The Impenetrable Forest and Gorillas

 

 

 Friday, Saturday and Sunday, the local couples with President and Sister Chatfield traveled 12 hours from Kampala to the southwest corner of Uganda to the Impenetrable Forest to see the mountain gorillas.(Not sure why they call it a forest as it is really a jungle.)  April/May and November are the off season prices because it is the "rainy" season so we were able to get tickets to the park at a discount.  Elder Wallace was able to take 6 couples in the mission van so we shared the gas and treats.  It was really fun.  The President decided at the last minute to take his SUV so Elder and Sister Squire rode with them.  It was perfect as we could all spread out and enjoy the ride.  The ride for the first part was excellent but as we got near the forest the roads continued to deteriorate and became almost intolerable for those in the back of the van. We made it in about 12 hours.  The Engagi Resort Lodge was delightful and we had a wonderful dinner and a great night's sleep.  We were up at 6:00 AM and off on the trek by 9:00 after getting our instructions.  Susan and 3 others of the group went trekking to a family of gorillas closer to the lodge, where as the 6 in my group went on an 8 hour trek to a different gorilla family. Both of us had a delightful time and both of us shared our pictures on the blog. We returned to the lodge, had a shower and headed for home. The gorillas were amazing and an experience of a lifetime! One we would never have taken without Elder and Sister Wallace's encouragement.  They had been there a month ago and loved it.  While we saw the gorillas the Wallace's climbed a mountain and visited a pigmy village. 

So, the first pictures were taken by Susan.  (She had a new little camera and was just getting use to it.)  When you trek you are led in by a guide and an armed policeman because there are forest elephants that are not friendly to people but are very afraid of gunshots and will run the other direction.  Sue's group hiked for about 30 minutes through a beautiful jungle...most of the way on trails.  There are 3 families of gorillas in this southwest area of the park.  They each have their own territory and do not cross into another family's area.  After about 30 minutes they reached the trackers who have gone ahead and spotted the gorilla family.  From there the trackers lead the group and you are advised to always remain behind a tracker.  You are also only allowed to observe the gorillas for 60 minutes and you are told to remain at least 7 meters from them.  If you have to cough or sneeze you have to turn away from the gorillas as they try and protect them from human diseases.  My group drove for 1 1/2 hours, trekked for 2 1/2 hours, met the trackers and were able to observe the gorillas for about 30 minutes before they moved away.  

 

The family Sue observed had 9 members and 1 new baby.  The leader is always a male and is a silverback.  At the age of about 13 they develop a wide silver strip of hair across their back and are known as a silverback.  This was the silverback Sue observed

 A gorilla usually lives about 50 years.  As he ages he may lose his leadership spot in the family, but he can remain with the group if he can keep up and has a good relationship with the new silverback. 

Gorillas are mostly herbivores but do also eat ants.

They are really fun animals to observe because they have lots of expressions.

This one was eating leaves and thoroughly enjoying himself. 

 

This one looks frightening but was just eating.  They are very curious animals.

The group followed the family into a meadow of waist high foliage.  The gorillas sat down and started eating.  The group soon realized they were entirely surrounded by the family all enjoying the thick foliage. 

The trackers have given all the family members names and they all have identifying characteristics so they can tell them apart.

  

This was a special find to see this baby with its mother.  The guide said the baby was about 4 months old.  They are no bigger than a human baby when born.

 Here baby was checking out Mom's head.  This baby was still nursing and at one point the mother laid down and nursed him.

 

 The tracker was good to clear away some of the foliage so Sue could get close to get a photo.  

  

 This photo was taken when the family was climbing down from a huge fig tree where they eaten breakfast.

 



More climbing down...

Good picture of how thick the foliage was.

The trackers and guide would use machetes to clear the path for the group and to clear the view so good photos could be taken.

The guide made a growly purring sound and the gorillas answered back with the same sound.

It was the guide's way of finding out if the gorillas are OK with humans being there and observing.  

This is the last of Sue's photos and the gorilla family she observed. 

 

 

Now Ray's photos... 

Some of the village children in the mountains as we entered the Impenetrable Forest -- the home of this family of gorillas.

 

This baby was one of three in this family of 12.  There were 12 more in this group that had split away and live near by.  We were told they come together for a reunion once a year.   

 

This mother is so patient with this baby who was all over her.

 

This male is not the silverback but is next in line.

This family stuck close together and watched us as we watched them.

 

This little guy was all over this big male who was so gentle and kind.

More play time 

I am just sure the two are laughing and playing.

The male sits up and seems ready to move on.

  

The silverback cleaning one of his mates 

 

  

 

The CRANE is the National Bird of Uganda and is on the national red, black, and yellow flag.  I had never seen one and had to blow this photo up to get this one.  You probably can't see it but it has a yellow crown on its head. 

 

I was able to catch a photo of this beautiful bird outside our hotel room on the way to Masaka for Church on Sunday.

