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Mountain Gorilla Trekking

Tracking the mountain gorilla ranks as one of the absolute highlights of any trip to the African continent.  Few people are able to explain the exhilaration that comes with your first encounter of these peaceful, yet enormous creatures.  Deep in the dense forests, human visitors often find themselves making a deep and magical connection with these wild animals that have such a remarkable resemblance.

With only an estimated 880 mountain gorillas left in the world, it is a true experience to simply have the opportunity to see one in the wild.  These few remaining animals are spread out between two distinct areas.  The first is the Virunga Massif, a well preserved rain forest that encompasses Volcanoes National Park of Rwanda, the Virunga National Park of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), and Mgahinga Gorilla National Park of Uganda.  The second area is Bwindi National Park of Uganda.

In an effort to save the mountain gorilla from extinction, park officials have selected gorilla families that could be habituated so that tourists could visit them in their natural environment.  The families have undergone extensive interactions with park rangers and researchers over several years for them to become habituated to the presence of people.

As of the 2011 census, it is estimated that there are over 400 mountain gorillas in Uganda, divided into some 38 distinct social groups.  Currently Uganda has 13 habituated groups, 1 of which is reserved exclusively for scientific researchers.

Rwanda Mountain Gorillas

The 2011 census estimated the total number of mountain gorillas in the entire Virunga Massif to be 480 individuals.  Many of them often cross between country borders within the protected forests.  Currently, Rwanda has 12 habituated groups, 2 of which are reserved exclusively for scientific researchers.

DRC Mountain Gorillas

In 2012 there were 6 habituated families open for tourism.  However, the program has been closed due to violence within the region.  We hope that peace will soon return, so that this biologically important region can be protected.