Gorillas but no mist!

Going into the DRC.... The gorilla that fell on Tom's head.... Or was it this one? One rather large and chilled Silverback The gang at the equator....front row left to right....Tom, Hamish, Stefan (crouching slightly behind Fran), Grant and Anthony. Middle row is Lauren, Natalie, Anna, Michelle and Darren. At the back we have Fraser, Kate,Dave, Kate and yours truly... Baby elli feeding at the orphanage in Nairobi..... On the shores of Lake Naivasha.... A Weaver bird on Chimp Island..... A chimp on chimp island.....

23 March 2007

Not a lot achieved other than meeting the taxi driver Stu always uses from this campsite – Smiley. Aptly named as that’s pretty much all he does. Tom, Su, Dave and I spend most of the day in Nairobi’s premier shopping mall. Stock up on books etc and back to base for a chilled evening and night out to Carnivores restaurant and Florida’s dodgy nightclub if only to take Frazer…the first new arrival all the way from Aus…out on the town.

24 March 2007

Even lazier day. Watch Australia v South Africa and welcome the next new arrival Rich (Oxford). Doesn’t really matter who wins as it’s for the Commonwealth…that one went down well.

25 March 2007

More new arrivals…Anthony and Anna (Aus), Natalie (NZ), Grant (SA), Hamish and Katy (NZ) and Lauren (New York), Daren (NZ) and Stefan (Aus)…one more to come ….. another Kate who we pick up in Uganda. Spend the morning at the Elephant orphanage….all very young and lots of oohs and aahs as they are tiny. All very different to the Sri Lankan orphanage and unfortunately only allowed to stay for an hour. After that its Giraffe manor which serves as a sanctuary to the endangered Rothschild Giraffa. Get to feed and hug a giraffe with little grey pellets which they seem to love…..stop short of following the lead of the little American boy who holds the pellet in his mouth to feed the biggest and possibly grumpiest giraffe Daisy. End up covered in giraffe saliva…..nice!

Little else achieved other than a large night out with Tom, Frazer and Stu.

26 March 2007

With virtually no sleep under our belts the morning debrief and welcome for the new people presents something of a challenge but we all survive it and are ready for the off. The only problem is that our new truck has not arrived yet (it only left Capetown 5 days ago and is reported to be somewhere in Tanzania. At lunchtime we hatch a plan b and squeeze into the relatively small truck planning to meet the new larger model later in the day. We head north east and get our first view of the Rift Valley in all its glory. Utterly vast and a stunning sight with extinct volcanoes and peaks dotted on both sides of the widest valley I have ever seen (not quite Swaledale!). Next stop is Elsamere…of Born Free fame and home to Joy and George Adams (both of whom were murdered all be it at different times and by different people). Amzing place right on the shores of Lake Naivasha. Added bonus of tea and cakes and some home made desserts….first in over four months for some of us. We sit outside looking over the lake and listening to the baritone bark of the hippos hidden in the reeds below.

We camp for the evening on the shores of the lake a bit further south. A camp fire is lit and I go to disinfect my hands….unfortunately Dave has filled the disinfectant bowls with kerosene and I spend the next half hour rinsing my hands and staying clear of the fire.

It’s a fairly cold night as the last campsite made an absolute hash of washing my sleeping bag and I have a wet bag of downy balls which smells fowl not having been dried properly for three days….ordered all the way from Canada as well….still Michelle has lent me a blanket so I can withstand the worst of the night.

27 March 2007

We wake to find the new truck has arrived and it looks far too clean and new to be ours. It’s a bit like waking up on Xmas morning and opening a present that you are sure its not yours. The doors and windows lock and keep water out (well almost). The stereo system works and the seats are secure….the whole thing is pristine and ready for use. Jason is our new driver (from near Bury St Edmunds). Very laid back and easy going chap. We leave him to sleep and head off to the Lake Navaisha park for a game walk. Now the thing about game walks is that most animals see us coming a mile off and scarper but this place is a little different and we spend the morning walking within 15 yards of Zebra, Giraffe, Waterbuck and Impala. Plenty of birdlife to boot and the sun is shining so not a lot wrong with the world.

We drive back to the camp to pick up our stuff and say goodbye to Peter (our driver for Ethiopia and Northern Kenya). We then head North East to our camp on the shores of Lake Nakuru. Unfortunately it is raining on the way but we still get glimpses of the various soda lakes and the thousands of flamingo that inhabit them.

28 March 2007

Up early and a drive through the Rift Valley hills and on to Eldoret (for lunch) and Turbo for the evening (only other stop on the way was to move a tortoise from the middle of the road).

