorilla family our team were visiting. Francois the gorilla man has been tracking mountain gorillas for 29 years in Rwanda, and taught us all an array of gorilla sounds, and also how to eat as gorillas do. He is so exuberant and an excellent guide. We pushed on into the jungle as the rain kept getting heavier. and the forest provided a challenging steep and muddy climb before we made contact with the gorilla family.

We forgot our tough one-hour climb as soon as we came face to face with a large family of gorillas in their natural environment. Francois made soothing gorilla calls to keep the animals relaxed, and we spent an unforgettable hour snapping photos and observing the family at rest in the forest. When we arrived they were eating, but as the rain got heavier they hunched up together and proceeded to look miserable. A gorilla’s character traits are remarkably similar to humans, and the big bad silverback looked particularly displeased as he turned his back to the rain and crossed his arms. We were able to move around under our guide’s instructions, and I was privileged to stand directly in front of the silverback from a metre away for a lengthy period of time. The big fella commands respect and sports nine wives to show for his efforts, a few of whom he has bought back home after successful cross border raids.

I actually didn’t realise I was staring at the silverback, until he proceeded to stare me down. I wasn’t going to mess with the boss, so averted my eyes by looking down as Francois had instructed. I glanced up a few times and he was still eyeballing me before he finally lost interest and looked away. That was a relief as I felt I was under the pump for a moment, in an unforgettable moment between man and animal. We got to see some of his ladies hanging out with the kids, and one rambunctious youngster ran straight past my leg during our visit. At the end of our designated hour with the gorillas Francois moved our happy group away back down the mountain.

For some reason I was all a#se and elbows coming down the mountain, and fell over several times. Finally in exasperation my German tracking mate told me to place my toes down first. Oh yeah, OK, I didn’t think of that! I returned to Musanze muddy but pumped up after the experience, and checked into the excellent Ishema hotel for a couple of days. As a friend of the popular Canadian the staff treated me like royalty, and I had a very pleasant stay. From Musanze I caught a minibus for the short drive down to Gisenyi, a resort town on the shores of beautiful Lake Kivu. The lake features sand along the shores, and beautiful trees lining the boulevard. It‘s pretty as a picture here and I’ve enjoyed a relaxing time, as well as having the best fish dish I’ve ever tasted at the Vision 20/20 restaurant. That meal will definitely be the pick of the menu again later tonight.

In summary I’ve been pleasantly surprised during the first week of my visit to Rwanda, as the country feels safe, clean and organised. To be honest I didn't know what to expect in a country that has been torn apart by violence barely twenty years ago. However, I've been impressed so far by the sense of order and stability that is the focus of the people as they put the trauma of the past behind them. As an added bonus Rwanda is full of friendly and helpful locals, basically all of you should be here now!

When I come here and look at the graves, it constantly reminds me of man's cruelty and absurdity. Separation is hard to bear for someone you knew so well and spent so much time trying to love and protect. It makes me wonder if I did everything in my power to prevent the massacre. Is there anything else I could have done to protect Senkwekwe and his family? I guess I'm just a man, I'm not god." DRC ranger

As I continue my travels, until next time it’s signing off for now

Tom

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Photos

Rwandan dancers
Amazing costumes on display up at Virunga Lodge.

Silverback gorilla
Hunched up against the heavy rain with one of the babies.

Business partners
The Rwandan entrerpeneur and his Canadian backer

Up close and personal
So thrilling to be within feet of a wild gorilla family.