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BILL BALL: Like many
wildlife enthusiasts,

I have a personal
checklist of the animals

I would love to see in the wild.

I have been fortunate to have seen
many species on my bucket list

over the last couple of decades.

But there is one majestic animal

that has always evaded me,

and almost everyone else,
for that matter -

the western lowland gorilla.

I've seen the Dian-Fossey-studied
mountain gorillas,

last season,
when we filmed in Rwanda.

Mountain gorillas have
been visited for years

because they were attenuated
to humans,

but no lowland gorillas
were habituated to humans...

..until recently.

Here in Gabon,
where a single group allows people

to approach them...

..well, at least sometimes.

These are the same gorilla species
found in all the world's zoos,

and yet they have been rarely
seen in the wild.

My quest this week is to see
the western lowland gorilla

in the wild.

Since I was young,
I had an intense desire

to discover the world around me.

That hasn't changed,
just the level of adventure.

Now, every journey has a purpose.

And each time I venture out
to explore new destinations

around the globe,
I am following my travel quest.

Gabon is located on the western bump
of Africa between Equatorial Guinea

and Cameroon to the north,

and the Republic of Congo
to the south.

It is a small country,

about two and a half times
smaller than Texas,

with a population
of around two million.

It is rich in oil, gold and timber.

Yet the money has yet
to trickle down to the masses.

Like most trips I take,

I like to start by getting
a feel for the culture,

and there is no
better place to do that

than by touring the capital.

Libreville was founded officially
by 50 freed slaves,

27 men and 23 women,
sometime after 1849,

when slavery was abolished
here in Gabon by the French.

Our first stop is where
the French signed a contract

with the local people, a collection
of Bantu people from nearby countries

that migrated here.

The original Gabonese people
were pygmies that were forced

to the forests, where they still
reside and help on gorilla treks.

This early contract for trade routes
was signed in 1839.

Our next stop has a decidedly
American bent.

The American church, Protestant,
was founded in 1842

on the site where slaves
about to be transported to America

were held, and when uncooperative
or in revolt, were executed.

The church was meant
to be a symbol of peace

in an otherwise horrific place.

This and the school
that accompanied it were the first

in all of Equatorial Africa.

The French side of town was not
to be outdone by the English.

So, 10 years later,
the first Catholic Church was built.

It was also here,
just next door, at the cathedral,

that John Paul II had mass
during his visit to Gabon.

The capital has an interesting
history and worth a day visit,

but our real objective
was the lowland gorilla.

Libreville was the jumping-off point
for our expedition.

There were five rare and unique
mammals I really wanted to see.

Of course, the lowland gorilla,

but also the sitatunga,
a large, majestic antelope.

The forest elephant, a smaller
but more unpredictable relative

to the east and southern
African savanna elephant.

The forest buffalo,
a distinct-looking cousin

to the more dangerous cape buffalo.

And the red river hog,

a giant pig like no other
I've ever seen.

In a situation where I had
a specific animal I wanted to see,

I never leave it to chance
by relying on one park.

Sure, Loango is the premier park
in Gabon, but it's not the only one.

Near Libreville is another park
with at least three

of the animals I was after -
the sitatunga, buffalo and elephant.

I would start here on my quest
to bag the Gabon big five.

Pongara National Park
is 240,000 acres in size

and situated on a forested peninsula,

only 20 minutes
from the capital city by boat.

Our base of operation will
be the Bay of Turtles Lodge,

located strategically on the beach

with its back door
to the forest of Pongara.

In fact, elephants
can be dangerous here,

and a trained dog keeps watch
to warn lodge security

of their approach.

The resort has the feel
of a Caribbean Island,

with buffalo and elephants
as neighbours.

One of the best ways to see them
is by a safari ride.

Using small four-wheel drive
vehicles.

The nature staff take
paying guests out,

hoping to see the wildlife.

For me, it's not all about
the big animals.

A young palm-nut vulture
is a fascinating find,

as is a colony of black weavers,

the males of which weave
these intricate nests

and then invite females to look.

If one of them likes it,

he has a mate, but if not,

he will take it apart
and start fresh.

This gives a whole new meaning
to house-hunting.

(BIRDS TWITTER)

Of course, Pongara was a practice
so we would not miss big-fivers.

And so, seeing one here
is a great addition to the drive.

A herd of forest buffaloes are ahead.

I feared the loud vehicles would
set them to flight.

I was told that they feared people
in Loango but not here.

