• Janice GuimondAfrica 2024Traveler
    Huge gorilla 'sculpture ' enroute. The whole country is hilly -- beautiful and green.
    This gorilla sculpture is made of straw.One more shot showing the backdrop and beautiful morning.The crew in our vehicle, excited to see mountain gorillas up close.Volcanoes National ParkVolcanoes National Park - our Rwanda group including leader Andrea, stoked for the trekVolcanoes National Park - we are all wearing gaiters to protect from brambles & ants.Rokundo & Francois -- our guidesVolcanoes National Park - pre-trek briefingAt the trailhead, my chariot awaits 😉We were so fortunate to get Francois as a guide. He was called back from retirement due to requests.He stripped a thistle stalk to show us how much moisture was inside. Then he ate it!We crossed potato fields to get to the 'jungle.'The able-bodies......and me. Sedan, Helicopter, Stretcher -- all terms used to describe this service."Watch your head!" I learned quickly to put my hood up and cover my ears (tree ants!)Gorilla trackers carry rifles and shoot onto the grass to scare away big game if necessary.1The money shot 🙂Me and my entourage. Good grief!🫣

    Gorilla Trekking (1 of 2)

    November 1, 2024 in Rwanda ⋅ ☁️ 54 °F

    What an amazing day! Started out with a short drive to Volcanoes National Park, where we met our guides and learned our trekking group. We then drove to the starting point of our trek, where we met our porters, and for me the guys that would carry my 'sedan.' (I thought there would be four of them, but there were eight! 😲) From here, we set out on the hike to find our designated gorilla family.Read more