Tanzania

 

We made it through our 23 hours of travelling although our luggage didn’t make it through the connection in Istanbul. We got to the Arusha Planet Lodge at 5:00 a.m. and our arrangement for a room went haywire as there was a miscommunication as to what a $240 dayroom was. We tried to sleep in the lobby as there were no alternatives. We did get in our rooms by 9:30.

In the afternoon we went on a tour of the city. We started with a tanzanite factory/store. It was informative and somewhat surprising, but Teresa wasn’t tempted. Denise bought some nice earrings though.

Next was a history museum which was not large, but our guides went deep into details.

Lastly, we went to the commercial market and the largest art gallery in Africa. It had some very good art in many different mediums and was well worth the time.

The next morning was Arusha National Park day. It was not considered to be as spectacular as our other planned visits, and with an emphasis on scenery, but between the driving (mostly) and the hiking we came across giraffes, buffaloes, warthogs, zebras, baboons, three types of antelopes (waterbuck, reedbuck and dik-dik) and a few species of monkeys, including the rare Colobus.

95% of the vehicles we saw on safari were the same: Toyota Land Cruisers significantly modified. There was a two-seat driver area followed by a six-seat passenger area, every seat was next to a window with three rows. The last row had a small refrigerator between the seats and was a little tighter. We didn’t have to use those seats. The roof of the vehicle could be raised which unless we were travelling from one Park to another was always up. There was one over the entire passenger area and a separate one for the driver’s area.    

We had two such vehicles. Teresa, Shane and I were in one with Freddy (Eagle Eye) as our guide/driver. 

Janette and her friends from Switzerland, Denise and Peter, were in the other with Nickson as the guide/driver. 

We considered ourselves extremely fortunate in choosing Monkey Adventures as our tour company, and being assigned Freddy and Nickson. They made it amazing in several senses of the word. We really enjoyed the itineray we picked which included 7 parks and the ability to choose the price point of our accomodations. 

We also saw plenty of birds including a golden crowned crane, flamingoes, little bee-eater and white fronted bee-eater, black crested hornbill, black shouldered kite and red-headed weaver.   

The next day we headed to Tarangire National Park. It took us three hours to get there and another hour to get to the safari area, but once inside we saw an abundance of wildlife.

Elephants were plentiful. We saw zebras frolicking in a waterhole when a herd of elephants approached. The zebras fled hastily as the elephants entered to enjoy the water and mud.

We ate lunch at a picnic area rife with begging monkeys and plenty of birds looking for handouts or a quick steal.

The highlight of the day was spotting a cheetah stalking its prey. It then took off sprinting and caught the gazelle.

After the kill the cheetah started chirping. Far off in the distance the chirps were answered with similar sounds that turned out to be from three cheetah cubs. They made their way to the site of the kill to share in the feast.

Our accommodation for the night was the Ang’ata Tarangire Camp, which was a grouping of tents, rustic but comfortable enough. Beautiful sunset and sunrise.  

After dinner we went on a night safari. Besides a few normal species we also saw genets, including one catching a mouse, long tailed mongooses, bat-eared foxes and a wildcat. We also saw a night heron catch a fish for the third kill of the day. With the Landcruiser having six riders for the evening, we saw the wisdom of hiring two cruisers for the six of us.

The next day we remained in the same park but in different areas. Again, the elephants, waterbuck antelopes, warthogs and dik-diks.

We were hunting the elusive lion when Freddy, our eagle-eyed driver/guide hit the breaks and shouted “lion”. We didn’t initially see it as we looked in the distance, but Freddy pointed it out, extremely well-camouflaged and very near the path we were on, a path several vehicles had travelled right before us without spotting the lioness. When Teresa, who was standing on a seat to see out under the raised roof of the vehicle asked where it was, I told her if the lion stuck out her tongue, she would be licking her toes (a slight exaggeration).    

