My highlight in the Uganda section of the tour is the gorilla trekking. Leading up to it we had several long days of driving from Kenya, before finally reaching our campsite at Lake Bunyonyi. It’s been nice to stay in one place for a few consecutive nights and have the chance to relax!
I was in the second group from the tour to visit the gorillas. We woke up at 4am and were on the road at 5am for the 3 hour drive from our campsite to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. The park is located south of the equator in south-west Uganda, near the borders of the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda. It covers an area of 330 km2.
Driving in Uganda has been a slow, painstaking process, but the scenery is absolutely stunning. Hill after hill covered in farm plots and trees. Farming must be incredibly difficult, because the hills are STEEP. The trees are planted to prevent erosion and landslides. Our drive took us up through the hills on winding, bumpy, crater filled roads, our tiny van hugging the cliff side. There were times I looked out the window and we were inches from the edge. A wrong manoeuvre and our van would be rolling down the hill and we’d all probably die. I was glad to sleep through most of the drive to the park.
Only 8 people are permitted to visit a gorilla family each day, and the visits are 1 hour. Permits for non-residents are $500 each. For residents, the cost is $75. I’ve heard that in 2011 permit prices will be raised to $1000/person, so I’m glad I had the chance to see them now! There are only 600-700 mountain gorillas left in the wild, and they are found in national parks in Uganda and Rwanda. People continue to encroach on the gorilla habitat, and there are farms bordering the park. The gorilla families are habituated to people over a 2 year period before visitors are allowed to see them, so that they aren’t aggressive. However, we were given some basic guidelines to follow during our visit. If a gorilla did charge us, we were told not to look it in the eye or run away. We were also to keep our voices low, and stay in a tight group a minimum of 7m from the gorillas. Gorillas are susceptible to human diseases, which is why they limit the number of people and length of the visit.
I visited the Nkuringo Family, who have been habituated to humans for 12 years, the longest of any of the families in the park. There are 18 members in this family; 3 silverback males, a few blackback males, and females, juveniles and babies. Our guide told us that over the length of our visit we saw all 18 members, but it was hard for me to tell them all apart.
To find the gorillas, it’s possible to trek for anywhere from 1-8hrs. Trackers stay with the gorillas until they settle in to sleep for the night, and then return the following morning, hoping to find them in the same place. We were lead by a guide and two rangers with rifles. The rifles are apparently used to scare off elephants because they are scared of the noise. Our guide was in contact with a team of trackers, and we only had to hike for about 45 minutes. We followed a trail down a steep hill, passing farms, cattle, and homes. People really do live right up to the boundaries of the park. While the first group that went the day earlier had to hike through some dense, muddy jungle, we only had to walk in a few steps, and the gorillas we right there. The first gorillas I saw were sitting on the ground, peering out at us through the leaves. It was kind of surreal to see them sitting there so close to us. A large silverback walked right in front of us and didn’t even look our way. Our guides moved us more into the jungle, where most of the family were sitting and munching away. The gorillas seemed to view us all with a nonchalant attitude. They climbed up in the trees, and one of them even peed while perched up on a branch. It was really neat to stand and watch them in their natural habitat.
While we were all crouched near the ground taking pictures, a juvenile gorilla about 2-1/2 years old made his way over to our group. He reached out and touched the knee of a girl sitting beside me, and then smelt his hand. He was just very curious of our group. After that our guide told us we needed to move back to try and keep the 7m distance. It was amazing to watch and be that close to a gorilla.
Another gorilla was lounging on his back under a tree, getting ready to take a nap. Before we left, we saw the remaining blackback from the group. He was sitting separately from the rest, pulling down branches and eating the leaves. All of a sudden we heard this long, loud fart. The blackback continued munching away, and our visit was over.
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