{"id":228,"date":"2012-01-11T03:10:54","date_gmt":"2012-01-11T08:10:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/test.pegasuslectures.com\/shop\/blog\/?p=228"},"modified":"2015-08-24T10:18:24","modified_gmt":"2015-08-24T15:18:24","slug":"itw-part-14","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pegasuslectures.com\/blog\/index.php\/2012\/01\/11\/itw-part-14\/","title":{"rendered":"Bringing Ultrasound to Uganda with ITW (Part 14)"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"Wednesday, June 8th<\/sup>:<\/strong>\u00a0 One of the coolest things about this region of Africa is that it is one of the last remaining regions where mountain gorillas still live.\u00a0 Many people recall the appalling period in 1994 when more than 800,000 were killed in Rwanda.\u00a0 The mass killings in 1994 were the culmination of years of strife between the Hutus and the Tutsis.\u00a0 Ultimately, the genocide occurred as the Hutus, primarily through a powerful group called the Akazu, annihilated Tutsis and non-warring Hutus, wiping out nearly one fifth of the country\u2019s population.\u00a0 Since that terrible time, Rwanda has been revitalized with one of their primary businesses being gorilla trekking.\u00a0 Of course just north Rwanda is the Congo (formally Zaire) which in the latter part of the 90\u2019s and early part of 2000\u2019s was suffering through the Second Congo Wars.\u00a0 Although more peaceful today, the Congo still has some continued violence.\u00a0 Like Rwanda, the Congo now also sponsors gorilla trekking.\u00a0 So why am I telling you this?\u00a0 As it turns out, the region where we are staying is in the Impenetrable Forest of Uganda.\u00a0 The Impenetrable Forest is in the Virunga Volcano mountain range and abuts this gorilla sanctuary region of the Rwanda and the southern region of the Congo.\u00a0 Uganda too has made a gorilla reserve which is now protected by the government.\u00a0 The Ugandan government issues 24 permits a day for gorilla trekking.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Paul, Alec, and I purchased trekking permits and we took Wednesday off from working at the clinics. \u00a0The days started quite early (See video of sunrise<\/a>) as we ate breakfast and prepped for the long, physical day.\u00a0 Before I left I had to go shopping for hiking boots and appropriate apparel.\u00a0 Since I moved to Texas from the Massachusetts\/new Hampshire area, the opportunities to hike have obviously and unfortunately diminished significantly.\u00a0 Paul has never had the opportunity to hike, so he too had a need for gear.\u00a0 In an effort to spend as little time as shopping, we found \u201cappropriate\u201d articles and then bought in both his and my size.\u00a0 The result is that we were dressed virtually identically.\u00a0 (Yes \u2013 I know \u2013 cue the laughter!) After breakfast, we went down to a park where orientation occurs.\u00a0 We were divided into groups and assigned a trek guide, a family of gorillas to trek, and two more armed guides (one in front and one in back) for safety.\u00a0 Our group consisted of a young couple from London area.\u00a0 During the orientation, we were instructed on keeping a safe distance and what to do if charged by a gorilla.\u00a0 You might be surprised to know that this instruction consisted of precisely three pieces of information: 1.\u00a0 Do not run away 2.\u00a0 Do not look the charging gorilla in the eye (this is seen as aggressive behavior) 3.\u00a0 Crouch down and pretend to eat grass so as to appear submissive. During the orientation we were informed that since they started every group but one has encountered gorillas.\u00a0 This success they attributed to their approach of sending out advance scouts each morning to the last known location of each family the night before.\u00a0 By the time the trekking groups hit the woods, the advance scouts have been following the tracks of the gorilla family for a few hour, so that they can radio ahead to the guides.\u00a0 Typical hikes range from about 2 hours to as much as 5 hours.\u00a0 They also informed us that if we got injured or just reached a point at which we could no longer walk \u2013 they would call \u201c191\u201d (meaning 911).\u00a0 If 911 was called, a group of locals would run in and for a few hundred dollars carry the incapacitated out of the jungle.\u00a0 For those who really wanted to see a gorilla and could just not manage the whole trek, a few hundred more (depending on weight and distance), this same 911 group would carry you to the gorillas.\u00a0 We were then informed that the starting point for our trek was a little more than an hour away by car.\u00a0 So we hopped into our vehicles and drove to an even more remote region of the mountains to start our hike. Those of you who know me, know that I pride myself on being pretty perceptive.\u00a0 Well, I did not live up to my standards on this day.\u00a0 After about 15 minutes of hiking, the guide emphasized how fortunate it was that everyone in the group appeared to be relatively fit.\u00a0 The emphasis should have been a tell-tale sign that something was up.\u00a0 To fully appreciate the situation, you must realize that the altitude ranges from about 1200 to 2600 meters (3,900 to 8450 feet), the temperature was in the 90\u2019s, and for the most part there are no trails.\u00a0 Periodically we would hear from the advance scouts they had seen signs of the gorillas but that they were on the move.\u00a0 A few hours in we rested for a bit, and ate our packed lunches.\u00a0 We then continued trekking for a few more hours, all the while getting updates that the gorillas were still moving fast.\u00a0 At times, the radios would not work (especially when the batteries died in one) so that they would yell loudly trying to hear the return yell from the scouts to determine where next to go.<\/p>\n

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About 5 hours in, our guide informed us that we were getting too deep in and would need to start exiting soon or we could end up stuck in the forest in the dark.\u00a0 We all held out hope that we would see some gorillas, but started to believe that we would be the first group in many years that would have the misfortune of not being successful.\u00a0 By this point, we were pretty hot and tired.\u00a0 The decision was made to exit.\u00a0 Our guide called back to the orientation center to inform them that we would not see any gorillas and asking what they could do for us.\u00a0 She suggested that perhaps we could come back the next day and try again.\u00a0 This was not an option for Paul or me, as we have a very tight work schedule and cannot afford the time away.\u00a0 The group was somewhat despondent, as we continued to make the long trek back out of the mountainous forest.\u00a0 Just as we emerged, our guide received a call from the center suggesting that if we hurried back to the very starting point of the morning (some 6.5 hours plus an hour car ride earlier) that we would likely see a family that had just settled in for the night.\u00a0 We picked up our pace and got back to the vehicles as quickly as possible.<\/p>\n

When we arrived back to the park, we walked for literally about 4 minutes before we reached gorillas.\u00a0 As a result of reaching the gorillas so late, and because the return walk was so short, we were able to see something that very few get to appreciate.\u00a0 We watched as the gorillas bedded down for the night.\u00a0 It was incredible to see these gorillas up so close in their own natural habitat.\u00a0 One of the younger gorillas decided to bed down only about 12 or 13 feet in front of us.\u00a0 He stripped away plants and laid the leaves down on the ground.\u00a0 Then, after lying down, he took a bunch more leaves and treating the leaves like a blanket, he covered his torso and legs.\u00a0 The Silver back was further away (about 30 or 40 feet).\u00a0 We watched as a baby bedded down (for protection) very close to the silver back.\u00a0 The experience was amazing!<\/p>\n

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