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Safety on a gorilla trek: what to do if a gorilla charges What to do, step by step Freeze. If a gorilla charges, stop where you are, crouch down slowly, look at the ground and stay still. Never run. Almost every charge by a habituated mountain gorilla is a bluff that ends a few metres short of the group, and your ranger guide is trained to handle exactly this moment.
Knowing that in advance is what makes the difference. A charging silverback is loud, fast and frightening, and the instinct to run is strong. The visitors who handle it well are the ones who rehearsed the response in their heads before the trek. This guide explains why gorillas charge, what it looks like, what to do, and how to avoid provoking one in the first place.
Safety on a gorilla trek: what to do if a gorilla charges
What to do, step by step
- Freeze. Stop walking and stop moving your camera.
- Crouch slowly. Lower yourself steadily; do not drop suddenly or fall backwards.
- Look down. Direct eye contact reads as a challenge to a silverback.
- Stay quiet. No screaming or shouting. If you want, copy the ranger’s low grunting — it signals calm.
- Do not run. Running is the one reaction that can turn a bluff into a real chase.
- Wait for the ranger to tell you when to stand, then back away to at least 7 m.
Each step has a reason. Crouching makes you smaller and less threatening, and looking down tells the silverback you are not challenging his position. Gorillas communicate a great deal through low, rumbling grunts, and rangers use a similar sound to reassure the family; if you copy it quietly, you are adding to that message rather than working against it. Running does the opposite: it marks you as either a threat or prey, and it is the only response that has led to people being knocked over.
Why gorillas charge
A charge is communication, not an attack. A silverback is responsible for the safety of his whole family, and a charge is his way of saying that something has come too close or that he is in charge. In Bwindi and Mgahinga, the most common triggers are people getting too near an infant or its mother, a group squeezed between family members in thick vegetation where the silverback cannot see everyone, or sudden noise and movement such as a dropped walking stick or someone slipping on a slope.
Not every charge comes from the silverback. Young blackbacks — males of around 8 to 12 years who are not yet fully grown — sometimes charge to show off, testing their strength in front of the family and the visitors. These displays are usually shorter and less convincing, but the response is exactly the same. Families that have only recently been habituated, such as those visited on the Gorilla Habituation Experience, are also more likely to display than long-habituated groups.
What a charge looks like
An adult silverback weighs roughly 160–200 kg, and when he decides to display, you will usually see warning signs first. He may stare, hoot in rising sequences, tear up and throw vegetation, beat his chest with cupped hands, or walk stiffly sideways with his body turned to look as large as possible. Rangers watch for these signals and often move the group back before anything more happens.
If the display continues, he rushes forward on all fours, crashing through the undergrowth with a roar. Most charges stop two to five metres short, and the silverback turns away, sits down or returns to feeding as though nothing happened. The whole thing lasts a few seconds. Afterwards, many visitors say it was the most memorable moment of the trek — once their heart rate has come back down.
It is worth keeping this in proportion: most treks end with no charge at all. Habituated families are used to a small group of visitors every day, and the hour usually passes with the gorillas feeding, resting and playing as if you were not there.
How to avoid provoking a charge
Most charges can be prevented by following the trekking rules properly, and the ranger will remind you of them at the 07:30 briefing. Keep at least 7 m from the gorillas, and if one walks towards you, step back slowly rather than holding your ground for a photo. Stay in a tight group behind the ranger instead of spreading out around the family, because gorillas become uneasy when people are on several sides of them. Keep your voice low, and leave flash switched off — it is not allowed in any case.
Be careful with long lenses, walking sticks and selfie sticks: pointing them directly at a silverback can look like a challenge, so lower them if he is watching you. Do not eat, drink or leave anything near the family during your hour. The full list of rules is in what not to do when gorilla trekking.
What the ranger does
Each group of up to eight trekkers goes in with a Uganda Wildlife Authority ranger guide who visits the same family regularly and knows its members as individuals — which silverback is relaxed, which female is protective, which juvenile likes to show off. The guide positions the group, watches the silverback’s mood and moves you away before tension builds. During a charge, the ranger often steps slightly forward, grunts and makes calming gestures, and the silverback recognises this as a familiar signal.
Armed rangers accompany every group, which surprises some visitors. Their rifles are mainly for forest elephants and buffalo, which do live in Bwindi. They are not used against gorillas; at most, a shot may be fired into the air to scare off another animal.
The bigger risk is to the gorillas
Gorillas share about 98% of our DNA, and they catch human colds, flu and COVID-19. A respiratory infection that would give you a few days off work can kill a gorilla, and a disease passing through a family can wipe out years of conservation work. That is the real reason behind the 7 m rule, and why Uganda Wildlife Authority can stop you trekking if you turn up with a cough or fever. You may also be asked to wear a mask during the hour with the gorillas.
If you fall ill before your trek date, tell your operator as soon as possible rather than hoping it will pass. Rules on changing or refunding permits for illness are in our guide to permit cancellation.
Other safety points on the trail
In practice, the forest itself causes more injuries than the gorillas do. Falls on wet, steep slopes are by far the most common problem, so wear boots with deep grip, use the free walking stick from headquarters, and consider a porter to steady you on descents. Safari ants bite hard if they get inside your clothes, so tuck your trousers into your socks, and wear long sleeves and gloves against stinging nettles. The minimum trekking age is 15, partly because younger children are more likely to react to a display by running.
For more on gorilla behaviour and how safe trekking really is, read do gorillas attack humans in Uganda?
Frequently asked questions
Serious injuries are extremely rare in over 30 years of gorilla trekking in Uganda. The incidents that do happen are usually a push or scratch when someone ran or got too close.
Stay still and let it move on; do not touch it back. The ranger will ease the group away. The mother or silverback is usually watching closely.
No. Lower the camera and crouch. Lifting a large lens towards a silverback in the few seconds of a charge can look like a challenge.
Not usually. Once the silverback settles, the ranger may reposition the group and the hour continues. If the family stays tense, the ranger can end the visit early.