The Buffaloes are quite calm
around the dune buggies.

This is the closest
we could have hoped for.

One down, four to go.

(TRADITIONAL MUSIC PLAYS)

We only had a day, so it was time
to head back to Libreville

and regroup for our trip to Loango.

I was warned that the national park

was outside of the normal
tourist path,

remote by anyone's standards,

and difficult, to put it mildly,
to reach.

And on top of that, the chance
of seeing the one and only

attenuated gorilla group
was slim at best.

What was I getting myself into?

The habituated apes are found only
in Loango National Park,

far from where we were.

Most flights into Libreville
are from France.

Once in the capital,

you fly about 35 minutes
to the second-largest city

of Port-Gentil.

Here, we learn firsthand
that Gabon's tourism

is not quite prime time.

The chain hotel we had booked
was under remodelling...

..for the last two years

and was not yet reopened.

Fully prepaid, we got no warning.

We did find an alternate,

no easy feat in a town
with few hotels,

and we settled in for the night.

The next morning,
we began our journey to the park.

four to five hours
of jaw-rattling roads.

A new superhighway is being built
that would cover

the first two thirds of the trip.

But the funds are in dispute,

and the Chinese contractors
have stopped construction.

So close yet so rough instead.

There is talk that a European company

may come in to put
the finishing touches

to the otherwise impressive road.

But the drive was not
without its worthy surprises.

There aren't many times
that I'm completely

amazed at something,

I have no idea what it was.

And this is one of those.

We were driving down the road,
and I saw these,

and at first, I thought
they were rocks.

And then, I said no.

And then, I thought they were
mushrooms, but they're hard.

Then we found out
they're special termite mounds.

These mounds are only seen
in a select type of soil

that line the road
for only about five miles.

They are plentiful
where they're found,

but limited in their distribution,

making them an exciting find.

We pulled into Loango Lodge
midafternoon

and found a pleasant camp
with an equally friendly staff.

Plans were set for our three
full days in the park.

First day, we would tour by boat.

Second day by safari vehicle.

And the third would be our attempt,
on foot, to see the main

reason for our visit -
the lowland gorillas.

We started out our boat safari
early in the morning.

We had about an hour and a half
journey from camp to the mouth

of the river where much
of the wildlife is found.

The camp itself sits on a giant
lagoon that has the sea at one end

and the river on the other.

Even though I was looking
for the Gabon big five,

I never miss an opportunity
to add species

to my personal wildlife list.

The first to be added was not
a big five or even a big animal,

but a reptile.

The ornate monitor lizard.

Just about every animal
and most birds you see here

are rare and unique.

The rest of Africa
has a monitor lizard,

but it is not as colourful
as this one.

Another example of that unique
diversity was another reptile,

the slender-snouted crocodile.

This is a specialty fish-eater

that uses its long snout
to slash at fish.

The croc counterpart in the rest
of Africa is the notorious

Nile Crocodile,
the second-biggest in the world.

This was another first for me.

In a few minutes
cruising the waterways here,

I have seen more new species

than I now see in two weeks
in southern or eastern Africa.

But the day did not end without one
of the big five showing its face.

Or should I say trunk?

I saw my first forest elephant.

I had seen literally tons
of savanna or African elephants

in the east,
and especially the south of Africa,

but never a forest elephant.

Up until a few years ago,

they were not considered
a separate species.

But now, with DNA testing,
there are officially

three elephant species,

with the newly designated
forest elephant,

which is the smallest in size,
distribution and sheer numbers.

Some estimates place
the number at only 40,000 remaining

in the world from over 700,000
a few decades ago.

The biggest difference is size.

The African elephant can weigh
up to seven tonnes,

while the forest pachyderm comes
in at a mere two to four.

Well, that is if you could
call four tons mere.

The ears of the African elephant
are shaped like the continent

while those forest giants
have round ears.

But the most notable difference
is the tusks.

The more abundant savanna variety
are quite curved,

while these tusks are straighter.

With another of the big five down,

we were more relaxed just to take in
the beauty and the winged creatures

that call Gabon home.

Gabon has over 760 species of birds

that live or migrate here every year,

many of which are either
found nowhere else

or rare in other locales.

We had one more day to grab
as many of the big five of Gabon

as we could.

Other than the lowland gorilla,

which our last full day
would be dedicated to,

we had to get the red river hog
and the sitatunga.

These, our guide assured us,
would be easy targets

on the safari drive.

