Rwanda’s Mountain Gorillas - 96 Tickets into the Mist

Hilary McCormack
10 minutes ago
5 min read

“Among all researchers who have worked in the African field, I consider myself one of the most fortunate because of the privilege of having been able to study the mountain gorilla.”

Dian Fossey

August 2026: Just a six-hour flight from Riyadh lies Rwanda, a landlocked nation in East Africa, at the heart of Africa's scenic Great Lakes region.

Rwanda, also known as the Land of a Thousand Hills, is a beautiful, lush, and very clean country. Its topography is dominated by mountains in the west and savanna in the southeast.

On this trip, I am heading to the rugged mountains of Volcanoes National Park for a bucket-list experience with one of the world's rarest animals: the mountain gorilla. How lucky am I? Well, the answer is very!

Growing up, I devoured books that told the stories of Western women far from their birth countries, taking on the wilds of Africa and creating amazing legacies.

These included Joy Adamson, Born Free; Kuki Gallmann, I Dreamed of Africa; Karen Blixen, Out of Africa; and last but not least Dian Fossey, Gorillas in the Mist.

All of these amazing people observed and marveled at the natural world, documenting what they saw and discovered. In doing so, they were belittled and maligned at times, and a good number of them were killed for their passionate pursuits of firmly held views and research. Today, they are held up as shining examples of early conservation heroes.

Planning your own conservation-inspired trip rarely comes cheaply. Before setting foot in Rwanda, there was plenty of planning—and saving—to do.

The preparation for this trip included saving up for the national park entrance fee of US$1500 per person per day for your wild gorilla experience; airfare at a time when regional Middle East conflict has pushed up the cost of an economy seat by 10–30%; a week's stay in modest accommodation while sharing with a friend; plus a good local driver to take us across the country and back again safely at US$ 165 per day - this was the cheapest driver we found; a driver can be much more or even double that amount depending on the car type and fuel charges. Since there was no off-road driving, we skipped the 4WD upgrade.

Finally, you need to factor in tips; you do need to tip just about everyone who helps you on this trip.

On the medical side, malaria tablets cost approximately US$ 60 for a 7-day trip; you usually need an additional 2-week supply for the ‘before and after’ part of your trip.

And finally, there is the hiking gear. Weatherproof hiking boots and green waterproof hiking trousers (because many guides recommend green as it blends in with the forest and is apparently less attractive to insects like tsetse flies).

Since it is often wet and damp in the mountains, a lightweight rain jacket, layered over inner wear that you can peel off easily if the day is warmer than expected. Walking sticks (useful on steep inclines), a sun hat, and waterproof gloves that protect your hands from rough terrain and thorny bushes are all important parts of your kit.

In the mountains, mosquitoes are not so much of an issue, but it's still wise to carry mosquito repellent and tuck your pants into your socks, or to invest in Hiking Gaiters, so the bothersome mosquitoes and fire ants don't manage to get up the legs of your pants.

The last part of your kit is your camera. I brought along my Samsung phone and Canon camera to capture this once-in-a-lifetime experience. For the Canon, three fully charged batteries went into my backpack. After trekking for several hours to reach a gorilla family, the last thing I wanted was to watch my camera die just as the silverback emerged triumphantly from the forest.

The hike up the mountain is in a single file behind your ranger and porters. The trekkers have already gone ahead to locate the gorilla families that day. Each day, only 96 gorilla trekking permits are available, and a maximum of 8 visitors per gorilla family are allocated to easy, medium, or challenging treks to visit one of the 12 gorilla families in this area. It can take anywhere from one to four hours to find your gorilla family, so being nimble on your feet is definitely recommended.

When you reach your gorilla family, you tuck yourself quietly in little openings in the forest to watch them lounge and loll about on the forest floor - clicking away with your camera to capture every move. You have only one hour with their company, and every moment is precious. Therefore, you want a memory of the whole family and hope that one of your shots captures the group's raucous, playful nature.

Ereba is the group's favorite female, and her devoted silverback was named Marambo. Marambo is the "founder" and protector of Muhoza, and he leads a group of 23, ranging in age from nursing infant to young males ready to start their own group. This family is called Muhoza, meaning good comfort.

The weight of a silverback's gaze is thrilling, and we are discouraged from holding his gaze. He sits there quietly, fixing his eyes on our rustling in the forest; he is fully aware that we are there, and yet he lets us have our time. Some junior acrobats are on display among the youngsters in the group as they roll about the forest floor or, more ambitiously, hang one-armed from the branches over our heads. And really, none of the group is overly bothered by our existence. The group moves about feeding on the succulent foliage, as we spend our time peering through the dense undergrowth to see what they are doing.

Our favorite moment was when a young female carrying a baby on her back brushed past our legs, lightly tapping an unsuspecting observer’s legs to move out of the way and startling us all in the process.

This particular baby doesn't have a name yet; he and his siblings will be named at the upcoming naming event called Rwanda's annual Kwita Izina naming ceremony, held in the foothills of Volcanoes National Park in Musanze District, and is attended by government officials, Volcanoes National Park gorilla trackers and guides, rangers, and other park officials, as well as occasionally internationally recognized guests or celebrities. Finding the perfect name is a big deal.

At times during our visit, Marambo would softly growl, beckoning one of his females to come join him where he sat munching on the vines. It is a gentle warning to all on this steep, dense mountainside who is in charge here.

When our visit was over, the guide quietly signaled for us to leave, and we all backed away from the group and fell back into single file to retreat down the mountain, boots caked in mud, elated and utterly mesmerized by the experience.

My fellow observers were from all corners of the globe and quite an eclectic bunch. From young adventure seekers to retirees, this experience touched all of us in equal measure.

At the base of the mountain, we discussed our amazing luck and agreed we had shared something extraordinary. We are among the rare few, 96 on this particular day, to witness Rwanda’s gorillas in the mist.