Don’t cancel your lifetime
dream of visiting gorillas in Africa simply because of a disability. Your dream
is very possible and can meet the gentle giants in Uganda, Rwanda and DRC.
There a few tips
you need to know while planning to go for your gorilla safari adventure
including;
Its always and added advantage to book your gorilla permit months before you go for your safari to visit the gorillas. If you have booked through a
local tour operator, make sure, they send you a scan copy of your gorilla
permit to be sure its been purchased. Although some travelers testify to have
successfully bought permits the day before gorilla tracking, that’s very
unreliable.
For Physical ability Prior to the trek
Inform your guide
of any physical disabilities before you book your trip. Be very specific with
your tour operator and make sure all answers given and the way your trip is to
be conducted suites your health abilities. Always guides are very supportive
and reassuring as well as helpful.
Notify your guide
at the pickup point from the airport, though most time he will have been
informed by his manager.
At the point of
gorilla trekking, your guide will notify the park wardens in charge about your
difficulty so that you are assigned to an easier group. Alternatives if you
would prefer a tough trek so as too meet gorillas at a higher altitude, you can
hire porters to carry you and your backpack up the terrain, some people need
stretchers.
The Actual Trek
During your gorilla tour, porters will assist
you as requested during the trek but go out of their way to help you through
the dense vegetation. The porters can carry you, or keep to your sides making
it easy for you to move and keep up the pace with your group. At the start the
hike is okay but gets steep as you fight through the plants and the wet mud.
The park rangers guiding the trek will often time stop for a regular break to
catch your breath and relax a bit.
The gorillas:
Finally meeting the gorillas is actually more remarkable than imagined before. We visited the Titus group consisting of 12 members in which 2 or 3 were silverbacks, a few females, a 3 year old, a 3 month old and some other young ones that were off exploring the forest. You spend an hour with them and as much as it would have been magical for the 3 year old to have made it all the way to where I was sitting, the guides had to pull me away. This is understandable so that the gorillas don't get infected with human illnesses.
Tip on Things to take:
- Pack garden gloves very helpful so pack a pair
- Buy trekking shoes which provide great ankle support (the ones that come above the ankle bone)
- Carry a bottle of Water
- Snacks (we started at 9am and finished at 5pm due to the type of group we were in)
- If you get tired quickly, take sugar or glucose loaded snacks/drinks. Some people usually need that to have enough energy
- Take something if you get sick easily by altitude (the easy trek isn't too bad but some people need to rest and catch their breath)
- Long sleeve rain jackets and warm clothes of course
- Thick pants that are easy to tuck into your socks (you wouldn't want mud going upto your shoes.
- Beanie if you like (mine came in handy for the colder parts)
- Walking sticks are provided at the station
- Of course cameras! We had a DSLR with an 18-200 and another with a 70-300mm lens. Both were handy. Zoom lens are a plus IF you don't get too close to them.
- Light day pack even though the porters can carry them for you
- Like many other have mentioned here, it's actually helping the locals to higher porters. They go out of their way to assist you during trek, as well the small tip given to them feeds their families
You even get a certificate of appreciation for completing the trek
The gorillas:
Finally meeting the gorillas is actually more remarkable than imagined before. We visited the Titus group consisting of 12 members in which 2 or 3 were silverbacks, a few females, a 3 year old, a 3 month old and some other young ones that were off exploring the forest. You spend an hour with them and as much as it would have been magical for the 3 year old to have made it all the way to where I was sitting, the guides had to pull me away. This is understandable so that the gorillas don't get infected with human illnesses.
Tip on Things to take:
- Pack garden gloves very helpful so pack a pair
- Buy trekking shoes which provide great ankle support (the ones that come above the ankle bone)
- Carry a bottle of Water
- Snacks (we started at 9am and finished at 5pm due to the type of group we were in)
- If you get tired quickly, take sugar or glucose loaded snacks/drinks. Some people usually need that to have enough energy
- Take something if you get sick easily by altitude (the easy trek isn't too bad but some people need to rest and catch their breath)
- Long sleeve rain jackets and warm clothes of course
- Thick pants that are easy to tuck into your socks (you wouldn't want mud going upto your shoes.
- Beanie if you like (mine came in handy for the colder parts)
- Walking sticks are provided at the station
- Of course cameras! We had a DSLR with an 18-200 and another with a 70-300mm lens. Both were handy. Zoom lens are a plus IF you don't get too close to them.
- Light day pack even though the porters can carry them for you
- Like many other have mentioned here, it's actually helping the locals to higher porters. They go out of their way to assist you during trek, as well the small tip given to them feeds their families
You even get a certificate of appreciation for completing the trek
