What to expect when trekking for gorillas
I won’t lie…gorilla trekking can be quite hard. Both mountain and lowland gorillas live in the middle of dense tropical forests, and the areas can be steep and muddy or waterlogged – or both!
But, guides are aware that visitors aren’t used to walking in this terrain every day and will do their best to keep the pace steady.
Also, you will have a lot of adrenaline to keep you going with the excitement of this incredible once in a lifetime experience, and the boost that comes when you do actually track them down.
Typical Gorilla Trek
So the order of the day is usually as follows….(I’m going to talk about Uganda although most trekking is fairly similar in other countries)
A very early start, breakfast at the lodge and a transfer to the national park offices (walk or drive depending on location of accommodation).
After a pre-tracking briefing by your guide about what to expect, and how to behave during your time with the gorillas you are assigned a gorilla family. You then drive or walk to the trail-head for the start of the trek.
Expect to walk between 2 and 8 hours in steep and sometimes muddy conditions with rain overhead, which can be tough and require a degree of (average) fitness. However, the thrill of coming face to face with a giant mountain gorilla silverback and their family completely makes up for the effort!
Upon sighting the gorillas, you spend the permitted one hour with them as they go about their daily life; feeding, moving, playing, raising their young and sometimes wrestling with the juveniles – it really is a totally unique, priceless and unforgettable experience!
Important Facts
How long will the trek be?
There are various groups of habituated gorillas in each area. The guides and researchers will be aware of where they were last located, but they can move around quite a bit! You might be lucky and they don’t go far, or you could be unlucky!
A trek of anywhere from an easy hour or so to, perhaps, 8 can be expected, but you won’t be moving for all of that time as guides will be stopping to trek tracks, cut down foliage etc as you proceed.
Permits
All gorilla permits must be booked and paid for in advance. They often sell out and the chances of getting one near to the time are slim depending on the season – it is best not to chance it.
Which location is ‘easier’?
It is said that gorilla trekking is ‘slightly’ easier in Rwanda than Uganda which is probably true, although permit prices are higher.
In Congo, C.A.R. or Gabon the terrain is flat but due to the swamps and intense humidity it is probably not much easier.
Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC as opposed to just Republic of Congo) is sadly not viable right now due to unrest in the gorilla viewing areas.
What to bring?
Please remember to bring your passport for registration, waterproof hiking boots and a light raincoat or poncho (ponchos are useful for keeping daypacks dry). To protect from stinging nettles, we recommend long pants and long-sleeved tops. In Congo, CAR and Gabon gaiters are a good idea against leeches.
A pair of old gardening gloves can help grabbing onto the vegetation and some hotels/lodges provide a walking stick that come in very handy especially when hiking downhill in steep and slippery conditions.
A small waterproof backpack is an excellent idea to carry bottled water as well as protection for your camera.
Disease
Due to the importance of keeping human diseases away from the gorillas, anyone with a bad cold or cough won’t be permitted to trek. This would be disappointing on several levels, but I am sure any animal lover will see the reasons for this and understand.
What level of fitness do I need?
The trek itself isn’t especially fast – it’s not an endurance test. However, due to the difficult terrain, altitude and/or high humidity, this is not an activity for anyone who is not in reasonable physical fitness, and who is not able to walk on uneven and slippery terrain without concern. Anyone in doubt should always consult their doctor before attempting a gorilla trek.
I’m still not sure…any last advice?
Ultimately, after having led many groups to see the gorillas I have never had anyone come back unhappy with the experience. Tired and sore perhaps, but as mentioned the thrill of seeing these magnificent creatures makes all prior trials forgotten about!
Those returning from a gorilla trek are always on a real high because this really is a unique and incredibly moving experience (I admit that I cried!).
I guess that it’s a bit like childbirth – the end result is so amazing that no one remembers the pain afterwards!
Ultimately…the experience is priceless, and totally unique – incomparable to anything else I have ever done.