So, a good meal and a good
night's sleep would make us ready.

It was day two
of our Loango adventure,

and that meant safari drive.

About one third of the park
has savanna-like plains

and is suitable for game drives.

Much closer start point
than the boat safari.

We just had to go across the lagoon.

We started out early nonetheless
to meet the wildlife

as it becomes active.

Being here in the dry season gave
the Savanna a more dismal appearance,

all dried-out grasses
with little green

except in the nearby forests.

But that didn't stop the wildlife.

Almost immediately, we spotted
a female tusker and her calf.

She was a good distance off
and would be hard to photograph,

so we decided to go
outside the safari box.

We're going to do something

that might not be the smartest
thing to do.

We're going to get up close
to a mother forest elephant

and her calf.

Now, this is something
you shouldn't try at home.

Well, you probably can't try it
at home unless you live in Gabon.

Lucky for us, nothing happened
other than a few good pictures.

We were well into our drive,

and we had not gained
on our BIG FIVE list

when our driver stopped the vehicle
and said he saw a sitatunga.

Sitatunga are large spiral-horned
antelope that are virtually

impossible to see
anywhere else in Africa.

In fact,
I have never seen one before.

Related to the kudu and eland,

they are an impressive animal.

Again, this animal is a male,
but it was a bit far.

So, a slow stalking might
just get us a picture.

Three down and one to go.

Even if you see no wildlife,
the park is worth the drive.

Unlike most wildlife reserves,
this one has the forest running

right up to the Atlantic Ocean.

A massive natural beach runs
the length of the park,

making it one of the most scenic
protected areas I've been in.

Combine the beach with the savannas,

waterways and the always-deep-green
forest, and you have

a spectacular sight,
no matter the time of year.

The one big-fiver we previously saw,

the buffalo, began to appear
here and there,

and it became obvious to me
that this was a very different

species from the more common
and formidable Cape Buffalo

of southern and eastern parts.

This buffalo is half the size,
is a reddish colour,

and has the funniest and cutest
big ears in the world.

They also are socially different,
being found as individuals

or small herds,
as opposed to the large,

sometimes topping 400 member herds
of those close cousins,

the cape buffalo.

Our challenge was to get
more intimate views

of the wildlife at Loango,

so we had but one option.

If it wasn't enough to walk up
on a mother elephant and her calf,

we're going to try to get
really close to a forest buffalo.

Now, you wouldn't even imagine
doing that with a cape buffalo,

but let's see what we can do.

As with the sitatunga and elephant,
the buffalo were most gracious

and allowed us
to stealthily approach.

Unlike the wildlife
in the traditional parks

of East and South Africa,
these animals have not had enough

tourist traffic to become either
attenuated or afraid of humans.

In fact, we were the only
ones all day in the park.

Literally, we saw no one.

We had one last big-fiver left
and the day was waning.

We had to head back
to our boat before sunset,

both for park rules and safety.

The red river hog,
a large member of the pig family,

are particularly skittish.

And though we had a couple of them
seen a long distance off,

they ran before we had a chance
to even raise the camera to our eyes.

But just as hope was ebbing,

our eagle-eyed guide spotted
a large sounder.

A sounder is the proper name
for a group of wild pigs.

We were still a long ways off,

and having been successful
the three times before

stalking our prey,
we took to the chase.

It was remarkable.

We came within a few yards
of the large family group.

Well, I remembered one
of my own safari rules.

And that is, you don't give up
until you're out of the park.

And in this case -
you can tell its dusk -

we were almost out of the park,

but we had no good footage
of the red river hogs.

And then, suddenly,
34 ran in front of us.

It was amazing!

This was one of the most satisfying
days observing wildlife I have had.

And it was even more astounding
by watching the sunset

as we rode the boat
back over to our camp.

It may seem corny, but there are days
that just work out

exactly as planned.

Our final challenge, and the one
I had really come for was up next -

the trek to the gorillas.

We had multiple sightings,
and good ones, of the other four

members of the Gabon big five -
sitatunga, red river hog,

forest buffalo and forest elephant.

So, the most difficult of all,
lowland gorillas,

was all there was that separated me
from the Equatorial Africa quinella.

The day begins with an hour boat ride

to the far end of the lagoon,

where the gorilla research camp
is located.

The gorilla were originally
attenuated to make it easier

for researchers to observe
their behaviour

without affecting it.

They wanted to compare the heavily
researched mountain gorilla

to these lesser studied
lowland gorillas.

