Expedition Summary
Arrive in Uganda for Cal Discoveries' "Uganda and Rwanda Gorilla Safari" and take in the luster of "the pearl of Africa". Begin with tracking the critically endangered Mountain Gorilla of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park's dense primeval forests. Continue and go on game drives to see lion, hippo and elephant in the magnificent Queen Elizabeth National Park. Visit Rwanda and the Parc National des Volcans. Finish with a city tour of Kigali including a visit to the Rwandan Genocide Memorial.

On our first full day in Uganda we will visit the Ngamba Island Chimp Sanctuary. Traveling by boat across Lake Victoria, we will arrive shortly at Ngamba Island where we will be greeted by the staff and given a brief orientation before viewing the chimps in their natural environment. We will be there in time for their feeding and there will be many occasions for pictures! If time allows we will also make a stop at the Uganda Wildlife Education Center to visit the animals and see the many birds, including the elusive shoe bill stork, along the forest walks through the center.

We then switch gears and visit the magnificent Queen Elizabeth National Park, which is located in the western arm of the Great East African Rift Valley and sits beneath the majestic backdrop of the Rwenzori Mountains. With its tropical forest, savannah, crater lakes and swamps, this verdant park is enchanting. Centered around Lake Edward and Lake George, linked by the Kazinga Channel, the park is rich in wildlife, including hippos, buffalos, crocodiles, elephants and a vast array of birds. The famous tree-climbing lions of Ishasha lounge nonchalantly in old fig trees. With over 500 bird species, Queen Elizabeth National Park is also a mecca for birdwatchers. Among the unusual varieties found in the park are the Shoebill stork and the Black Bee-eater, as well as countless kingfishers, raptors and flocks of flamingoes.

If time and conditions permit, the safari may take a slight detour for some chimp tracking in the beautiful Kyambura Gorge. Chimpanzees are found in a number of forests in Uganda, including the steeply forested sides of the Kyambura Gorge located near the Queen Elizabeth National Park. The gorge is also home to the red-tailed monkey, the black-and-white colobus and many bird species. Tracking chimpanzees in this beautiful river valley is a breathtaking experience.

Tree-climbing lion. (Uganda)

A highlight of our tour will invariably be the days we spend tracking the great apes in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park in south-western Uganda and the Parc National des Volcans in Rwanda. In Bwindi, about 340 mountain gorillas and four families are habituated. In contrast to the six billion human beings living on our crowded planet, there are only seven hundred Mountain Gorillas (Gorilla Gorilla Berengei) left in the forgotten forests of central Africa. On this tour, we will spend two days tracking these fascinating creatures through the misty forests. Our undertaking will require patience and stamina, not to mention long but hopeful hours spent walking in the mud and the wet. But the payoff is indescribable: there is no way to describe the thrill of coming upon a family of gorillas going about their daily activities in the undergrowth. Quietly chewing away at their vegetarian delicacies, they seem like a marooned human family. The tender grooming and firm disciplining of their offspring seems all too familiar.

We will visit the famed Karisoke Research Center, established by Dian Fossey, a primotologist who dedicated her life to the conservation and protection of Mountain Gorillas. We will also stop in at the Imbabazi Orphanage. We will finish our tour with a city tour of Kigali including a visit to the Rwandan Genocide Memorial before returning home.

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Enrichment Lecturer - Justin Brashares

Justin Brashares.

Justin Brashares is an assistant professor of Wildlife Ecology and Conservation in Cal's Department of Environmental Science, Policy and Management. He received a Masters in Wildlife Ecology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1997 and a Ph.D. in Ecology and Conservation Biology from the University of British Columbia in 2001. He conducted postdoctoral research as an NSF International fellow at the University of Cambridge.

Justin Brashares has studied the population, community and behavioral ecology of mammals and birds in East and West Africa and North America since 1990. In his research, he relies on long-term counts of wildlife populations as well as information gained in the study of individually identified animals to advance the science and practice of conservation biology. His research currently focuses on the causes and consequences of bushmeat hunting in Africa, conservation of small populations in western North America, and variation in ecology and behavior of African ungulates.

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Experience Required

The path to find gorillas. (Uganda)

No experience is required for this trip, but, in order to fully enjoy the expedition's activities, gorilla trackers must be fit, in good health and properly equipped. Tracking in thick jungle at elevations ranging up to 10,000 feet (3,000 meters) can be tough, arduous and wet. Please be sure to wear a sturdy pair of hiking boots on the gorilla trek.

