Chimpanzee Tracking in Kibale National Park

Trip Start Jul 30, 2009
1
8
21
Trip End Aug 19, 2009


Loading Map
Map your own trip!
Map Options
Show trip route
Hide lines
shadow

Flag of Uganda  , Kabarole,
Thursday, August 6, 2009

What could be a day from hell turns out to be absolutely divine, thanks to the spirit of adventure and cooperation of this exceptional group. Wake-up calls are at 4:30am, breakfast at 5am, and departure at 6am. One person is dreadfully ill from something eaten the night before, but carries on admirably in spite of it all. We actually roll out before 6am, and commence the long drive back to Kampala, around that nightmarish traffic jam, and then across country to Fort Portal. The drive takes about seven hours with pee stops and photo stops. Once in Fort Portal we have another half hour to an hour to get to our lodge. But the effort pays off fabulously with arrival at the Ndali Lodge on the rim of a crater overlooking two lakes on either side of the rim. The lodge is operated by Aubrey Price from Yorkshire and his fiancée, Clare Murumba, a Ugandan woman who was raised in Australia and educated in the US, and actually worked at the Cleary Gottleib law firm in New York City at the same time as my son a few years ago Maribou Stork
Maribou Stork
 . I showed her his photo, and she recognized him immediately. The next interesting coincidence is that both Aubrey and Clare are going to attend Burning Man this year, and so is my daughter. I showed them photos of her so they would be able to recognize her at the event! What a small world – I connect with someone in Uganda who already knows one of my offspring, and is about to meet the second.

    I can't say enough about the quality of the establishment they are operating. The service is five star – from the welcome, to the meals, to the personalized wake-up service with the beverage of your choice brought to you in your room, and the complimentary laundry service! They could not improve, although they are planning to continue offering new services such as a spa and yoga center in the future. Oh, and did I mention that there is no electricity? Just one more thing that makes everything more romantic – dinner by candlelight and candles and lanterns in the rooms. Internet service is very slow, so I won’t even try to upload photos!

     After a fabulous lasagna lunch on a terrace overlooking the lake, we head to Kigale National Park to track chimpanzees. Tromping through the rainforest jungle is definitely involved, making our own paths as we follow our guides who are following the sounds of the troop which is moving through the forest Bull
Bull
 . We are fortunate to not have to search for long, as they are quite near the ranger station. They are quite habituated to human presence, so they do not run as we walk nearby. We are broken into three smaller groups with three different guides so as not to get in each other’s way, and occasionally we encounter our other groups.

     One female chimp is in estrous, and quite obviously so, and so there is much commotion as males vie for her attentions. Our guide explains that the female can reject any suitor she wants, and we see it happen as she fights off the advances of the old (40 years or so) male who is named "The President" because he is the head of this particular tribe. The brush-off is loud and intense, and takes place with such a flurry of motion that photography is impossible.

    We see several adorable babies perched on the backs of their mothers. In general, our sightings are clear to the human eye but very difficult to capture with the camera as the light in the dense forest is quite dim. Once the tribe has been contacted, we are only allowed to stay in their area for one hour before returning to the ranger station to share stories with the other groups. We also have the good fortune to be able to photograph a fairly large family of baboons on the way out of the National Park.

     Back to the fabulous lodge for an amazing 4-course dinner of pumpkin soup, locally grown “oyster” mushrooms (because they look like oysters) on toast, fish, vegetables and rice, and a crepe with honey for dessert. We hang out talking under the brilliant full moon, and all believe we have found paradise at last!
Slideshow Print this entry