GORILLAS!!

Today was the day that was a large reason for why I did my 1 month tour of East Africa and even my 3 month hiatus in the African continent. We would be walking deep into the jungle of Bwindi National Park to get up close and personal with the Mountain Gorillas. This was a full day activity, and so we woke up early and headed from the hostel at about 7 am. The apparent 1 hour drive suddenly became 2, either because of rain or just general incompetence from the hostel. After some time travelling along incredibly bumpy and slow roads, when we arrived, excitement hit, and we were briefed on the Gorillas and what to expect. Myself and the Kiwis once again stuck together as we wanted to do a longer hike, joined by a German couple to ensure we made up numbers. The rainforest was beautiful, and we paid 700 USD for this experience, so we thought to get bang for ya buck, we may as well do the long hike. It did not disappoint. Although slightly sketchy in certain places due to the mud, the walk was amazing, about an hour and a half of walking through thick vegetation, vines, and the aforementioned mud, we slugged our way through the forest. Although we enjoyed the walk, when we heard the rangers calling the guide, we could not contain our excitement. We were close to the Gorillas. As we got closer again, we eventually had to leave the path we had been following for the past hour and a half and began cutting and stomping our way through thick forest. Finally, I saw through a break in the trees, a big black furry blur, and I got goosebumps instantly. It was my first sighting, and I couldn't quite make out what it was what I was looking at exactly, but it got me incredibly excited. We put on our masks and got as close as we could. As we share 98.8% of our DNA with gorillas and the number of visitors they get it is important we do our best to not transmit diseases. At first, we stayed probably 10m away, still very close, but we were about to get a lot closer. Even from this distance, the detail with which you could see their face, fur, enourmas arms and back, it was impossible to describe and breathtaking to say the least. Watching as the family move around, mothers carrying babies on their back, young males and females frolicking in the leaves, all following the dominant silver back. They move when he moves. The size of him compared to the rest and the noises he was capable of making made him stand out significantly. We were there very briefly before we didn't need to ask who the dominant male was. Even when they aren't screaming, the little growns and growls they let out are enough to give you shivers. As the dominant male moved south, we quickly lost our position right next to the group and had to reposition. The position we found ourselves in next was far more exciting anyway. As we moved, we were shocked with how calm and confident the rangers were when getting close to the Gorillas, even cutting and smacking leaves away just a few feet from them. The gorillas have obviously gone through rigorous habituation to ensure they do not get aggressive around humans, but these guys were different. Rangers spend all day and most nights with them so they know each other very well. Each gorillas has a name, a family, a habitat range, and a complex social network, all of which these rangers track and monitor on a daily basis. We, on the other hand, were outsiders. This made them slightly less comfortable around us, and it was shown later. Gorillas generally live in peace, and because we had travelled the furthest, we were rewarded with one of the largest families within the national park, 11 gorillas, and 5 silverbacks. Although there was a larger group that day, they both technically belonged to the same family, but due to the whole family numbering 32, they tend to splinter off for days or even weeks at a time. Because it is all one big family, when they reunite, it is not aggressive, and instead a welcome reunion. In the national park, this is the only time we would see this type of interaction between groups. Generally, when two different Gorillas groups come face to face, it is aggressive and can be incredibly dangerous. Thus, tourists aren't allowed to visit gorilla groups if they are in too close of a proximity to one another. 2 to 3 rangers track each group of gorillas at all times and are armed with AK-47s to protect the gorillas from poachers. This meant for our operation, there were 3 rangers that located the Gorillas in the morning, the lead guide, and 2 escorts. The escorts were located at the beginning and the end of the group to protect us from aggressive animals while we trekked. So 6 people for a group of 6 tourists. Quite the operation indeed.

When we found ourselves in our new position on the fringe of the group moving along the hill, we saw first hand the social dynamics at play within the group. A younger silverback had made a small play at the dominant male of the group. This is mostly to test the dominant males strength and power within the group, as well as test to see which other silverbacks may join in his aggressive show of force or defend the dominant male. I was incredibly lucky to have filmed the whole interaction based purely on luck. The young male appears from the bushes and runs directly at the dominant male, screaming and pushing the dominant male back. As the dominant male turns and replies with his own roar of intimidation, the noise that was created and the fear it invoked was terrifying. It was frightening to see and hear them move in such an aggressive manner. The most interesting factor in all this was another younger and smaller silverback joining forces against the dominant male, which you can also see in this video. Although it was only a minor show of force, the ramifications for such an event can be enourmas to the group. For now, the old male remains dominant but can be overthrown by smaller males if he does not have the support of other silverbacks in the family. This was cool to see in person. Obviously, this show of force had the 2 younger gorillas rild up because it wasn't long until they got aggressive again. This time towards us. Nick, Vic, and I had been looking toward a relaxed and calm silverback that had parked up at the rear of the pack as a mother and baby came along side us. Whether it was someone pointing, the proximity to the mother, or something else, one of the younger silverbacks felt we were out of place and ran at us in a similar way he ran at the dominant male. Screaming, pulling leaves and bushes, showing teeth, and making as much commotion as possible. Obviously, our response was to shit ourselves. We had not been looking in that direction, so to hear this ordeal without seeing him caused us to jump back a metre or so. The guide, calm and compose, told us to not move and positioned himself slightly to distract the gorilla and allow him to calm down. He remained standing, protecting his family for a while before Vic and I crouched down to show that we were not a threat. I will never forget the display of teeth. Huge, disgusting, powerful, and dangerous. It was terrifying as it was wild. This was just about the last of the action we had with the gorillas, although it was far more than we expected. We stood watching them for another 10 minutes, but by this time, the dominant male and most of the other gorillas had moved on. We had been very lucky with what we saw. The weather caused there to be just enough rain to slow them down but not stop them all together. After an hour, though, our time is up, and we have to head back to the shuttle. The weather had turned, and so a lot of the return hike was done in the rain, with the already muddy path turning to slime basically. It was incredibly slippery, and I did not have the gear to maintain traction. I only had runners when hiking shoes would have been much more appropriate. As such, I took the biggest fall of the day, eating shit and falling straight into a pile of mud. This only made me want to get back to the hotel even more. Without the excitement of meeting the gorillas and being wet, muddy, and sweaty, the walk back was far worse. After another hour and a half or so, we had made it to the starting location and could finally relax. We were so eager for a chill bus ride and maybe a nap when we were quickly reminded of the shocking conditions of the road. Being thrown around the van for an hour and a half was like torture. We were all so tired and just wanted a sleep but the violent shaking, making it impossible. The days end seemed to go on forever. Eventually, though, we arrived back at the hotel and could have a brief nap. Of course, by the time we were back, I could no longer sleep, but we still rested before the hostel invited us to a gorilla celebration. Once again, this was organised by the sleazy Shiba, but everyone was keen to go, so we obliged. It was a strange night, although fun, Shiba, we decided, was just an alcoholic and this probably described his shitty behaviour. He constantly tried to make people dance even when it was clear they didn't want to. We had a few drinks here before we decided to leave after a big day. One of the highlights of my entire trip quite easily. I hope I can return one day and see the beautiful creatures again. I will never forget the Kahungye Gorilla family.Read more