Preflight Checklist: Gorilla Trek
“Be careful, there’s a silverback on your left.” Spoken to me casually, received without alarm, on the side of a mountain in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest. I’d waited my whole life to hear those words in that context. After decades of dreaming and months of orchestration, I was finally here.
Unlike lowland gorillas you can see at the zoo, mountain gorillas cannot survive in captivity. To see them, you have to go to their place. The task of planning a mountain gorilla trek is a lot like the target species themselves: big, mysterious, and risky for the unprepared. But like encountering the gorillas, it is also exhilarating, rewarding, and unforgettable. I can’t prepare you for the way you will feel when that silverback locks eyes with you for the first time, but I can pass along my experience and some subtleties I learned along the way.
Purse First
Girls just want to have funds, and girl, you’re gonna need some if you want to go gorilla trekking. There are a few major expenses that will come for your coins. Some of these are obvious: airfare, visas, trekking permits, tour or ground transport, and accommodations. Next come vaccinations, clothing and gear, and cash for tips and incidentals. I’m not here to tell you this is a bargain destination; I’m here to assure you that it’s worth it.
There are three countries mountain gorillas call home: Uganda, Rwanda, and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Permit prices vary, as do travel logistics and vaccine requirements (most notably the yellow fever vaccine). A limited number of permits are issued by the wildlife authority of your country of choice, and permit prices are set by each country (per person, $800 for Uganda, $1500 for Rwanda, and $400 for DRC). This is only a part of the total trip cost, but should be factored in right off the top.
Airfare is another big ticket item. Depending on departure point, Africa can be tricky. My not-so-secret weapon departing from the US is Ethiopian Airlines. Ethiopian has nonstop flights to Addis Ababa from many major airports in the US, and from there they connect to most major airports in eastern Africa. Their prices are competitive (points redemptions via Star Alliance are insane), and the smoking guy in the safety demo video is hilarious.
US citizens will need to apply for a tourist visa online in advance of their visit to Uganda ($50 USD) or DRC ($100 USD); visas may be obtained on arrival to Rwanda ($50 USD). If your plans include Uganda, Rwanda, and/or Kenya, you also have the option of the East African Tourist Visa for $100 USD, allowing travel to all three of these countries during your visit.
You likely have a yellow fever vaccination in your future if you haven’t received it already. It’s mandatory, full stop, for entry to Uganda or DRC. It is required for entry to Rwanda if you have visited a country where yellow fever is endemic in the past 24 days. Additionally, you must receive the vaccination at least 10 days prior to entry for it to be valid, so get on it. It’s not cheap (around $170-200 in my area), but the silver lining is that it lasts a lifetime. My health insurance didn’t cover it, so include this in your budget if you need it.
You will need cash to pay your porters, to tip your porters and guides, and for food and other incidentals. Credit cards can be used in some instances, but should not be relied upon. At the gorilla trek, cash payment for the porters ($20 USD per porter) was accepted in US dollars, euros, or Ugandan shillings. ATMs are available in the cities but not so much in the more rural areas, so I suggest getting your cash situation sorted before you hit the road.
Blame it on the Rain
Gorilla trekking is best undertaken during the dry seasons. There is a long dry season from June-August, and a shorter dry season from December-February. We went in January, and conditions were perfect. Our tour operator also mentioned that permits would be easier to obtain as the December-February dry season is less busy than the high season. Think about how much time and money you have to spend, as well as what else you would like to do and see while in the region.
Be Extra
That last part is important. The gorillas won’t be the only game in town. No matter which country you choose, you will want to include other experiences available in the area. We chose Uganda because of the abundant and varied wildlife in relative proximity. Our itinerary with Nature Connect Safaris Uganda included game drives in Queen Elizabeth National Park (leopards!), a chimpanzee trek, a river cruise on the Kazinga Channel, and a night at beautiful Lake Bunyoni. Not bad for a five-day driving tour. These bird nerds even squeezed in a morning on the Mabamba Swamp and two trips to the Entebbe Botanical Gardens. Maximize your time in the region; you worked hard and came a long way to get there, and you deserve to savor every second.
Assemble Your Crew
Before you get too settled on the length of your trip and the other experiences you want to include, I suggest you have a look at a few tour itineraries. This can give you a realistic idea of travel times and distances, and how much you can expect to do and see in a given amount of time. The chimpanzee trek turned out to be an absolute highlight of our trip, and I might not have sought that out on my own. If you hire a tour guide (which I highly recommend), your tour operator will factor trekking permit costs into your package and obtain them for you. Accommodations and meals were also included in our tour price, as well as a driver/guide and 4x4 vehicle.
If you’ve never driven in Africa, believe me when I tell you the roads are on another level. There’s a reason they call it the “African massage”. Many roads are unpaved, and potholes abound. In my case, I felt the driving was best left to the professionals. Unburdened by the responsibility of navigation, we were able to relax and direct our attention to the animals. More importantly, our guide, Sam, added exponentially to our experience. During our drives and at our meals together, he shared a wealth of knowledge of both wildlife and Ugandan culture. He also made sure we got the best group assigned to us on the day of the gorilla trek. You can certainly do it on your own, but we got a lot more out of our trip thanks to Sam.