 

While the lioness was still in the bush she was staring down an ostrich we had passed shortly before. Freddy radioed Nickson, the guide/driver for Janette, Denise and Peter to let him know of the find. Other folks heard and we were soon surrounded by numerous other vehicles. The ostrich slowly made its way away from the big cat. The lioness gave up and sauntered away.

We then went to the green swamp area which again had plenty of wildlife.

We got word from the radio of the spotting of a male lion. It was in the brush well off any pathway which made it difficult to see. We got a better look at it a little later.

Shane, who impossibly was finding rare birds in the trees, also spotted what turned out to be a monitor lizard.    

Our place of lodging for the night was The Escarpment Luxury Lodge which was exquisite. We had a show by some Maasai folks before a wonderful dinner.

The next day was Lake Manyara National Park day. The Park is part forest and part lake.

We found out that we could find the same creatures in a separate type of habitat. On our drive in we passed numerous burn spots where the park personnel were reducing the undergrowth. We later encountered fires in Central Serengeti which we sometimes smelled at our camp.

We saw our first hippos along with ground hornbills, a monitor lizard from up close, and large groupings of baboons, elephants and giraffes. There were warthogs, waterbucks, reedbucks and other antelopes, no lions in trees, however. 

On the way back we stopped at a modern market. I bought a T-shirt.

The next day was a travel day. We headed through the Rift Valley where we saw Maasai folks tending their livestock. This time of year meant herding them to and from sources of water which often was quite far from their grazing area. Our Land Cruiser and other traffic kicked up dust on the unpaved roads, often onto the Maasai walking along the road and in villages along the road.

We also saw the Mount of God volcano which is active and has unusually low silica levels in its lava.

In the afternoon we headed to Natron Lake to see the flamingos. The lake is very alkaline and large flocks of flamingos come to feed exclusively on cyanobacteria which thrives in the lake's highly alkaline waters. After a very bumpy ride to the lake, we walked through crunchy salty sediments to get close (relatively speaking) enough to see the very large flock or flamboyance. The water was shallow and not particularly scenic where we were.

The next morning we went on a hike to see waterfalls. We had the same Maasia guide, Cia,  from the walk to see the flamingos. She led us along a trail with some climbing and rather treacherous stream crossings among slippery rocks. The waterfalls were close together with the best being the third but we have no pictures of that as you go under a waterfall and then the plan was to swim for a while. The water wasn’t too cold and there was quite a current going away from the fall pushing us back the way we came. There were high rock walls on either side, reminiscent of The Narrows. 

We were staying at Lengai Safari Lodge which was weak on internet but had a nice pool with a waterslide. The staff were very friendly. It was warm during our stay. Weak ac but better than none. Teresa and Janette changed rooms to get a functioning unit. We had a free afternoon after the hike which allowed some hand washing of laundry and time at the pool.

The next day was a travel day to the Serengeti. It took us four hours to get there. The trip did include spotting of wildlife and Maasai villages, but the change was dramatic after entry. We saw two lions three minutes in, and thousands of wildebeests, plenty of elephants, giraffes, hyenas, cheetahs and many species of antelopes.

We stayed at the Mara River Canopy Camp which was another tent establishment. Very nice accommodation with a view out onto the Serengeti. As with all our tent camps, we needed an escort to move around the camp after dark.

The next day had as a goal to see the great crossing of the Mara River in the Wildebeest Great Migration. We stopped to view some hyenas on the way there. Freddy cautioned that this was a day for patience, and he was correct.

There was a great multitude of wildebeest there when we arrived. We had travelled to the destination bank of the crossing.

There were some fits and starts but the main herd became spooked each time it approached the water. The herd travelled upstream to look again but no one would initiate things by taking the plunge.

Finally, a splinter group downstream initiated a crossing which was successful to a point. All who ventured survived, but the line was cut short as a crocodile that had been upstream neared the entry point causing the rest to back off.

