Return to Gombe

I've been waiting two years to go back. Back to Gombe National Park in Tanzania. Gombe is famous for ground breaking behavioral studies of chimpanzees by Dr. Jane Goodall and her team of researchers. No problem with getting there this time. Felt like putting on an old glove. The flights departed and arrived on time! Which is very good when I got to the Tanzania leg of the trip!

I arrived in Kigoma, which is the stopping off point for anyone going to Gombe. I arrived in Kigoma a day before Dr. Goodall and some of the Jane Goodall Institute board members. I stayed at Aqua Lodge right on the lake. For 39,000 shillings, $39.00 to you and I, I had a nights stay with breakfast lunch and dinner thrown in! Granted I had a cold shower in the morning but you can't beat it for a place to put your head for one night!

It was great time, sat under two palm trees, writing in my journal, waiting to catch the boat. I met the Gombe photographer and a researcher at the hotel, and they told me to walk to T.A.C.A.R.E., to catch the research boat. The TACARE project focuses on community socio-economic development, and offers training and education in sustainable natural resource management. It specifically helps with the education and training of young women in the region.

TACARE building

I walked a few blocks to T.A.C.A.R.E, and met Dr. Goodall and the others. They were headed to Gombe the next day so I would get a jump on them for accommodations! I met Dr. Anthony Collins, Director of JGI Tanzania there and he told me to come back at 4:00 P.M. for the boat.

Supply Boat David (named after David Greybeard the first chimp to come up to Dr. Goodall and touch her)	Arriving at 3:30, I was told it would be longer than expected. You see, I would be catching a ride on the supply boat. When I got there I was the first to put anything on it. For the next two and a half hours, the boat was filled with all sorts of supplies, fruits, vegetables and many plastic containers of kerosene! At six o'clock we were finally ready to leave.
I got comfortable next to the cans of kerosene and prepared for the two-hour trip up the lake. I arrived in Gombe after dark about 8:15. A park ranger set me up in the hostel, where I would spend the first three nights.	Lake Tanganyika, 7:15PM

The next morning, I went to the Gate to pay for my lodging at the park and met my guide. I didn't go out that day; I wanted to be there to greet Jane and everyone and just do some swimming at the lake (72 degrees and crystal clear!) brought a mask and snorkel this time!

Heard an outboard motor about 5 minutes away, coming and it was Dr. Goodall's boat. Everyone got off the boat (23 people in all) and put their stuff away in their accommodations.	Dr. Jane directing traffic
	Greeted everyone and Dr. Jane invited me to a Roots & Shoots Summit up the lake at Mwamgongo Village. As we arrived hundreds of little kids, and I am not exaggerating, greeted us on the shore, yelling "Mama Jane! Mama Jane!"

Roots and Shoots, is a community service program sponsored by the Jane Goodall Institute for people of all ages.

The only rule it has is that the local group must concern itself in three ways: show concern for community, animals and the environment. The students themselves pick their own projects. Anyway, that is what the Summit was all about; students from surrounding villages and countries in Africa met to present their projects to Dr. Goodall. What a thrill! Have never been so humbled in my life!

The next day, Dr. Goodall and Dr. Collins and Dr. Shadrack took groups out into the forest.
Some went to Jane's Peak,
	the Waterfalls,
and I went on the looooooong walk with Dr. Shadrack (thought I would break myself in for the rest of the week!). The people that went to the falls and Jane's Peak were rewarded quite quickly I am told with observing many chimpanzees.

It took our group a little longer, more tired and thirsty, but we too were rewarded seeing the "S" family, containing Sheldon, who is now thought to be the alpha male of the Kasekela community of chimpanzees. I was also rewarded, with a fella we had with us. He was one of Jane's original researchers, from the beginning of her studies in the 1960’s. The knowledge he must have, and he shared some of it with us that day!

On the last day of Jane's visit with the chimps, she left later than the others so she could find Fifi and say her goodbyes (Fifi is the only remaining chimpanzee from Jane's original arrival in 1960). I went with my guide for about an hour, didn’t see anything, so we headed back down the beach, and saw Jane leaving by the boat. I walked past Dr. Shadrack, and he said, "Good Luck!" with a huge grin on his face. As my guide and I walked up the beach there was Fifi with her two most recent children, Flirt and Furaha sitting in some low trees eating vegetation. Apparently Jane did find her!

L-R, Flirt, Fifi, Furaha

The chimps seemed to know Jane was leaving, as they walked down the trail to the camp. Jane however left in the boat, and my guide and I followed Fifi through the camp, over the bridge and up to the forest edge.

For the next six days I had the chimpanzees all to myself, well of course there were always the Gombe researchers out there. Saw many things I had not experienced before: many different flowering plants, a huge trail of Safari Ants, birds, and Colobus monkeys.

Patti

I also saw many chimpanzees that were different from the last: Patti, Titan, Tubi, Gremlin, Gaia and Gimili, and Sheldon to name a few. There was much commotion one day with at least five groups, calling and hooting! Then the next day being a quite one watching Gremlin, build a temporary nest during the day and having quality time with Gaia and Gimili.

Gaia

Was it worth a 24, 000 mile roundtrip? That is a rhetorical question! Won't wait so long the next time!