http://rushaga.com/The big day had finally arrived. A day of travel and early night to get plenty of rest for the big trek. Impossibly beautiful winding roads and a very bumpy couple of hours ride. The scenery is stunning. Looking out of my room at the Bwindi Impenetrable Forrest, I could not believe that I would be going hiking in THAT. I definitely did not feel prepared enough.

The Lodge was only about 15 minutes from the Park meeting place. I got grouped with some Australians on a photographic safari. As expected, the hike was hard - more cardio wise than anything - the slopes just looked like smooth and no sign of a footing. You hire a porter, thankfully. These guys (and gals!) are all local and rotate on a large pool so that everyone gets a chance at earning some cash. $15 was a steal and it was hard not to overpay- the trek would have been impossible without them. They are always there with a hand to push, pull and otherwise be your right hand and are so happy and grateful for their job, they take it very seriously.

At one point we had to balance over a stream on a slippery and narrow log - those guys got into the water on both sides so that they could get everyone across safely. 1 1/2 hrs later, we were there - thanks to the advance tracking team whose job it is to locate the gorillas and direct the guide to them. We got so lucky with the small family staying put in a nice clearing - I can not find the words to describe what a truly magical experience it is. The 2 hr old baby was quite brave and gave us some great shots. I was pretty mesmerised at the hands of the Silverback - identical to ours - except he could have done with a good mani-pedi!

We also got to meet a Gorilla Dr - who was part of the park's vet team assigned to the health of all the families - he happened to be with our trackers, checking up on the family. Overall, he said, the health of all the Bwindi Gorillas was good and the population was doing well.

What goes up -must come down and the trek back was equally as demanding, we all slipped, slided and bumbled our way down, the rain soaked us through, one vehicle got stuck in the mud requiring the village, to seemed, to dig it out. We were all happy and grateful the rain held off long enough for us to see the gorillas and get pics.

A piping hot shower and late afternoon nap and I felt great - not at all as exhausted as I expected to feel - rest day tomorrow with a leisurely crossing into Rwanda to do it all over again!