Gorillas In The Mist

On the trip of a lifetime, Judy Bailey treks into mountain forest in Uganda to meet some of its most remarkable inhabitants - mountain gorillas.

- Judy Bailey

A woman toting an AK47 leads us single file into Uganda’s Impenetrable Forest. A man similarly equipped follows at the tail end of our group.

No, we haven’t been kidnapped by armed rebels. We are, in fact, embarking on the adventure of a lifetime. We’re on our way to visit a family of endangered mountain gorillas in their natural habitat.

“What are the armed guards for?” we ask. Our guide, Boaz, explains that elephants roam the jungle and some can be aggressive if they’re caught unawares. The guns are for shooting into the air to scare them off if they look like charging.

“And what happens if a 180kg silverback gorilla happens to take exception to us?”

“Don’t run,” Boaz says firmly. “If he beats his chest, don’t beat yours. Be submissive, crouch down, eyes downcast and wait.”

Uganda is one of Africa’s lesser known treasures. It has a dark past, known by those of my generation for the atrocities committed by its former dictator, Idi Amin, and for the daring raid by Israeli commandos on its airport at Entebbe in 1976, as they swooped in to save a group held hostage by Palestinian terrorists, supported by Amin.

Amin’s ruthless, eight-year regime left his country in tatters. Uganda is still troubled by political unrest but it is in the midst of an economic recovery, and much of that recovery is driven by tourism, for Uganda is one of very few places in the world where you are able to see the remarkable mountain gorillas in their natural environment.

ANCIENT FOREST