Boots on the Ground: Diary of Trip
Mozambique, June 2026

By Brittney Kloosterhouse

Landing in Gorongosa National Park.

Back Row, L-R: Michael Wood, Bob Fish, Keremba Wariobi, Joshua Kilda, Rob Carpter, Mike Shaw; Front Row, L-R, Erin Mortimer, Brittney Kloosterhouse, Anna Wincek, Michelle Fish, Michelle Shaw

Traveling by bush plane to Gorongosa National Park. The final stretch in a long line of flights! Everyone is feeling excited to experience what the week will bring.

Waking up in Gorongosa National Park.

Gorongosa National Park is a place of restoration, utilizing the indigenous and natural fauna to its own advantage, bringing together communities and restoring wildlife.

Loaded up and ready to go see Mount Gorongosa!

The first block of coffee plants on Mount Gorongosa.

Planted in 2014, cared for bravely by Fatianca Paulina Chico during the civil war. Coffee is just one of the ways Gorongosa National Park is giving back to the planet. Coffee is a naturally grown plant on themountain, but coffee has never been a part of the Mozambique culture. It wasn’t until recently that farmers have learned how to create and execute growing and selling coffee.

Fatianca Paulina Chico – one of the brave women who cared for the first block of nursery coffee plants during the civil war. She would sneak into the nurseries at night and water the coffee plants so they could grow and flourish. Now, she has her own thriving farm on Mt. Gorongosa.

A new plantation – hand-planted by one man, Jonacio Roque Sarandiwe, with a dream to retire comfortably one day and own a Toyota truck. He worked all day, every day, to plant 11 hectares (about 27 acres!) from October through February. In four years, these plants will be producing coffee that will arrive in BIGGBY COFFEE coffee shops!

Lunch on the mountain with a beautiful waterfall view!

A small portion of the nursey. The future of our coffee! There were 84,000 plants in this nursery that will soon be planted into the earth to become big, beautiful coffee plants!

Honey Factory and the coffee processing center.

Always transported safely in a safari vehicle!

A visit to the honey factory on Gorongosa National Park where we learned about bee preservation, honey processing, and even got to try some sweet, local honey. Each year has two harvesting periods: February – April, and then again September – November. This allows bees to rest and restore their hives between harvests.

Touring the dry beds, wet mill, and processing center. They are always improving their equipment to be more efficient! Recently, they just installed a new wet mill system, and they have more plans for improvement as time goes on.

Coffee Cupping with Edna Catondo, the Quality Control Manager for Gorongosa Coffee! She oversees coffee quality by cupping batches and ensuring they are tasting exactly to her standards. She is also learning how to become a Q-Grader in coffee!

Visiting the other side of the mountain: the Tambara region

Visiting small producers on the other side of Mount Gorongosa. Pictured is Isabel Verniz Chinamo, a woman who has her own coffee farm, separate from her husband and his coffee farm. She has her own employees, her own personal motor bike, and manages her own business. Listening to her story is inspiring! By growing coffee, she has been able to send her children to college, where they hope to become a doctor and a teacher for future generations. She hopes her children will take over the family farm.

Beauty of coffee cherries while hiking up Mount Gorongosa. Hiking up the mountain was breathtaking – and the view at the top was worth the hard work of the hike!

Leaving Mount Gorongosa.

Girls Club, and back to Gorongosa National Park.

Pictured is the Headmistress of the Girls Club. She oversees the club, which offers education on respect for each other, protecting the environment, animals, and trees, as well as how to dance and make the world a better place. The Girls Club is offered to boys as well, which teaches young boys to respect and value women from a young age, as well as the environment around them.

A boat ride across the river – on our way to walk through Gorongosa National Park, where we will get to walk through a small village and talk to the local clinical technician.

Pre-school at Gorongosa, where we got to interact and play with the kids for a moment!

Gorongosa National Park Research Center & Sunset Safari Ride.

Pangolin rescue – the cutest ugly thing you ever did see. The only mammal with scales, Gorongosa National Park rescues them from illegal trafficking, rehabilitates them, and then releases them back to nature. Gorongosa National Park has an extensive research center, and like everything else at the park, it started with nothing. But now, they are discovering new species all the time! They also have a complete and fully functional lab for research and testing.

Gin and tonics after a beautiful sunset safari ride! The ride was unbelievable, and an experience only understood on the seat of a safari vehicle.

Back into the bush plane, which begins the long road back home.

Final fly over Gorongosa National Park!

Safely back in the States!