Category: Kylan Falk

Gorilla trekking is something I have always wanted to do and today was the day. I started with a Ugandan coffee, watching the sun come up prior to breakfast. After, we would walk to the park gate to be assigned a gorilla group or family. I was assigned the Rushegura Group which consisted of 16 members plus 3 little ones. The trek started out easy for the first hour and then we turned into the think jungle of the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest. Our Guide would be in contact with the trackers as they were sent ahead to track the gorillas and communicate back to the ranger for us to find them. We trekked for another hour before getting the sign from our ranger that we were close. Walking down a steep hill, we saw a female and her little one under the tree. After snapping several photos, the guide shouted for us to follow him to even more gorillas. I stayed back as I had a feeling this mother and her little one were going to do something exciting. Eventually they got up and walked right by me with the little one doing a somersault down the hill. As they left I started walking to catch up to the group but looked up to see the “Black Back” which is the male, second in command. I started taking photos and saw him start moving towards me. I stood still, petrified, not knowing what he was going to do. He came closer at a good speed and as he trekked by, he threw his butt into me as if he were body checking me. I was thrown into the bush and the gorilla continued on to the rest of his family. I was fine and brushed myself off before catching up to the rest of my group.

Here we were lucky enough to see the baby gorillas who were very playful. They were wrestling around and pounding on their chests which made for a great time. Near the end, 3 of the babies got curious and started approaching one of the guests. It started curiously with a little lick and a one finger poke. The other babies saw this and decided to wrestle right in front of us, which I related to wrestling with my brother when I was boy. We would end our time with the guide saying “believe it or not the hour is up”. It was one of the quickest hours I have ever enjoyed and can suggest this experience to everyone!

I started the day with a 5:30am wakeup call as I was ready and excited to go trekking with chimps today. At the park gate of Kibale National Park, I was assigned to a ranger who would assist the group during the trek. The Kibale National Park known as one of best places to see primates, is 795 square km with several species of primates including over 450 chimps. There are a total of 3 chimp communities that are habituated here but only one is used for tourism. Each community consists of roughly 120 chimps.

After about 45 mins of trekking into the forest, we heard this drum like sound and then distinctive call of the chimps. Our guide told us that males will drum on tree roots, which stand 4 -5 tall and 3 feet wide, to show their dominance. As we got closer to the sound, we could see them high up in the trees. After several minutes of watching, a couple of them decided to come down the tree and the trekking part of the day was on. We followed our guide through think forest trying to keep up with the chimps. Eventually we followed the chimps to a much bigger group where some were feeding in the trees and others were grooming each other. We would spend an hour with the chimps watching them as they went along with their day as if we weren’t even there. Seeing the little ones playing in the tree was my favorite part of the experience but all of it was an adventure. After the trek, I would return to the lodge were I had some time to enjoy the beautiful surroundings. Tomorrow, I fly to Bwindi where I will be trekking with the Gorillas, something I have been wanting to do for a long time.

Today I say good bye to Zanzibar and my driver Michano. On route to the airport, we made a quick stop at our operators’ office to meet all their staff, its always nice to put a face to the name. After a quick visit I was off to the airport for my flight to Entebbe. On arrival, I waited in line patiently as there were few boarder officials to issue visas, the other 6 or 7 agents were watching a soccer match very intensely in the back room. Once through customs, I was greeted by Ya-Ha-Ya, a driver from our local operations who transferred me to the Boma Hotel, with its comfortable country feel.

My time here was short as we left at 6am for my flight to Kasese, where you can go chimpanzee trekking. The flight was very scenic as I flew over Lake Victoria, one of the world’s largest lakes, and mountainous areas covered by lush forest. Closer to Bwindi, you could see the mountains and hills cultivated for farming: mainly corn, coffee, bananas and cotton. Upon landing I met my guide Nelson, who would be with me for the next couple of days. We drove through several smalls towns along the way to Adali Lodge near the Kibale Forest. The drive to was very scenic as we passed through the many villages and farms. One of the cool things I saw was their cows, which have enormous horns. The lodge itself is set on a hill with views of a beautiful lake on one side and the working farm on the other where they produce coffee and cocoa for chocolate. The food here is spectacular and the people are so welcoming. This afternoon, I’ll enjoy the property as I await tomorrow’s chimpanzee trekking so stay tuned!

During my stay I visited the Kyainga Lodge,  another lodge in the area, which was just as nice and set up on a hill looking onto the Ugandan mountains. The owner Steve, originally from the UK, invited me for a sundowner drink where we enjoyed a stunning African sunset. After the sun had gone down, he invited me to the local golf club to meet a few of his friends and see the club (one of the oldest in Uganda). We had dinner at the club and I had a very tasty local chicken stew with fries, which only cost 6000 Ugandan Shilling, about $2 CAD.

My last day on Zanzibar included some down time after seeing and inspecting 21 different hotels in the past 6 days. It was a beautiful day to relax by the pool and enjoy the sun. I would spend my last night in Stone Town, where I made one final stop at the African House Hotel, known for having the best spot to catch the sunset and enjoy sundowners. As the sun was setting in the distance 4 or 5 dolphins came in the bay and performed for us…jumping several times right in front of the hotel. After a beautiful sunset, I went for dinner at this new restaurant, set right on the beach. They had fabulous thin crust pizza and ice-cold beer, a great end to my last night in Zanzibar.