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The exhilarating climb to the gorillas natural habitat of shady
bamboo forest offers fantastic views in all directions, before the
trackers are immersed in the mysterious intimacy of the
rainforest, alive with the calls of colourful birds and the
chattering of rare golden monkeys. Nothing can prepare one for the
impact of encountering a fully grown silverback gorilla, up to
three times the size of an average man, yet remarkably peaceable
and tolerant of human visitors.
Parc National des Volcans is managed and protected by the Rwandan
Office for Tourism and National Parks (ORTPN). Access begins in
the lively town of Ruhengeri, situated at the base of the entrance
of the park. Ruhengeri has long been the base point for gorilla
visits and entertains a stunning backdrop of Karisimbi, Visoke,
Mikeno, Sabyinyo, Gahinga and Muhabura volcanoes.
One of the main differences between Gorilla trekking in Rwanda
compared to Uganda is the larger group sizes of the trekking
parties. In Uganda at present there are only six tourists allowed
to trek with each Gorilla group, whereas in Rwanda that number is
eight. Obviously your gut feeling would be that the smaller the
group the better, not just for you personally but also the
Gorillas. However from my experience a lot depends on the group
dynamics and the individual behaviour of clients within that
group. You can sometimes have a larger group where the tourists
are very considerate of each others experience and their behaviour
in the presence of the Gorillas is impeccable.
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