29 March 2007

Another day another country. A very easy border crossing and we are into Uganda. A day of driving but obvious highlights are the overturned petrol tanker which has hundreds of locals armed with every container they can find stocking up on free petrol. Unfortunately the free fuel does not last for long as the police turn up and do not hold back beating the crowds back with long sticks. Lauren (somewhat unfairly)

comes in for some stick as the token American. At one point we spot an American flag with almost one hundred stars on it…..we double check the number of states which is confirmed but Lauren. Rich suggests that the extras represent the other unofficial states…Iraq, Afghanistan, Guam, Guantanamo etc etc…..could be a long two weeks for Lauren bless but she takes it in her stride and in very good humour. After stopping in Kampala (pop. 1.2 million) and a very clean city by African standards we head for camp in Entebbe famous for the ‘raid’ and right on the shore of Lake Victoria (the second biggest freshwater Lake in the world after Superior). Quiet night although Dave is a little upset when the barmaid tells him he should not be drinking any more beer. Dave asks why and she tells him he his too fat already…definitely a case of Pots and Kettles but Dave takes it with the usual hearty laugh and a little flirting.

30 March 2007

Wake to the unusual sound of rain falling on the tent. Breakfast is under the shelter ot a corner of the bar/lodge. A short drive to the zoo that sits on the side of Lake Victoria. It feels slightly perverse visiting a zoo in Africa when there is so much wildlife roaming free but hyenas are as cool as ever and the shoebill is a remarkable bird the like of which I have never seen before. Dodo like but slightly more common.

Next comes the hour and a half trip across the lake to Ngamba island (23 km) also known as chimp island, a sanctuary for orphan/rescued chimpanzees, one of the five species of ape on the planet (humans, bonobos, orang-utans and gorillas – bonus points if you knew all 5…fat chance!) Meanwhile….the island is split in two, half is dense forest for the chimps to chill in the other half is the sanctuary (made up of quarantine compounds, an area for the chimps to sleep in and vet quarters etc. Unfortunately there is not enough food in the forest area to support 40 plus hungry chimps so they are fed 3 times a day by their diligent carers – the bonus of this is that we get to watch, The chimps must have a watch somewhere as the arrive on the dot for a diet of fruit scrambling around and fighting for the juicy morsels that are thrown their way. The noise, interaction, and social hierarchy are fascinating to watch.

An hour and a half back on the boat and we head off into Kampala for the night and an evening out in Bubbles as local bar that is far too full of westerners to feel like Uganda.

31 March 2007

Up early and a long drive west to Lake Banyonyi. A false start as Fraser has left his passport in the shower (the previous day it was his wallet!!)…an hour later we are leaving the campsite for the second time and back on the road with a very apologetic young Australian (if you know him imagine a tall Martin Clapp and you can picture Fraser…top bloke).

A stop in Kabale for provisions and then a bumpy and fairly hairy drive along a steep mountainous dirt track to a stunning Lakeside camp.

1 April 2007

A leisurely morning followed by a bumpy ride in a Matatu (African hi-ace minibus taxi….the backbone of the African transport system). Over 2 hours to cover 40km skirting round the Lake (the deepest or second deepest in Africa depending on who you talk to) towards the border with the not so Democratic Republic of Congo (formerly Zaire) and Rwanda.

I have the bright idea of getting my hair cut in a border town and go to the luxury ‘salon’ where the barber’s English is on a par with my Lugandan…. The result is a rather scary grade 2 all over….the look of an out of condition aging Marine is not one I would normally choose but what the hell….

I eventually track down the rest of the team who have found a local bar with a free appetizer (not sue that word applies in this case) of cows stomach wrapped in intestine. For some reason this becomes a challenge for all to face although I decline having already tried goat’s intestine in Samburu….not to be recommended.

At the campsite chicken and chips awaits after some dancing by the local kids from the aids orphanage. Extremely enthusiastic but not sure that they learnt anything by getting us all up to dance but laughed themselves senseless at our rather weak attempts to join in.

2 April 2007

Utterly superb day and one that will remain in the memory jar for years to come!! We leave at 6 in the morning and cross into the DRC (one of the more unstable countries in the world thanks largely to the Belgians and good old King Leopold) where we transfer into another matatu and battered landcruiser for the climb out of Bunagana into Virunga National Park and the jungle/forest that is home to the carefully guarded Mountain Gorillas. An impressive backdrop of three volcanoes (not all of which are dormant) and we start our trek to find some of the 600 mountain gorillas that still exist in the wild. Our tracker John (good strong name) leads us through dense forest following the route to where the gorillas were seen the day before. At 6000 feet the air is thin and relatively cool but the sun is still strong warming our backs as we walk at a brisk pace for two and a half hours in search of these very elusive primates.