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Trip Registration

Mountain Gorilla. (Uganda - Photo by Annelie Utter)

Space is limited. A non-refundable deposit of $1,500, payable to Global Adrenaline, Inc., will guarantee your reservation. This deposit includes a standard $500 deposit to secure your reservation and a $1,000 non-refundable fee for your gorilla trekking permits. Full payment is due by July 7, 2008. For itineraries, more information or to register for this trip, please contact Cal Discoveries, at:

Cal Discoveries Travel Program
Email: CalDiscoveries@alumni.berkeley.edu
Toll-Free in USA: 1-888-225-2586
Direct Line: 1-510-642-3717

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Trip Details

Snack time. (Uganda)

Dates:

October 7-16, 2008

Cost:

double rooms - $6,795 per person
single rooms - $8,795 per person

Includes:

• Global Adrenaline tour leader
• local Ugandan and Rwandan guides
• airport transfers
• accommodations: 6 nights at Ugandan hotels and safari lodges, 3 nights at Rwandan safari lodge
• meals as indicated (B=breakfast, L=lunch and D=dinner)
• activities as indicated in the itinerary
• transportation as indicated in the itinerary
• entrance fees to national parks, historical sites and museums
• gorilla trekking permits

Does Not Include:

• international flights (approximately $1,500 to $2,000 for USA - East Africa - USA flights)
• international airport departure tax ($20)
• beverages (discretionary)
• tips and gratuities (discretionary)
• travel insurance (discretionary)
• phone calls, laundry and other items of a personal nature (discretionary)

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Day by Day Itinerary

October 7: Arrive in Uganda

The Pearl of Africa. (Uganda)

When we arrive at the Entebbe International Airport, we will be met by our safari guide who will take us to our Kampala hotel where we will spend the night.

October 8: Ngamba Island Chimp Sanctuary and Uganda Wildlife Education Center
After breakfast we will drive to Entebbe where we will take a short boat ride to Ngamba Island to visit the Chimp Sanctuary, established in association with the Jane Goodall Institute. This 100-acre island of forested habitat is home to many orphaned chimps and other wildlife such as hippos, otters, monitor lizards and many species of birds. After a brief orientation we will proceed to the viewing platform where we will watch as the chimps are fed and play in their natural environment. On our return from Ngamba Island, we will also visit the Uganda Wildlife Education Center to see the many animal, plant and bird species calling this habitat home. There are forest walks, a medicinal garden and many opportunities for up-close encounters with animals and birds. We will spend the night at our Kampala hotel. (B, L, D)

October 9: Queen Elizabeth National Park, Equator Visit and Kazinga Channel Cruise
Today we will leave Kampala, passing through the verdant rolling hills of the Ugandan countryside en route to Queen Elizabeth National Park. Along the way we will stop at the Equator for a cup of coffee or tea and to learn some interesting facts. We will arrive at our safari lodge in time for a late lunch.

In the afternoon, after arriving at Queen Elizabeth National Park, we will enjoy a boat trip to view up close where hippos huff and spray mere feet away, buffalo linger in the shallows and a tremendous variety of birds grace the grasses on the river's edge. Amongst those we will see are the Malachite and Pied Kingfishers, Great White and Pink-backed Pelicans and the Shoebill stork. We will have dinner and spend the night at our safari lodge. (B, L, D)

October 10: Queen Elizabeth National Park and Chimp Tracking in Kyambura Gorge

Safari vehicle. (Uganda)

After an early breakfast, we will report at 8:00am to the nearby ranger station in Kyambura Gorge for a talk with a local researcher and to track habituated chimpanzees. These delightful apes, more closely related to humans than to any other living creature, are tremendous fun to watch as they squabble and play in fruiting trees. The chimp population is quite mobile and viewing is unpredictable, but the walk is captivating. After a relaxing lunch, we will enjoy a late afternoon game drive which will provide an excellent opportunity to see a wealth of animals such as elephant, warthog, lion, hyena, Ugandan Kob, waterbuck and bushbuck. We will visit the mating area of the Ugandan Kob and the Kasenyi plains to look for lion. We will enjoy dinner and spend the night at our safari lodge. (B, L, D)

October 11: Transfer to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park via Ishasha (Tree-Climbing Lions)

Silverback gorilla. (Uganda)

Today we will leave Queen Elizabeth National Park heading south towards the Ugandan, Rwandan and DRC borders to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. We will pass through the southern and remote sector of Queen Elizabeth National Park known as Ishasha, famed for its tree-climbing lions. We will see buffalo, topi and hippo among other species. We will continue on our journey, enjoying the excellent views of the triangular peaks of the Virunga volcanoes of Rwanda and the Congo. The road drops into a valley to the Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. Although best known for its Mountain Gorillas, Bwindi Impenetrable National Park also attracts spectacular birds. There are 23 of the 24 Albertine Rift endemic species including the African Green Broadbill, Bar-tailed Trogon and other beautiful forest species. We will have dinner and spend the night at our gorilla camp. (B, L, D)

