Gorilla Business

On our first full day in Rwanda, we woke early, grabbed a quick and tasty breaky at Elaine's Guesthouse (where we are staying) and headed to Volcans National Park to get up close and personal with one of the 18 families of gorillas that call the protected park home. The park extends up the volcanos into the Congo and also north into Uganda – if you summit the Northern-most peak you can simultaniously be in all three countries. The gorillas, which see none of these European prescribed boundaries, can be found throughout the vast area so you can trek for hours to reach them.

We have a big, two-day hike day after tomorrow and we were lucky enough to not have to trek for too long to find our group, the Hirwa Family (which means Lucky in Kinyarwanda, the local language). We spent an hour surrounded by 10 - 17 gorillas ranging from small, young babies to the large, beastly Silverback. We were just shocked at just how close you actually are able to get to them and how much you are just in the middle of them. At one point the behemoth Silverback took a stroll right by me, no more than a few feet away. While I've seen large animals in the wild before, I've never had the chance to be just that close to an animal that could literally rip you to shreds. In one or two good heaves, the Silverback literally pulled a large tree to the ground to eat its branches. A spectacular hour not to be forgotten. 

We've arrived to Volcans

And had to do some serious Jeeping to get to our trailhead

The views of the volcanoes were stunning all along the drive

Kristin starting a frenzy in small village at the base of our walk

The amazing and beefy Silverback

Who was accompanied by many younger juvenile gorillas

Again, the impressive Silverback

For the morning they just move slowly while they eat

In the Hirwa family, there was just one Silverback – they were named this because he was lucky to find a family to look over so quickly

Chow, chow, chow

Kristin and I with the large Silverback in the background

Chow, chow, chow

towards the end of our visit with them, the Silverback settled in for a nap, and the younger members continued to play

This guy was imposing – just after he passed by me, he looked a woman in the eye, and kicked her leg, then continued on

Just amazing creatures

As we exited the stone walls that encircled the park, we were met by many smiling children 

Who were many in this village

And of course were of great interest to Kristin – and visa versa

Beautiful people here in Rwanda