Gorilla Mountain Lodge

 9/22/2022 - Gorilla Mountain Lodge 

 The highlight of our trip is nearing now that we arrived at the Gorilla Mountain Lodge. 

Great statue on the grounds with the volcano in the background.

My cabin, number 6, was appropriately named “Cuckoo.”

The aftermath of Seven miles of hiking

Miraculous cleaning by the lodge staff!

Cool bamboo sculpture outside the Kinigi Trekking Station in Parc Nacional des Volcans entry.

What a relief we all tested negative for COVID on 9/17 and 9/21, especially after paying serious money for this trip - only to miss seeing the gorillas and golden monkeys in the wild. For me, this was scarier than anything else on the agenda. 

We had to wear masks during our visits with the gorilla family and the golden monkeys to avoid infecting them.

My group made the more strenuous 7-mile loop to observe the Titus family. Thank goodness we had porters to carry our backpacks and water. My porter, Jaqueline, was the only female porter assigned to our two groups. I traveled lightly – thinking I didn’t need to burden my porter with anything besides my empty camera case and a bottle of water.

Jaqueline was about my height and solid. She pulled me as we scrambled up rocks too far apart for my short legs; tried to drag me through the muck while I struggled to keep my feet from popping out of my boots; and guided me downhill to safety. I think both of us were exhausted after a challenging 7 hours.

Neighboring kids, who mastered the English word “hello,” echoed their greeting in stereo and even organized a welcoming gallery on our way up and the way down. Armani, our tracker, warned us about using a bush to pee without locating where the kids were positioned. It could prove traumatic for both parties.

Was the struggle worth it? Need you ask?

Meet the Titus family:

 

Titus himself.