Bwindi National Park

The Mountain Gorilla is a highly endangered specie and only about 600 are still alive today. Almost half of these live in Bwindi and the rest around the area of the Virunga volcanoes in Uganda, Rwanda and Congo.

The Gorillas are primarily vegetarian and survive mainly on a diet of fruits, shoots, stems and flowers. In the wild, they can live up to 50 years old. They communicate using a wide range of facial expressions, gestures and vocalisations. The Gorillas exist in groups led by the male silverback and after rising at dawn, spend their days resting and foraging for food. As evening approaches, the silverback chooses a sleeping spot and each Gorilla gathers vegetation to prepare their nest for the night.

The day dawns clear and cool with wispy strands of pink cloud drifting over the mountain top. Excitement mounts for the meeting with our ancestors and after a briefing from our guide Richard Magezi, we enter the rainforest and cross the Munyaga river.

There's a very good reason why this area was formerly known as the Impenetrable Forest. In occasional clearings, dappled sunlight breaks through the thick green foliage but in other places it is so dark it seems almost like night. We continue in silence, listening to the birds and watching red-tailed monkeys leap around the treetops. It's like walking through an enchanted forest and the green beauty of Bwindi takes my breath away as fragile blue butterflies float around my head.

We soon leave the main path and head straight through the thick vegetation, tripping over roots and tangled creepers while clutching onto vines and thorny trees for support. 'Make sure your pants are tucked into your socks because there are lots of nasty ants around,' warns Richard.
Our guides use machetes to clear a path but it's tough going and we battle our way up the steep mountainside, often stepping ankle deep in mud. 'The brochures I read didn't say anything about how hard this would be,' gasps an out-of-breath American woman, leaning on her stick.

After two hours of slog and sweat, we pass several areas of flattened foliage and piles of dung which indicates we're on the Gorilla's track. 'When we find them, there must be absolute silence and everyone must keep at least five metres away,' says Richard. 'We will have exactly one hour with the Gorillas and not a minute more otherwise it becomes too stressful for them.'

We turn a corner and suddenly there they are. In dense dark undergrowth, the male silverback is sleeping against a tree. Two baby Gorillas play wrestle on the ground and bump into the silverback who wakes up with a grunt. The gentle giant looks in my direction and although I'm just a few metres away, he seems unperturbed by my presence and turns his attention to the babies at play. Then he gazes back briefly and almost seems to smile.

An adult female emerges from the bushes with an infant on her back and the whole family are now on the move. We beat through thick undergrowth and find they have all climbed a giant strangler fig tree in search of food. The silverback is resting in the branches while the other pick leaves and emit grunts of contentment and the loudest flatulence I've ever heard. The next moment we all scatter to avoid a stream of urine falling from above.

All too soon, our 60 minutes are up and Richard tells us it's time to leave. Despite the dark conditions which are not conducive to good photography, it's been a thrill to meet these amazing creatures in the wild.

The next day I pack up and wait for my ride back through the mountains to Kabale. A brief thunderstorm has abated and ribbons of mist rise from the trees, cloaking the upper canopy of the rainforest in shifting layers of white. The last few claps of thunder subside, leaving the forest silent except for the rhythmic chirping of insects and the gentle rush of a stream.

I look out across the great green wonderland. Somewhere, deep in the mist-shrouded rainforest, the Gorillas are at play.