Final day of trekking with my beloved mountain gorillas in Rwanda’s Volcanoes National Park. Bitter sweet…truly. Rwanda and our cousins have a special place in my heart.
Welcome to the Amahoro Group (meaning Peace). This family is quite serene and congenial – which can pose problems for a SB. Ubumwe, pictured here is the leader and such a lovely gentleman. He’s lost some members to the Umubano Group, but that’s life in the forest.
He is most certainly pondering, then check out the look he gives one of his little ones…kids will be kids, regardless of the species!!
This group has 17 members with Ubumwe as the SB, a couple blackbacks, juvenilles and females.
The trek up today was relatively strenuous, it’s amazing to me how each trek has different terrain. it’s as if the forest is made up of 100’s of smaller forests. The trek today was a huge learning experience for me. One girl from the US had a bit of a cough, and so i made the guides aware (one who’s been there 17 years, another for 35), and they immediately spoke with the assistant director who said to watch and monitor. They did so through out trek in the farmlands leading to the forest and though i was uncomfortable, they were ok with her continuing to the gorillas once we reached the park edge. I even offered to pay the group to not go, but the chaperone was barely engaging and just letting he guides make the decision. I explained, in what i felt was a calm, considerate way that we all came and spent the $750/trek/person because we have an interest or care for the gorillas…and that i understand how disappointing it may be for them to turn back without seeing them, but i begged them to think about the well-being of the group.
Learning #1: keep cool, soft and compassionate and be brave enough to share my feelings/concerns, even if they are not well-received or regarded.
So, we continued on – porters ensuring every man made it up the mountain- it was slippery, wet, muddy and thick forest to chop through…not for the faint-hearted.
Once we reached the group, Ubumwe and his family were mostly socializing, feeding time was over.
we found Ubumwe on his own and then we went to the rest of the group…curiosity must’ve gotten the best of him so he came over to see what all the fuss was about…
The power, might and stature of silverbacks is extraordinary. The energy of the group completely shifts and each member becomes more aware…
his presence cannot be dismissed.
In fact, the babies will groom him as a sign of respect – look closely:
And the mode of transport for little ones is clearly so much better than a car, bike or plane…
we were fortunate enough to witness the kids playing – social time is a blast. reminds me that we aren’t all that different – kids will be kids – curious, open hearted with boundless energy and enthusiasm!
Here’s to getting back in touch with the child within 🙂
we don’t always have to take it all so seriously!
One hour flew by. Yes, the sick girl dropped her camera lens cap and the baby found it and played with it…yes, my heart sunk and i became very concerned. Luckily, Francois recovered the cap (none of us saw how)…but he is truly part of the gorilla families.
The family will be monitored by gorilla doctors and trackers to ensure no signs of sickness.
The balance between conserving the species through tourism and allowing them to be “wild” and “free” is hitting me right between the eyes. The debates linger in my mind. So many angles to consider, it has become clear that is not one right answer…not yet. We (as humans) are doing the best we can right now in the circumstances we have, and the population is growing, so who will argue?
As i unravel the sticky, messy, multi-faceted components to these issues, i can’t help but wonder – what would Dian Fossey do? and is that even applicable today?
For now, i observe, i learn, i take it all in and i try to understand reality so that we can determine what our new reality will be.
The trek back was a bountiful display of pyrethrum – a flower used to make insecticide.
Rwanda exports this after processing to the US primarily. The flowers themselves are absolutely beautiful – who would guess they repel insects so well?!
And here’s one of the more upscale farmer’s houses we pass by:
just some cover from the rain and wind…not much more, but the people here are happy with bright eyes and big hearts.
Welcome home.