Queen Elizabeth National Park

Queen Elizabeth National Park contains one community of chimpanzees and we hoped that we would be able to find them during our trek in the park. We met our ranger at the entrance of the park and he carried a gun with him. This was the first guide to carry a gun with us in Africa so it was scary to think he may need to use it on our trek. The ranger explained that there was no guarantee to see the chimpanzees as they move throughout the park daily.

The luck of the Irish was well in form today as we only hiked for under an hour down the gorge and across the river before our ranger spotted a chimpanzee in a tree at the far side of the river near where we started. We rushed back along the original path across the river to our starting point. When we arrived we saw approximately twenty chimpanzee. Some chimpanzees were sitting on the ground while others were up at the top of the trees. We were able to stand about five meters away from the chimpanzees. The chimpanzees at the top of the trees were singing and calling out loudly. I learned that the chimps at the top of the tree were singing to inform the others that they had found food. After 2-3 minutes the chimpanzees who were sitting on the ground climbed up the tree to join their families. They ate their fruit from the top of the trees and dropped the shells to the ground nearly hitting us.. After about twenty minutes the chimpanzees finished eating and some of them came back down the tree and walked to the river to rest under some scrubs. It was cool seeing how the chimpanzee slide down the trunk of the tree. I didn't know what to completely expect from the the trek but it will be an unforgettable experience to be standing so close to our primates.

Once we returned back to our accommodation we had our lunch while telling Crispen and Francis about the chimpanzees. Kye, one of the British guys, went to the bar to buy a juice. He opened his bum bag to find $200 gone from his bag. He searched the truck, his tent and locker but he couldn't find it. Kye reported that he left his bum bag at his tent unattended for five minutes before lunch while he grabbed a shower. This was the first time that Acacia had used this accommodation. The manager was called and Crispen and Francis discussed with him the situation. The manager defended his team and explained that they hire good people who they trust. While they waited for the police to arrive Kye looked in his bum bag and realised that there was a secret compartment and it had the $200 in it. He was mortified about the whole situation and apologised profusely to all the staff and managers. The manager in fairness took the apology pretty well and was glad to cancel the police however it was an embarrassing situation for all involved.Les mer