The great volcanic massif of the Virunga Mountains straddles the borders of Rwanda, Uganda and the DRC, covering a huge area of over 8,000km², and encompassing six active and three extinct volcanoes. Much of this is protected by national parks, including the Volcanoes National Park (Parc National des Volcans) on the Rwanda side, which was made famous by Dian Fossey's work, and the film Gorillas in the Mist. More than half of the world's last mountain gorillas live here – about 350 of them – and at present it's probably the best place in Africa to see them.

Even without the gorillas, this park would be fascinating. Its altitude ranges from about 2,500m to the peak of Karisimbi, at 4,500m, resulting in extensive bamboo forests, and some of the last remaining afro-montane forest habitat on the planet.

Quite apart from the mountain gorillas, it harbours a spectacular array of rare and endangered animals and plants. There is a variety of other primates, including the endemic golden monkeys, plus forest elephants, buffalo, giant forest hogs (Africa's largest swine), bushpigs, bushbucks, black-fronted duikers, spotted hyenas, and around 200 species of birds. On the higher slopes you'll find an almost otherworldly habitat of thick moors with endemic giant lobelia and groundsel.

Accommodation near the park is in the simple Mountain Gorilla's Nest, the basic Kinigi Guesthouse, or the more upmarket eco-lodge Virunga Lodge, which opened in 2004.

Watch this space as a new lodge, Sabyinyo Silverback Lodge, plans to open in this area in 2007, as a sistercamp to the well-known Governors' Camp in Kenya's Maasai Mara Game Reserve. It's expected to have six cottages and two suites, and is likely to be the area's most comfortable lodge.

Gorilla Trips

Trips to the gorillas are well-organised and clearly structured, with numbers limited to eight people per group per day. Four groups of gorillas are currently habituated, so a maximum of 32 permits is available each day. Permits cost US$375 per person per visit, which may seem a lot but don't begrudge it; this money provides Rwanda with a compelling economic reason to conserve the park and, amongst other things, pays for a 24-hour guard for each gorilla group. (Armed teams constantly track each habituated group – like royal bodyguards in the UK!)

You set off early in the morning from the edge of the forest. After a safety and gorilla-etiquette briefing, you're led in a small group along clear paths up into the forest. The altitude is over 2,500m, so although the pace is unhurried the hike is tiring, taking from 30 minutes to a few hours. Your English-speaking guides are very good, and will be taking you to a specific group of 'habituated' gorillas, which they know well and are used to human visitors.

Most people are a little apprehensive – a large silverback male can weigh up to 200kg, or three times the weight of the average man – but this soon vanishes when you see the group. Often the gorillas will be spread around a small area of dense vegetation. They'll continue with their feeding and interactions, nonchalant about their visitors, though watching you with interest. Occasionally one, often a playful youngster, will approach you with curiosity – sometimes coming so close that you'll have to move away. (You're not allowed closer than 7m, to protect the gorillas from catching human diseases.)

Look into the eyes of a large silverback and he'll stare back. It's a thinking, intelligent gaze, mindful that you're another individual. It's an encounter that transcends any other 'wildlife' experience that we know.

Gorilla groups
The groups and their locations will obviously vary; gorillas often climb higher in the dry season and descend during the rains. It's possible to request to visit a specific group, but this can never be guaranteed. Currently the four accessible groups are:

The Sabinyo Group has about nine individuals, including two silverbacks, and is usually found relatively close to the edge of the forest (about 20–40-minutes' walk), between Sabinyo and Gahinga.

Group Thirteen lives close to the Sabinyo Group and is also a fairly easy walk. It's has nineteen individuals, and the silverback here is usually particularly relaxed.

The Amahoro Group, living between the Karisoke and Visoke peaks, has about 18 individuals, sometimes split into two sub-groups. It's usually further away than the Sabinyo and Thirteen, but easier to reach than Susa.

The Susa Group is the largest, with about 35 individuals, and also the highest, on the slopes of Mount Karisoke. It can easily take 2–3 hours' hard hike to reach them. This is the group originally studied by Dian Fossey, and now has three silverbacks.

Other Trips in the Park

Before visiting the gorillas, a guided hike up into the mountains for a day is good for acclimatisation... It also allows you to spend more time looking at the other wildlife in forest, and getting a better understanding of the overall ecosystem. A more gentle option is a guided trip to a troupe of habituated golden monkeys, which tend to inhabit the bamboo forests, on the lower slopes. You won't normally get as near to the monkeys as you would to the gorillas, but the environment is interesting and with patience you'll still get quite close.

It is also possible to do a day hike up Volcan Bisoke (which has a beautiful crater lake at the top) and to hike to the grave of Dian Fossey.


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