Uganda

Why go: Certainly one of solely three international locations on the planet the place you’ll be able to trek to see mountain gorillas within the wild (there are only one,000 mountain gorillas left on the planet), the expertise in Uganda is really superb.

Mgahinga Gorilla National Park in Uganda is house to the Nyakagezi gorilla household with its two silverbacks (grownup males). It holds a sure attract, because it boasts one of many highest concentrations of silverbacks inside a household. Excursions are small, not more than eight folks, and as soon as the gorillas are noticed, you’ve gotten 60 minutes with them—and imagine me, it goes actually quick.

I used to be stunned to see how playful the juveniles are, not in contrast to my very own little youngsters. One even got here up and gave me a lightweight fist bump to the leg (the animals can do what they need, however we had been instructed to remain seven meters away from them; they got here a lot, a lot nearer).

For me, witnessing the grownup silverback males in motion was essentially the most transferring expertise. Pounding their chests, making dialog with guttural sounds, climbing effortlessly up the bamboo bushes to construct a nest—they appear so human-like, which isn’t stunning provided that these mammals share 98 % of our DNA. Seeing the gorillas of their pure habitat was certainly one of my favourite experiences in Africa.

When to go: Because it’s a rain forest, there’s an opportunity you’ll get moist anytime, so there’s no actually unhealthy time to go. Simply make sure to pack appropriately.