Gorilla Box Appeal: Keeping Rangers Equipped

Walikale is in some of the most rugged territory in the world. The forest is dense, with patches of incredibly spiny, thorny vegetation. It’s massively hilly, full of trackless, sunless, steep-sided valleys. And it’s very, very wet – with chilling torrents of rain often sluicing through the trees in earth-shattering deluges.

Rangers spend weeks on end in this harsh territory. They track and protect gorillas from dawn till dusk. They find and destroy murderous traps set by illegal poachers for bushmeat that cause such suffering to so many gorillas. They do whatever it takes to protect gorillas. It’s hard, remorseless work. Yet the rangers are happy to do it because they know they’re saving some of the last precious great apes in Africa.

But it takes a terrible toll on their equipment. Even the most rugged kit is destroyed in next to no time. And no matter how tough the rangers are themselves, we simply can’t expect them to protect gorillas without the right clothing, let alone to go out on patrol without waterproof boots – or spend freezing nights on the soaking forest floor without any shelter.

Rangers patrolling the forests of Walikale constantly need new kit and equipment to carry on protecting gorillas. It’s not a government reserve, so it doesn’t receive any official funding.

They rely on the generous donations of supporters like you. you canhelp make sure every ranger always has the kit and equipment they need  to keep up their lifesaving work. It’s called a Gorilla Box. And it contains all the kit and equipment one ranger  needs to protect gorillas for a year

A typical Gorilla Box includes: a waterproof jacket and trousers, sweatshirt and waterproof hat, a tarpaulin rain shelter, warm hiking socks, a rechargeable torch, a waterproof lightweight sleeping bag, a compact first aid kit, a waterproof rucksack and waterproof boots. It really is everything a ranger needs to keep going for a whole year.

All the rangers need to bring for themselves are the extraordinary courage and determination required to keep going in the face of truly appalling conditions. Their Gorilla Box will give them everything else they need. They’re ready to lay down their lives to protect gorillas. Their families already sacrifice so much to let the rangers risk their lives to carry out their lifesaving work. Surely the least we can do is make sure every ranger has the kit and equipment they need.