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The Wild Earth: Gorillas In The Midst of Africa

This article is more than 4 years old.

Hiking up Rushura Hill in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest in westernmost Uganda, right in the heart of Africa, guides lead the way as our small eight-person group passes fragrant angel trumpet vines in full bloom, then banana, sugarcane, and tea plantations before we climb to some 7,000 feet in elevation.

As the guides machete-hack through what I am sure is the thickest jungle growth on the planet, I didn’t think I would make it up the side of that rain-slick, mud-swathed mountain.

After two hours of grueling climbing, stepping over gorilla dung and dodging vicious soldier ants, one of the guides stops and turns around.

“You,” he points to me in a commanding yet soft voice. “Come with me and be very quiet.”

My heart pounds as it never had before. For the first time ever I was about to see endangered mountain gorillas in their natural habitat. I momentarily forget about the electrifying heat and drenching humidity of the rainforest as I grab the young man’s hand before slipping and sliding a few more steps up the hillside. The rest of the group is but a millisecond behind us.

At first, all I see is a ghostly black shape in the verdant jungle, but then my eyes adjust to the darkness of the jungle—even in midday, it’s shadowy, almost like twilight—and the shape begins to take the form of a young female gorilla. I’m trembling not with fear but complete awe as she cradles her tiny baby. And then more gorillas appear, apparitions come to life, and they’re in the trees, on the ground, all around.

From a few feet away I hear low rumbling, not menacing, really, but a snore-like, throaty groan that absolutely commands dignity and respect.

“That’s the silverback,” the guide whispers and points. “There he is.”

All I see is a patch of black striated with iridescent silver. His back is turned to us, and out of profound arrogance or sheer protectiveness, his eyes never leave his family. He knows we are there. Never once does he glance our way, but without a doubt he would be upon us in a terrifying instant if we venture too close to his beloveds.

All under the eyes of that watchful old silverback, we observed the troop of great apes and laughed quietly as the juveniles rolled on the ground, turned expert cartwheels, and swung from the low-lying limbs of the canopied forest. Sometimes, even, they would beat their chests to communicate with their brethren, and I was instantly reminded of all of those old Tarzan movies I watched when I was a child.

With the greatest of reluctance, our group had to leave after only an hour, which is all the time you’re given to stay with the gorillas. That hour seemed only moments, and those were moments I never wanted to end. As we turned to slog through the mud and back down the mountainside, I turned for one last look at the happy family. Whether it was in my imagination or reality, the old silverback turned his head slightly toward us as if to say goodbye.

Learning About Mountain Gorillas. According to the World Wildlife Fund, about a thousand mountain gorillas remain on Earth. The greatest concentrations of them live in the volcanic rainforests of the Virunga Mountains of Uganda, Rwanda, and the Democratic Republic Congo in elevations ranging from 6,000 to 13,000 feet.

The highly intelligent gorillas are slightly larger than their eastern lowland, western lowland, and Cross River cousins that live across central and western Africa. They stand four to six feet tall and weigh up to a quarter-ton, just a solid wall of sinewy muscle. To protect against cool high altitude temperatures, their luxuriant fur is longer and thicker than their lowland cousins.

Troops of gorillas—they’re also known as a band or the less common whoop—number up to 30 or so and are led by the older, wiser, dominant silverback, so named for streaks of silver fur that prominently stand out against his otherwise black coat. Challenge him and he might pound his chest, throw rocks, or release guttural roars, but he won’t eat you, as the vegetarian mountain gorillas feast on about 40 pounds a day of sweet roots, shoots, and fruit.

Why Mountain Gorillas Are Endangered. Although mountain gorillas are highly protected and their numbers have slowly increased from near extinction, they still face numerous threats to their existence, including being hunted for meat or the highly illegal bushmeat trade. Sometimes they are unintentionally caught and killed in traps designed for other animals such as antelope. Habitat loss because of commercial logging, agricultural practices, and bushfires is a major factor in their near demise, but so are civil unrest and war and diseases, including the Ebola virus and human-transmitted respiratory-related illnesses.

Although not as prevalent as it once was, gorillas are also hunted for their body parts for medicinal uses or grisly souvenirs. Infants have been stolen to be sold as pets, and often the adults are killed in the process.

The Importance Of Saving Mountain Gorillas. Primatologist Dian Fossey, played so convincingly by Sigourney Weaver in the movie “Gorillas in the Mist,” wrote of the gorilla’s “precarious existence” in the January 1970 edition of National Geographic: “Unless a better plan and more determined effort is made to save the mountain gorilla, it is doomed to extinction within the next two or three decades.”

Because of the efforts of those like Fossey, the Leakeys, and Jane Goodall—and these are but a scant few names of well-known conservationists who stepped up to help save gorillas from extinction—the beautiful animals would have certainly been fated to never again walk the face of the earth.

What You Can Do To Help. The most important thing is to become more educated about the gorillas and their habitat. If you’re not able to visit them in Africa, you can support them with donations to or adoptions with programs such as the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund, Wildlife Conservation Society, Jane Goodall Institute, International Gorilla Conservation Programme, Endangered Species International, African Wildlife Foundation and World Wildlife Fund.

Contributions to these worthwhile projects provide funding for conservation projects, help and support for the rangers in the parks, education for reducing threats from humans, establishment of more anti-poaching programs, and long-term habitat protection.

Visiting the Gorillas. To see the gorillas in the wild, you must travel to places like Parc National des Volcans in Rwanda, Bwindi Impenetrable Forest in Uganda, Mgahinga National Park in Uganda, and Virunga National Park in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.

Typically you fly into Kigali, Rwanda’s capital, or Entebbe in Uganda. Transportation to the parks is generally by smaller planes or tiny bush planes over some of the most absolutely stunning scenery of the whole of Africa.

Permits are required for gorilla trekking, and the cost is $600 per person in Uganda ($700 after July 2020), $1,500 in Rwanda, and for the DRC it’s $400. Permits must be purchased in advance through the country’s tourist office or a reputable tour outfitter such as Extraordinary Journeys, Adventure Consults, Micato, Volcanoes Safaris or Mountain Travel Sobek.

The Last Word. Visiting the gorillas is not for the faint of heart, certainly, and you should be in pretty good physical shape before taking on such an endeavor. The treks range from easy to difficult, and there are no guarantees that you’ll see the gorillas once you get there, but the chances are high. The trackers know what they’re doing.

You’re allowed only one hour to watch them, but hands-down it’s one of the best hours you’ll ever spend.

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