Some time later another splinter group further upstream from the main herd decided to give it a go. 

Unfortunately, there was one crocodile in the vicinity which grabbed, drowned and presumably ate one of the crossers.

From the documentaries we had seen we expected more crocodiles and more carnage. However, we were well into the Migration season so perhaps most of the crocodiles were satiated. The camp where we were staying moved a few times a year and was quite remote. 

The next day started with us looking for wildlife. We saw various animals including three of the six lions we would see that day, two of them males.

After a while we found ourselves at the Mara River again.

It wasn’t long until a sizeable herd started the crossing. We saw one crocodile nearby but he didn’t seem interested.

The ford went smoothly. The last one was rather young and Teresa rooted for it to make it across. After he made it, he ran very close to our vehicle.

That afternoon we continued our safari and later drove into Kenya for a picture at the boundary marker between the two countries. More animals and beautiful landscapes.

The next day was another travel day, to Central Serengeti. We saw lots of the same animals with vastly different scenery.  Shane spotted a lion hiding in a tree.

We stayed at Serenity Camp, which was very nice with great food and very good entertainment. We all loved it.

The next morning, we explored more of Central Serengeti. There seemed to be larger groups of animals (except wildebeests) than we had seen elsewhere.

We saw our first hippo completely out of the water, and he was in a large group. Lions, elephants, and Thompson gazelles all seemed to enjoy hanging out with friends.   

We saw another lion in a tree. 

As a first, we saw a leopard, also in a tree.

The next day was a travel day to Ngorongoro but we spent the morning in Serengeti. We saw two jackals take down a baby Thompson gazelle. An older Thompson tried to move the jackals off their prey, but they were having none of it.

We later found a cheetah with her three very young cubs, thereafter an assortment of lions.

We reached Olduvai Gorge where the Leakey’s found the skulls of the first humanoids.

On to the Ngorongoro caldera. We stopped at a viewpoint from the rim on the way to Lemala Ngorongoro Camp. It was inside the Park, close to the rim, on the far side from where we first viewed it. It was elevated enough for nighttime temperatures in the 50’s. When we arrived, there were elephants within 30 feet of our camp. We had drinks around a fire, talked with a couple from England and watched “bush tv”.

The next morning, we were up at 5:25 and met with hot chocolate and coffee in our tents. We had a 6:00 departure from our camp. We had to leave the Park and then come back down as the stay time is highly regulated. The drive to the bottom of the caldera was not too bad. At 6:50 Freddie spotted our first black rhino of the trip to complete our “Big Five”. Binoculars were needed to see it.

The scenery in the caldera made great backdrops for photos of animals.

We stopped for our boxed breakfast at a very scenic pond with hippos.

We saw the usual assortment of wildlife including some flamingos with unique color schemes.

We spent some time watching an elephant play with some pelicans and hippos.

On the way out we saw two more rhinos.

On to Lake Eyasi and the Lake Eyasi Safari Lodge.

The next morning we got a local guide to take us to see a camp from the tribe of Hadzabe who were hunters and gatherers.

After a briefing about their camp and their life we joined a hunting party for a foray into the bush. One bird was killed but they came across a trove of tubers that tasted like cucumbers.

On the way back we stopped to make a fire with friction from rubbing sticks. Shane was successful in his attempt to do it. After the fire got going they threw on the plucked bird and the yams that hadn’t been eaten. That was their breakfast.

Back at the camp we saw singing and dancing and did bracelet shopping. We also tried their bow and arrows. Teresa and Shane both did well.

Next, we went to a different tribe, the Datoga who actually sold knives and arrowheads to the Hadzabe as they were proficient in a rudimentary smelting process.

We discovered this tribe practiced polygamy. Some of us joined them in their singing.

We headed back to Arusha and Monkey Adventures (our tour group) headquarters. I must say we were very pleased with their operation. Teresa loved their website and their communication was excellent. Our driver/guide was great, and it was all well-organized.