We went to breakfast a little early so that P.J. could see if he could walk 4 hrs. thru the rainforest with the Mukiga, Joseph from the BDP (Batwa Development Project), and collect saliva samples from the Batwa pygmies. He then planned to walk back before nightfall. However, Joseph had too many of his own things to do so P.J. decided not to go. As P.J. and Nate were deciding how to best use the day, Gino, the cook, announced that there were two cancellations for a Gorilla Trek but we had to be ready in five minutes. Instead of the $500.oo fee, they'd let us go for $375.00. This was irresistable and Erin and I were dressed for the forest anyway so we jumped right on it. Gino packed us a lunch and off we went. We teamed up with six tourists from Palo Alto (where Erin works at Stanford) and David, with whom we were enjoying a few beers at the Silverback Lodge the night before, turned out to be our lead guide from the UWA (Uganda Wildlife Authority). Although mountain gorillas are now extremely rare and listed as one of the most critically-endangered species, successful conservation work has helped to secure the remaining populations (Wikipedia).
There are times when treks can last for 7-8 hours and the people return disappointed and exhausted without having seen a single gorilla. But that was not the case this Friday in the Impenetrable Forest of Bwindi. We were out less than one hour when we spotted our first great ape--only 15 feet away.Then we were finding them everywhere: in trees, behind bushes, walking thru the tall grass, next to the tea fields, and in their nests with their babies.
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