he mountain gorilla (Gorilla Gorilla Beringei) was unknown until 1902, when a German by the name of Captain von Beringe observed some tall "man-like" apes in what is now Rwanda. Little was known about them until naturalist George Schaller spent a year studying the animals in 1959 and 1960. His book, The Year of the Gorilla, changed the notion of the largest of apes from violent and vicious "King Kong monsters" to "amiable vegetarians" that live in small, cohesive family groups.
In 1963, a curious American by the name of Dian Fossey staggered up a 10,000-foot volcano in Rwanda and got the first glimpse of the gentle giants that would occupy most of her life. "Peeking through the vegetation," she wrote, "we could distinguish an equally curious phalanx of black, leather-countenanced, furry-headed primates peering back at us," Fossey wrote later in her book Gorillas in the Mist. "Their bright eyes darted nervously from under heavy brows as though trying to identify us as familiar friends or possible foes. Immediately I was struck by the physical magnificence of the huge jet-black bodies blended against the green palette wash of the thick forest foliage."
Isn't it time you witnessed these incredible giants with your own two eyes? If you are up for a couple of treks through jungle undergrowth and mud (and, likely, some rain), come to Rwanda's famed Volcanoes National Park to get up-close-and-personal with the mountain gorilla. The government of Rwanda issues only a very limited number of permits to do so each year in an effort to protect the animals. Experienced guides join you every step of the way, tracking gorilla families as they eat, play, and attend to their family business in the Rwandan forest.
We suggest tacking this journey onto one of the R, Crusoe East Africa safaris detailed in East Africa: 4 Unusual Safaris Through Kenya & Tanzania. It is a quick flight from Nairobi, Kenya, to Kigali, Rwanda.
Gorilla trekking. In a word? Life-changing.
How can you resist?