October 12: Gorilla Tracking in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park

Preparing to trek with the park rangers. (Uganda)

We will get up relatively early today for a hearty breakfast to give us the energy we need for gorilla trekking. We will report to the ranger station at 8:00am, from where our guides will take us through the bush, slashing at the undergrowth and parting thick creepers, to track the gorillas. This trek can take from ½ an hour to 5 hours depending on where the gorilla group is on that particular day. Please be sure to wear good sturdy hiking boots or walking shoes. We will sit in the forest among the gorillas, listening to them grumble to each other, and marvel at the sheer size of the dominant male silverback. It is amazing to think that there are only 700 of these creatures left in the world! Should we have the energy this afternoon, we will take a guided walk on the Munyaga River Trail. This trail leads to three delightful crystal clear waterfalls, and there is a profusion of tree ferns, epiphytic ferns, orchids and Bwindi's colorful array of butterflies. Here you may also see birds and primates from the forest edge. Or alternatively, we may be interested in taking a guided village walk to see how the local Ugandans live, visit a local bar and meet the witchdoctor! We will have dinner and spend the night at our gorilla camp. (B, L, D)

October 13: Rwanda and Parc National des Volcans

The Virunga Volcanoes. (Rwanda)

Today we depart for Rwanda, "the land of 1,000 hills," via the Katuna border. Traveling through the lush countryside, we will cross the border and have a picnic lunch at one of our scenic stops. We will arrive at our lodge in time for a relaxing stroll and enjoy the panoramic sunset views over the volcanoes. We will spend the evening at our volcano lodge. (B, L, D)

October 14: Gorilla Tracking in Parc National des Volcans - or Lake Kivu, Gahinga Volcano Climb or Community Projects

A Mountain Gorilla baby. (Rwanda)

After an early breakfast we will begin our Rwandan gorilla experience. Tracking the gorillas through the light mountain forest on the slopes of the Virungas is a magical experience. If you are lucky you can get to the gorillas, spend an hour with them, and be back at the base in time for a late lunch! Some gorilla families, however, are more elusive, and tracking can take a full day, especially when it is wet and muddy. There are other options for those not interested in the gorilla tracking. We will spend the evening at our volcano lodge. (B, L, D)

October 15: Karisoke Research Center, Imbabazi Orphanage or Golden Monkeys

Veranda of our volcano lodge. (Rwanda)

In the morning we will visit the Karisoke Research Center, which was established in the 1960's by the late Dian Fossey. This center promotes scientific studies that contribute to the conservation of the Mountain Gorilla and includes regular monitoring of the gorillas and anti-poaching patrols. We will learn what challenges the center faced during the years of crisis in Rwanda, and what the future holds for the center and the Mountain Gorillas, from the local researchers working in this facility. In the afternoon we will have our choice between several activities such as visiting the golden monkeys or the Imbabazi Orphanage, founded by Rosamond Halsey Carr after the genocide and home to more than one hundred orphaned children.

Making a connection. (Rwanda)

The Imbabazi Orphanage is now the location of the Through the Eyes of the Children photographic workshop. Using disposable cameras, the children originally took pictures for themselves and to share with others, exploring their community, and finding beauty as the country struggles to rebuild. Today, the children shoot with both disposable cameras and for the first time in 2005, digital cameras. The proceeds of their photos go towards the education of the children and have won first prize in the 2001 Camera Arts Magazine Photo Contest and has won Honorable Mention in an international competition featuring professional and non-professional photographers from around the world. For more information on the Imbabazi Orphanage and the Through the Eyes of the Children project please visit http://www.rwandaproject.org/index.html.

We will spend our last night in Rwanda at our volcano lodge. (B, L, D)

October 16: Kigali Tour, Genocide Memorial and Depart for Home
This morning we will tour the city of Kigali, including a visit to the market, a pottery project, the Franco-Rwandan cultural centre and the genocide memorial. We will then transfer to the Kigali International Airport for our departure to Tanzania or home. (B)

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Travelers, whether alumni or not, must be current California Alumni Association (CAA) members or UCSF alumni to participate in Cal Discoveries travel offerings. For CAA, fees of $50 for seniors 65 years and over, and $60 for those who are 64 years and under, establishes a regular membership with all other Association benefits. A married couple and their children under 21 years may travel on one membership; memberships are non-refundable and non-transferable. Please make dues payable to CAA by separate check, or if you prefer, provide a Visa, MasterCard, or American Express number with expiration date for payment.