The other day in Sapo National Park, Liberia, we got up before the sun to have a chance to see some chimpanzees. The canopy was dripping with dew and leftover rain, and when the sun started rising, it made the air glow.
We sat on logs, listening to the sounds of the forest, and Augustin, the chief ranger, tell us about how the chimpanzees live in families, make new nests up in the canopy every night and roam the forest during the day, eating nuts and fruits and calling to each other from the tree tops. We left the barely visible path and followed behind Augustin with a GPS and a machete. All of me was wet.
And suddenly we heard them. The sound like hammering, rock against rock. And then, the calls. Warnings of approaching humans. The rangers excitedly led us up hills, around enormous trees and through dense undergrowth, quietly, without a word. We didn’t want to disturb them. But, alas, the chips were gone, screaming in the tree tops, by the time we made it to their breakfast spot.
The hammering had been the chimpanzees cracking nuts with stones. A little further on, we saw a nest hanging from a tree, and we heard the chimps calling to each other from the trees. Close enough for us to even hear the rustle from their movements, but too far away for us to see them through the dense canopy. They must have been curious about us, because they stayed close for about an hour, teasing us with their calls. Eventually, they must have gotten bored of us, because their sounds got further and further away, until they were gone and we were on our own in the middle of the rainforest, off trail and soaking wet.
So, no chimpanzees this time. But we did get an amazing full-on rainforest hiking experience.
When we got back, we went for a dip in the little stream by the camp. There are few places I could imagine being as beautiful as this for a bath. And the water was fresh and icy cold! Amazing to wash away the tropical heat with.
Katja Malmborg 