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Rwanda

Wild Chimpanzee alongside the highway

A young boy alongside the road

Looks like serious business

Ruhengeri is a city in northwest Rwanda. It's the gateway to Volcanoes National Park, home to mountain gorillas and golden monkeys. The park encompasses the soaring Mount Karisimbi and 4 other forested volcanoes.

Kids love to wave at vehicles passing

Our welcome at the Ingagi Park View lodge in Kinigi, Rwanda

Great dancing and music from the area.

Monument of Volcano National Park

Volcanoes National Park is a national park in northwestern Rwanda. It covers 62 square miles of rain forest and encompasses five of the eight volcanoes in the Virunga Mountains. It is home to the mountain gorilla and the golden monkey, That is where we are climbing today to the top areas.

A group of Porters waiting to be assigned to climbers. Each person is assigned a Porter from this elevation around 4,000 feet climbing to 7,000 feet. From 7,000 each person is assssigned a Trekker with one hand on your hand and the other with a Machete in hand to clear the underbrush and lead you to the gorillas. at around 10,000 foot elevation.

This is the Volcano that you cimb. First walking through fertile farm fields. Then the ascent starts. The volcano is shared by the Congo, Rwanda and Uganda.

At first I did not think we really needed the Porters. Having rained the night before and mud about a foot deep in many locations hiking up the volcano I was very glad to have the help. .

Each group was made up of 8 climbers The porters assisted us half way up the Volcano. We were then turned over to the 8 Trekkers to find the Gorilla Family in the dense follage of the volcano mountain.. The cost, per one day, when I booked the trip was approximately $700 a person for the trip with no guarantee you will see any Gorillas. The cost one year later is now $1,700 per person. Before climbing the volcano we walk through the fields, for 45 minutes, where workers are tending to the crops in the fields.

The park later became the base for the American naturalist Dian Fossey to carry out her research into the gorillas. She arrived in 1967

We stop for a break before beginning the climb.

Clearing the fields is all done by these women, barefoot and by hand. No tractors or machines.

The Trekker and myself were in the lead position in our group sighting a young gorilla Juvenile within a couple of feet where were standing.me.

The first sighting of the oldest male Silver back in this familyh. He is the leader of this family of 18 members we were told. A male gorilla is called a Silver back .if it is 12 years old or more. It turns silver with age. Those referred to as black back are males less than 12 years old.

Gorillas are very selective foragers. They usually only eat parts of vegetation. For example they may eat only the leaves, pith, stalk, or roots of a particular plant. They use their agile lips and hand dexterity to manipulate the vegetation for the particular portion they want to consume.

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