Field Note · 5 min
How to trek gorillas without making it worse
Seven metres, no flash, masks when asked — the rules exist because the animals have no spare immune system.
Fredrick Ochieng · January 2026
Mountain gorillas can catch our respiratory infections. If you are ill, you do not trek. We will move heaven and a spare day; we will not send a cold into a family of 18.
Keep the distance the ranger sets. Speak softly. Never eat in front of them. The hour ends when the ranger says it ends — even if you only just sat down.
Hire a porter. It is not weakness; it is a wage in a park-edge community, and it keeps you stable on wet roots so you look at the forest instead of your boots.
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