Gorillas not Guerillas

So Justin saw the Gorillas in Uganda and actually had a sub juvenile come up and lean against him for 30 sec, so he had the best human vs. primate experience thus far. After my volunteering in Uganda, we headed south to Rwanda to Park de Volcans, famous for Diane Fossey (Gorillas in the Mist) and right across the border from the DRC. Home of 18,000 UN peacekeepers who are attempting to keep the peace in the eastern Congo. When I mean right across from it, I mean literally in sight. To the point that you are escorted everywhere by a ranger with an AK-47, not the favored hunting rifle of our ranger friends in the Serengeti. This is allegedly for the Buffalo, but me thinks it is to make sure Rwanda has no kidnapped westerners that would ruin it’s highly lucrative Gorilla tracking business. Apparently some tourist got shot in 200? by some marauding Guerillas which put a damper on tourism for spell. I question what one dude with an AK is going to do to stop a determined squad of DRC rebels hell bent on keeping me captive in a jungle cage but I digress…

This was our mode of transport up to the lodge at the base of the park, entertaining I know. Instead of planes, trains and automobiles this trip should be titled crappy buses, boats, and scooters.

evil knievel in training park de volcans

So there are 13 groups of Gorillas, they allow 54 people to go see them per day in groups of no more that eight at $500 per person. You have to get these permits way in advance…sometimes 6 months, there were people who had scheduled these vacations months before just to come and see the Gorillas. Not us of course, we took the cowboy route and showed up at 7am at the ranger office sporting five Benjamin's and a smile. There was one spot available, Justin had already seen them so he went hiking with a Polish couple and I got paired up with 7 Germans. Germans love to hike, but one woman in her fifties was there with her parents, who were understandably not as spry as  they were in their youth so patience was the word of the day.

  notice the walking sticks, foreboding of the pace to come.

thistles, gorillas like these, I did not

This is how thick the jungle was on the “trail”

It took us about 2 hours to cover what would have probably been a 30 min hike at normal speed, but what the hey why hurry. So our guide was in contact with the tracker and we finally reached this guy after thrashing through the jungle for an additional 30 min. We drop our packs and thrash some more, by thrash I mean these guys are beating the jungle back with panga’s and sticks to clear a path. Any animal within 30 miles heard us coming, my point being we did not sneak up on the Gorillas…they were just too lazy and too used to their skinny white hairless cousins that coming visiting every morning. All of a sudden I’m in a bamboo clearing and there are about 5 BIG hairy ape’s in close proximity.

No fence, no moat, no specially designed cage just myself and the knowledge I could outrun every one of the German seniors if need be which was reassuring. They were doing what they do best sleeping and grooming. Then one of the little guys got up and started showboating.

They say you have to stay 10m back from these guys so you don’t transmit your cold or whatever diseases you have but the trackers were walking around grunting (this is how gorillas greet each other) and trying to wake up the silverbacks so we could get some photos….very non-intrusive of course.

I was just sitting down watching the scene until this one walked right up to me and the tracker had to pull me out of the way so she could pass by. One has some strange thoughts when eye to eye with a Gorilla while not behind an inch of plexi-glass in the zoo. They in turn are staring into your eyes trying trying to figure out why a bunch of hairless dudes show up everyday at about 10am and sit in their kitchen for an hour.

eating a thistle

Mr. Silverback this guy was HUGE. His cranium was about as big as my upper torso.

Overall very cool but the Gorillas were not that active and you are only allowed to stay for an hour. They are big and it is amazing to say you just sat with them for an hour and exchanged looks and pondered where you came from for a bit. Hopefully the chimps will be a bit livelier.

My protection

About 1/2 way up this volcano is where we hiked to and where the mountain gorillas live.