Garments, Gloves, and Gaiters
The gorillas live in wild conditions, so clothing choices need to be practical and protective. At Bwindi, it’s cool in the morning, but you’ll warm up quickly when you hit the trail up the mountain. A hat is recommended for sun protection. A mask will be provided to you, to protect the gorillas from disease transmission. Long sleeves should be worn, as well as a rain jacket. Gloves are essential, and they need to be strong enough to protect from thorns on the vines you may need to move aside or grab for support. A stout pair of hiking pants either tucked into your socks or paired with insect gaiters are vitally important for thousands of bitey reasons: safari ants. Should they crawl up your pants leg, they can make their way up to the “central government” (as one of our guides put it), resulting in excruciating pain. Last but not least, sturdy hiking boots that can handle slick muddy trails and thick brush will complete your ensemble and ideally keep you vertical.
Glass vs. Mass
Rejoice, children, for I have wondrous news: you don’t need your biggest, heaviest, longest lens for this. But you’re gonna want a little something special. Behold, my blessed chosen unicorn: the Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6L IS USM lens. These gorillas are very big subjects in fairly close proximity on the side of a pretty steep hill. You know that feeling, when your lens is a little too long and you keep taking steps back to fit the scene in the frame? Not here. No ma’am, no ham, no turkey or cheese. You’ll fall, thus amusing the gorillas but ruining your experience. Of course I brought my Sigma 150-600mm f/5-6.3 OS Contemporary lens (aka Big Punisher) to Uganda, because birds exist. But Big Pun enjoyed a day in the truck with Sam while I was out trekking. I did put my Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM lens in the bag I took with me, but it stayed back with my porter on the trail. For you mirrorless shooters, I would recommend sticking an extra battery in your pocket before you start climbing up the hillside. I made it through the whole hour with one, but just barely.
Showtime
The big day was finally here. We arrived early at the park station. While we sat inside enjoying a welcome song and dance performance followed by a trek briefing, our guide Sam was outside negotiating which family of gorillas we would track. Like the superstar he is, he got the Mukiza family for us, which is considered the best family to see because all ages are represented. We met our guides Expedito and Alice, our guards, and the other members of the group. There were 7 trekkers: Jay and myself from the US, an Italian couple, a Russian couple, and a woman from Germany. We were advised not to fear the machine guns carried by the guards, as their purpose was to be fired in the air if we encountered an aggressive forest elephant (not to shoot the gorillas or to put us out of our misery, should the unthinkable happen).
Next came the assignment of porters. Here’s the deal: you need a porter. Not only will they carry your bag, they will take your hand and prevent you from slipping and falling as you hike. It’s also a way to support the local community members who provide this service. Expedito checked each of our bags by lifting it, then assigned a porter to each person. One woman was adamant she didn’t need a porter, despite our guide’s advice, because she only had a small bag. Guess who busted it falling over a log? Nobody cares how strong you are; it’s about the safety of the group as a whole. If we get deep into the trek and someone has a preventable accident, now everyone has to deal with it. Stay safe, hire a guide, and support the community.
When we set out, we didn’t know whether this would be a half-day adventure or an all-day undertaking. A team of trackers preceeded us by about half an hour to locate the Mukiza group. They periodically radioed our guide to update him on their progress. Right before we found the gorillas, Alice briefed us on appropriate vocalizations for different situations. We were fortunate that we only hiked about an hour before we encountered them; it could have taken four times that long. Our porters stayed back with our bags while we put on our masks and approached the gorillas. For one hour we were allowed to follow them as they moved about their chosen spot for the day. We saw them all, from baby to silverback and every age in between. At one point, a mother with a baby on her back passed about two feet in front of me. I stayed still and grunted as I had been taught by Alice, and she cruised right by. The mountainside was steep and covered with vines, so I was lucky to have a strong trekking companion who could help steady me at times as I took photos.
The hike out was harder than the hike in. We stopped for a few minutes to eat our sack lunches, then continued until we met the road. About halfway back, we heard the guides at the front scream, “Ants! Ants! Ants!” This whipped us all right up into a high-stepping sprint, followed by an aggressive slapping down of our pants legs by our porters on the other side. Our personal central governments peacefully uninvaded, we emerged from the forest onto the road. As we waited to rendezvous with our drivers, we participated in a graduation ceremony and were granted certificates commemorating our trek. My husband Jay was declared the silverback of our group, his proudest achievement of the trip. We loaded our muddy selves into the truck with Sam and headed down the mountain.
Status Post Silverback
Was it worth it? Yes across the board. Every Ugandan shilling, every travel hour, every muddy step. Would I do it again? Name the date, I’ll meet you in Entebbe. More important than one person’s experience is the impact of responsible wildlife tourism on conservation of threatened species like the mountain gorilla. The bottom line is that these citizens of our planet need to be worth more to humans alive than dead. Protection must be more profitable than poaching; that’s the role of gorilla trekking and other wildlife experiences. Save your cash, make your plans, and get ready to get dirty. Earth’s most fascinating inhabitants are waiting for you in the mountains.