 

On our way out of the of the forest we ran into some incredible bad roads, with a washed out bridge,   some major contraction and a 50 km patch of road that had humongous pot holes.  It took us 8 hours to travel what should have been a 100 km ride and taken a third of that time.  The hotel we stayed at on the way home was probably built during the 50's and would have been spectacular; but in 2014, it was a dive.  It happened to be the only one within a 2 hour drive and it was 1:00 AM.  We were glad to get it.  The next morning we woke up to shower and get ready to attend church in Masaka...two hours down the road... and this was what greeted us.  Needless to say a bottle of 

purified water is what we shared to take care of our hygiene needs for the day. 

That's Africa Baby... and we love it.   

 

 

Bududa School near Mt. Elgon, Eastern Uganda

 

 

This week we had the opportunity to travel from Kampala to Eastern Uganda to the little mountain villages near the Kenya Border on the slopes of Mt. Elgon near Mbale.  We traveled with the Hannans (the Humanitarian couple) and two women from the Church, Olivia and Annette,( I couldn't spell their last names) who teach girls ages 10-16 about maturation and hygiene.  These girls get no training from their parents on these topics and about 25% end up pregnant between ages 15-19.  Because the people in these mountain villages are very poor, they cannot buy disposable sanitary supplies for the girls to use, so this humanitarian project involves supplying sewing machines, terry cloth fabric, flannel, and cotton fabric so the girls can be taught to sew reusable/ washable sanitary pads, a pad holder with Velcro for their panties, and a bag with two pockets:  one pocket for a clean pad and one pocket for the soiled pad.  The head masters in the schools often request this project as the girls stay home from school when having their period and so missing a week every month puts them behind and many drop out of school.  The hope is that this project can help eliminate them having to miss school.  It is a worthwhile and needed project but getting into this village was very difficult as the roads were almost impassable.  This is a village that was almost destroyed by a mudslide in 2010.  The people have dealt with slides and weather related events for many years but love living here because the land is so fertile they can virtually grow anything  and really do not need a lot of support from outside sources.  Because it is a very poor area, most of these girls have very little and will probably never leave. 

Anyway, I was so impressed with the students we met.  They were very welcoming and I have taken a lot of pictures that will tell a lot more than anything I can say, so enjoy.

 

 

 The road was rough and hard on the trucks.  It was washed out in a couple of places as we made our way in.

 

We followed the Hannans and you can see the road goes on forever.  It was about 40km from Mbale, the closest town of any size.

Matooke ( green bananas they steam) are a staple and these men push these bikes loaded with 200-300 lbs. of bananas from the village in to Mbale.  They make maybe the equivalent of $2.00.    

Beautiful country with banana trees and gardens, and fields of produce near the villages.

When we arrived at the school the kindergarten sang us a song of welcome.  They came racing out to the edge of the school property and were all smiles as they sang.

 

 

I just love the kids and they love their picture to be taken as long as you show them the picture.

 

The school

The school with the mountains in the background.

Elder Hannan walking with the girls to the classroom.

The kindergarten kids were not in uniforms, but the primary and secondary school kids always wear uniforms.

 

 

This was a small room with 312 girls and teachers.  It started to get extremely hot in this room and the girls were jammed in tight.

 

Elder and Sister Hannan are from Palmyra, NY and have a very busy mission doing a lot for this country.

Five different schools attended this Handover and each school had a different uniform.

  

 

This is Annette, one of out trainers.  This school had prayer and the national anthem to start the program so they are a little behind liberal America.  

Olivia demonstrating to the school officials and students how to make the pads.

More demonstrations.  Following the Handover, Olivia and Annette remained in the area so they can travel to the various schools, make sure the machines are set up, and give instructions to the girls, their mothers, and the teachers on how to sew the pads and bags to carry them in.  Since there is no electricity in this area, the machines are all treadle machines.  

I could have taken this little girl home.  She was so cute.

 

 

Beautiful girls

 

 

This perky girl had mischief in her eyes.  

 

I just could not pass this girl up.  What a natural beauty.  Do you think I miss my grand daughters? 

 I do.

 

One of the older girls

 

 

I just thought this girl had a mature way about her and I love the girls in the background.

 

This girl was so sweet to me as I passed, I just had to take her picture.  It is a rule in the schools that boys and girls shave their heads, so you never see a student with long hair.

 

I was pulling a face, trying to get these girls to smile.  I just love this picture.

 

This picture could tell several stories...either the family has no childcare for this baby so the sister has to take her/him to school, but more likely, this is her baby and she had no choice in the matter.  

 

The girls watching us unload the trucks.

 

Lots of girls

 

 

The village of Bududa

 

The storm clouds gathered as we left the village; Sue grabbed this shot.

 

I am not sure if this is a joke or not.  This very well could be a place for people to spend the night.  The poor stay in places less spectacular than the Hilton.