The sense of anticipation is incredible as we move away from the tight path and start to push through even denser forest. We come to a halt and put our bags down all knowing the gorillas must be close but suspecting that we are still 200 yards or so away. John turns and hacks at the nearby bush with his machete and reveals s mother and two baby gorillas less than 4 feet away. We sit and watch these three for a few minutes before pushing past them to see a giant 25 stone plus Silverback and a few females lounging in the dense undergrowth. As we approach to within 8 feet Tom gets the shock of his life as a small, baby faced gorilla falls out of the tree landing on his head and then crashing to the ground. At this stage we have no idea how the rest of the hairy group will react to this so we are all (and especially Tom) suitably nervous. In the end the baby gorilla (estimated to be about 2 years old) just lies there looking up at Tom with the face of a child that has done something wrong and been caught at it. None of the rest of the group react and we sit watching 8 or 9 gorillas for the next half hour. It is difficult to describe how you feel when you are inches from these amazing animals but we sit in awe with gorillas in front and behind us while two of the younger ones play in the trees two or three feet above us. The general rule when you visit the gorillas is that you should stay 7 metres away at all times. Unfortunately nobody seemed to have told the gorillas or our guides this and on numerous occasions the group approach us with the juveniles regularly sitting inches away, watching intently and reaching out to touch us while we change lenses and rattle off photos. A baby gorilla reaching out and poking you arm is an experience I will never ever forget and it brings a huge smile to my face just writing about it. The hour we are allowed to spend with them is over far too quickly and we beat a retreat to have lunch in a clearing and check our photos. Tom and I have made as bag of tuna, mayo and sweetcorn sandwiches which have turned into a soggy pulp but little matters as we all sit grinning madly. The walk back to the vehicles takes nearly two hours but is a small price to pay for the experience. At the van we meet up with the other group who chose a shorter walk….they saw fewer gorillas but had a fairly scary encounter with a silverback who pushed towards them. Anna and Katy were thrown out of the way by a tracker and a prostrate Anna lay in the undergrowth looking up nervously as the giant beast went to sit down on her. Luckily he changed his mind pottering off into the forest. Anna still looked a little stunned by the episode some 2 hours later.

We drive back to the border and clear through customs very easily before a long drive back to the campsite at Lake Banyonyi where Dave and Jason await. Dave, being the star he is has made chilli and potatoes with a side salad containing the most evil of chillies. This is devoured and we all crash to our tents.

3 April 2007

Back on the road by 7 in the morning cutting through the mist and heading back to Kampala. Two stops….one to replace a shredded back tyre and another at the equator for photos and lunch. We make good time and get to Kampala around 4 in the afternoon staying at the same campsite as last time we were here. Another night out where we gate crash a party of locals (suspect it was a bachelor party) and are greeted heartily.

4 April 2007

Ah the benefits of rehydration salts. Not sure I can continue living life at this sort of pace…’it’s a young man’s game’ etc etc….. A bus journey to Jinja and the source of the White Nile. We sit in the bar getting our briefing for a day’s whitewater rafting on one of the toughest stretches of river in the world. In the water we practice flipping and righting the raft under the careful watch of Chloe, our Aussie instructor. The first rapid is not too bad but the next two are utterly savage. Being at the front I am greeted by a white wall of swirling water which flips the whole raft up into the air. It is like being in a washing machine as we are spun underwater popping up for a gulp of air before someone climbs over me sending me back under for a few seconds more and a healthy mouthful of Nile water. We are turned a second time and the coughing and retching is almost as bad…..a hair raising experience but fantastic all the same. Plenty more rapids follow one of which involves a 16ft water fall to avoid the grade 6 ‘Dead Dutchman’ so named as the last man to try it in a kayak did not come out of the other end…..swimming in clogs is always tricky! The last of the day is called ‘the bad place’ and we have to walk round the start of the rapid which is the most amazing, vast torrent of whirling white water I have ever seen. We all look more than a little anxious as we step back into the raft to tackle the latter part of it. Remarkably all three of the rafts get through without flipping and with adrenaline pumping furiously we head back to the bus for a few beers and lots of chatter on the way back to camp. We celebrate Natalie’s birthday a day early (the suggestion being that it’s already the 5th of April in New Zealand……