Ironically,
all zoo gorillas are lowland.

No mountain gorillas are in any zoo,
anywhere in the world.

The guide at the camp greets us
with some good news

and some bad news.

Good news - the trackers have found
the gorillas,

first time in nearly two weeks.

Bad news - they are in the big swamp
where tracking them

would be virtually impossible.

We would have to wait
for the gorillas to move.

Now, I'm not a patient person

and waiting is not
in my comfort zone.

But we had no choice.

We knew we had to start our trekking
by 2pm to reach them,

so we had time for now.

Well, we've arrived here
at Gorilla Base Camp

after about an hour
and a half boat ride,

and we've got some good news
and bad news.

The good news is they've found
the gorillas.

The bad news is they're
in the middle of a swamp,

so we can't get to them.

So, we waited about a half an hour,

and we got some good news.

The gorillas left the swamp.

And we got some bad news.

The trackers lost them.

So, now we're waiting
for the trackers to find them again.

Two hours later,
the guides get a call

from the trackers.

Good news.

And bad news.

Good news - the gorillas have moved
out of the big swamp and are heading

to a trackable area.

Bad news...

..the trackers have lost them.

More waiting.

Trackers will call
when they find them.

They are following their trail.

Another hour passes and a call
comes in from the trackers.

Oh, I know this is it. Time to go.

(SIGHS) But no.

The trackers called in to say
they had followed the trail

of the wrong troop.

They would have to start
from scratch.

This was the worst news possible.

Four-hour mark.

Now 1pm, with only an hour to go

to the cut-off time
and a call comes in.

They found the gorillas.

The trail of the gorillas
is ridiculously wild

with obstacles everywhere.

I had heard that sometimes
the gorillas are just an easy

20-minute walk from camp.

Well, not today.

We trekked through the forest
for over an hour and a half

until we reached the edge
of what they call the small swamp.

Well, they were half right -

it was a swamp.

If we wanted to get close
to the gorillas,

we would have to cross
this waterway,

a mass of land and water
that would require great footwork,

balance beyond imagination,

and some swimming.

The guides cautioned us
that this was an incredibly rough,

with razor-sharp grasses,

footpaths that disintegrate into mud
that sucks you down like quicksand,

and leeches.

None of that sounded fun,
but I had come to see the gorillas,

so it was a no-brainer.

Cross the swamp at all cost.

For the next 30 or so minutes,
we slowly trudged

across the marshland,

trying to land on hillocks
of solid earth, only to miss

and find yourself in several feet
of muddy, dark water.

You had to claw your way out
and onto the next mat of grasses

and try to stand
and move forward again.

Step by step, swim by swim,
we crossed the watery earth

until we did it.

We reached the lowland gorillas.

Few people ever get to see
wild lowland gorillas.

To see the big silverback walk
effortlessly across the swamp,

made me smile.

More than twice my weight,

and he never fell
through into the water.

How did he do that?

It wasn't until a week later

I realised how lucky
and crazy we were.

No-one the rest of the week made it
to the gorillas. No-one.

But there was a cost.

My clothes were ruined -

no way to get the stains
from that mud out.

My binoculars,
though supposedly waterproof,

did not prove so.

And most costly, my camera
and zoom lens got waterlogged

and were done for.

On the other hand,

I did get several pictures
before the camera's untimely death

to remind me
of my wondrous adventure.

Ah. The good old girl held out
just long enough.

We shared the footage
and my pictures with my colleagues,

none of which made it
to the gorillas.

And in return,
they had a surprise for me.

They said it was customary
for gorilla trackers

that are successful
to have their hair cut.

I hadn't heard that before,
but who was I to argue?

After returning to our hotel
in Libreville,

it was time to honour
the bizarre haircut tradition.

My compadres thought watching me
get my big head of hair cut

would be fun.

So, they filled the shop
and its windows,

I'm sure unnerving the staff.

The barber asked me
what I wanted done,

and I said I'd leave it up to him.

In a little over an hour -
yes, an hour, the longest haircut

I've ever had -

the results were truly stunning.

It was then, and only then,

that my colleagues told me
that there was no haircut tradition.

It was the camp director's joke.

Though Gabon threw us
several curveballs,

we were able to work around them
and see all the Gabon big five.

Most important and difficult,
we got up close,

photographed and admired
our close cousins,

the lowland gorilla.

There is no beating that,

and I had one more travel quest
on my 'done' list.