Gorillas have always inspired a unique fascination in human imagination. From the gargantuan king kong who bent an entire city to his will to the perceptive Amy in Crichton’s Congo. Our representations afford them some of the most desirable human traits - power, advanced intelligence, empathy. Harboring such images of these captivating apes, I set out to seek them in their natural habitat. My quest took me to what I came to realize was one of the most pristine, unspoiled and mesmerizing ecosystems still alive on our planet - Loango National Park in Gabon. Finding gorillas in the wild is no meager task. Unfortunately, years of rampant bushmeat trade and poaching has decimated their populations in addition to making them extremely wary of humans. Gabon is one of their last remaining havens, specifically the western lowland gorillas. Although dispersed all over the abundant Gabonese equatorial forest, the easiest place to see them is Loango National Park where researchers have managed to habituate one particular family. “Easiest” being used in very liberal terms. The trip involves getting to Libreville,capital of Gabon, a transfer by air, road or boat to the city of Port Gentil, followed by a 4 hour drive on mostly dirt roads to Loango Lodge in the national park, a 45 minute boat ride from the lodge to the research station and then finally a trek through the forest on foot to find the gorillas which could span from thirty minutes to over two hours! After making it through said circuitous journey, it was finally time to see the gorillas. At the research station, our guide Dania briefed us about the dos and don’t and gave us some background about the Atananga family we were to go see. Soon, her radio crackled signaling the gorillas had been spotted. There was an electric surge of excitement but it came with a burgeoning feeling of trepidation. Trekking through an equatorial forest is no walk in the park. Despite having guides and trackers we were out there in the jungle, the wild, the unknown. There was another problem: Elephants. Forest elephants don’t take kindly to human presence in their domain. Intimidating when aggravated even from the security of a closed vehicle that outpaces them, encountering them on foot would be an absolute nightmare. Our trackers were specially selected from a Gabonese tribe known for their ability to detect and avoid elephants. With that mildly reassuring thought, off we went into the wilderness. Immediately the trail started winding into increasingly dense forest, sunlight diminishing amongst the thickening vegetation. The forest floor was strewn with decaying leaves, plant matter and copious elephant dung! Climbing, crawling and at times stumbling along in the suffocating humidity of the tropics was quite draining. While we were on high alert for the forest's largest residents, we were quickly apprised of the problem posed by some of its smallest - ants! Surreptitiously crawling up and clamping down their mandibles in the most awkward places under our clothes. Throughout the trek you heard yowls of pain or saw people jump up in discomfort as the little ants extracted their pound of flesh! After half an hour of traversing the lush green maze we came to an abrupt halt. The guides pointed out the rustling of leaves in the distance. It was them. Excitement reached fever pitch, each cautious step forward bringing with it a plethora of emotions - joy, anticipation, apprehension, exhilaration. A few moments that seemed like an eternity later I finally laid eyes on him. Sitting there in a little clearing in the forest, holding a pose that seemed almost spiritual, legs crossed, arms outstretched at his sides, starting off into the distance. He was magnificent, a spectacle so majestic that all the emotions which had been building inside me broke free in a quiet stream of tears. As I saw him then - the mighty silverback Kamaya - all those epithets we accord these stunning creatures were dramatically reinforced. His assured stride, his brute power, his deft touch, his disarming charm, his near human demeanor. Separated by twenty feet and even fewer chromosomes, I watched him in awestruck amazement for what was undoubtedly one of the most magical hours of my life.