Gorilla Trekking


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Published: October 9th 2012
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Gorilla Trekking has been high on my to do list for a while now, so while choosing our Africa trip we made sure we picked a tour that included a visit to these magnificent animals. Before we arrived in Africa we were unsure whether we would trek in Uganda, Rwanda or The Congo, as it depends which of these countries we would be able to get a permit for as the gorillas move around between the national parks. On arrival in Nairobi we discovered we would be trekking in Bwinidi Impenetrable Forest, Uganda- that was fortunate, as we then didn't have to pay extra visa fees to go into Rwanda and back into Uganda.

Our group based ourselves on the shores of Lake Bunyonyi, Uganda for four nights so we could split into small groups and trek the gorillas over three days. There are only about 600 gorillas left in the wild so each family is only allowed to be trekked once a day by a group of 8 people, who are allowed to spend 1 hour with the gorillas.

On the third day our group of 8 set off bright and early with packed lunches not knowing what to expect as we drove the 2 and a half hours along a heavily speed bumped road to Bwinidi Impenetrable forest. We gathered around and met our guide (named Gard) and he told us all the rules associated with trekking- such as no flash photography and no one allowed to trek if sick (gorillas share 99.9% of our DNA). Up until this point we were unsure as to how long we would have to trek for knowing it could be anywhere between half and hour to six hours. We were now informed we would be trekking the Oruzoho family and that the trackers were with the family and that we would have to trek about an hour and a half.

Climbing back into our minivan we continued an extra half hour up the road before meeting with our porters. Not knowing how hard and long our trek would be we paid $15 for a porter to carry my bag and who also helped with the steeper parts of the trek- also providing a bit of local employment. Finally we set off into the forest in search of the gorillas- the reason we chose a tour that went into Uganda.

We walked up a gravel hill and through some tea plantations before arriving in the dense jungle. Following a path we headed down a slope through fairly steep terrain and about 20mins later we were shocked to meet up with the 2 trekkers who informed us the gorillas were here.

Excitedly we left our gear and poles with the porters and followed Gard as he hacked away with a machete to create us a path. A few moments later we were able to look up and see a 2-year-old gorilla lying in a tree branch. The gorilla kept glancing over as he ate away at some leaves- he clearly knew we were watching and was trying to hide his face.

After watching him for a while we were informed that another gorilla had climbed down from a tree so we set off to see it up close. The next hour was spent clambering through the jungle on a steep hill as we made our way from one of these magnificent animals to the next. Some of the Gorillas stayed in their trees and a few even tried to pee on us...not sure if this was on purpose or not! We were lucky enough to see two babies with their mothers in the tree tops. In total we saw about 12 gorillas and we got about 1-2m away from a few, we even saw one stand up and bang on his chest at us.

Once our hour was up we headed back to our porters and back up the hill to road, all reflecting how amazing it was to get up so close to these creatures.

We knew that the day would definitely be a once in a lifetime experience and one we would remember forever. I would definitely put it up there with one of my top travel highlights and cannot imagine many other experiences beating it.


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10th October 2012

Gorillas
Jenny just loved the story The trek must have been very exciting for you both snd will be one,you'll always remember.

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