How do I describe the magical feeling you get when spending time with a family of mountain gorillas. It is a bit unnerving how human-like their facial expressions and actions are. They let us get, and stay very close, seemingly undeterred at the daily one hour visit from a small group of humans. The trekking groups are limited to six paying tourist, a guide, and a small entourage of porters. A group of armed trackers spend longer with the gorilla family, tracking their movements through the day and noting their nightly nesting places...making them much easier to find the next morning. The experience is pure magic. Knowing that we are the only tourist they will see all day makes the experience, and the cost of a permit, even more special.
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Looking back at Mount Sabyinyo, where we trekked to find the gorillas
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The gorillas living in the Virunga mountains were not even known to the international scientific community until 1902. Since then the gorillas have seen their habitat shrink due to farming practices. They have also experienced poaching due to the desire for gorilla parts on the asian black market. Villagers setting traps in the mountain forest for bushmeat would accidentally capture, injure, and even kill gorillas in the past as well. Volcanoes National Park was created to protect the remaining jungle, and all of the animals within it, especially the gorillas. It is now a recognized UNESCO world heritage site.
"In the heart of Central Africa, so high up that you shiver more than you sweat," wrote the eminent primatologist Dian Fossey, "are great, old volcanoes towering almost 15,000 feet, and nearly covered with rich, green rainforest - the Virungas." Fossey's grave is located high up in these same mountains. It is a popular spot to visit for those intrepid enough to spend a half day climbing up to find it.
Thanks to the protections in place, the population of mountain gorillas has risen to approximately 1000. Almost two thirds of these reside in the Virunga mountains. These mountains are home to hundreds of bird species and the rare golden monkey as well. So spending a few days here is highly suggested to take in more than just the gorillas.
We also took a relaxing boat ride on the nearby twin lakes, Burera and Ruhondo. Imagine our surprise when we approached a large island in the middle of the lake and saw villagers streaming down the steep hillside towards our landing area. As we got closer we could hear singing and see the group of villagers already at the shoreline dancing. It was one of the most emphatic and joyous displays of dancing I had witnessed in Africa. If there hadn't of been a pandemic I would have jumped out of the boat and danced with them.
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| One of our trackers, leading us to the Sabyinyo family of gorillas |
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| Silverback of the group |
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| Face of a young gorilla |
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| One of my favorite shots of the day, a young gorilla climbing a tree right behind me |
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| Villagers coming down to the shoreline to dance and sing as we arrive |
We also took a relaxing boat ride on the nearby twin lakes, Burera and Ruhondo. Imagine our surprise when we approached a large island in the middle of the lake and saw villagers streaming down the steep hillside towards our landing area. As we got closer we could hear singing and see the group of villagers already at the shoreline dancing. It was one of the most emphatic and joyous displays of dancing I had witnessed in Africa. If there hadn't of been a pandemic I would have jumped out of the boat and danced with them.
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