I was just looking through my photo archive and came across this photo of a lioness, taken in the Central Serengeti, Tanzania in July 2006. Our day safari had just come across a fresh lion kill. There was actually quite a large pride of lions feeding on the remains of a hertebeast. This lioness though, stood to the side, content with her lot. Deadly but beautiful animals – the golden grasses of the Serengeti plains act as the perfect camouflage for these high-order predators. I really like this picture. I think I’m going to have to frame it.

Lioness, Central Serengeti, Tanzania

The 45 minute flight from Manyara air-strip to the golden sweep of the Serengeti was something that I won’t forget in a hurry. The change in terrain was quite remarkable. The lush greens of the rift valley, turned into the rugged lowlands of the Serengeti after our little Cessna buzzed the peaks of the crater pocked Rift escarpment. This escarpment seemed to be the natural barrier between the Ngorongoro to the south and the Serengeti to the north.

Having seen and heard so much about the infamous Serengeti, I kept my eyes peeled for any sign of wildlife below. Bizarrely, I saw nothing that resembled any form of life whatsoever. The terrain did change yet again though. At one point the grasslands were just a seemingly endless golden plain, but this eventually morphed into rock outcrops and more bush-like terrain. The latter was pretty characteristic of the Northern Serengeti, where we were to be basing ourselves for the next few days – and as reports would have it, the wildebeest migration would be in this neck of the Serengeti at this time of year. And so our plane landed in Lobo, which is simply yet another remote air-strip tucked amongst open bush-land, with a small cavalcade of safari trucks on hand to greet us.

Alex, our guide from Elewana Safaris was there to meet us. Alex informed that we were about one hour’s drive to our accommodation at the Serengeti Migration Camp, and so we would undertake a bit of a safari on route. Shortly into the drive, and Alex is navigating a winding trail through a large cluster of boulders. It wasn’t long before we saw our first Serengeti wildlife; enter the Klipspringer, yet another small African antelope, although a little bit bigger than the Dik Dik.

Klipspringer, North Serengeti, Tanzania

Our drive continued, and we observed the usual Tanzanian suspects, in the impala, Thomson gazelle, and zebra. Alex informed that after we arrived at our accommodation, we would venture out later in the afternoon to go leopard spotting. That got us excited. The leopard was the only animal of the Big 5 to elude us so far. We had seen Buffalo, Elephant, Rhino, Lion and now we just needed this amazing cat to complete the five. After what was at least 2 hours, we eventually did arrive at Serengeti Migration camp, and at that the most lavish of accommodation we had experienced so far.

A wooden walk bridge took you into a well appointed reception area and lounge. We were greeted by our hosts, and taken to our room – well it wasn’t a room – it was the most luxurious of tents I have ever stayed in. In fact, although it resembled a tent, it was a well appointed cabin. We had about half an hour, before lunch, and then some time for our leopard safari, so I spent a bit of time exploring in and around our tent come cabin. I spotted some amazing looking lizards, sunning themselves on rocks behind the cabin. I was informed later, that this was an agama lizard, and one that is quite common in Tanzania. But, I thought the purple and orange flecked lizard was kind of regal all the same.

Agama Lizard, North Serengeti, Tanzania

It was then on our way to lunch, that we came across yet more fascinating wildlife. There was a family of Rock Hyraxes living at the bottom of a tree, in one of the camp’s gardens. They were cute things, and reminded me very much of the possums we would find back home in Australia. One young looking hyrax is in the photo below.

Rock Hyrax, Serengeti Migration Camp, Tanzania

After our lunch, we waited what seemed an eternity to get going on our leopard safari. Alex and our hosts informed that we were better off heading out in mid-afternoon, to avoid the hoards of Tsetsi flies which were a bit of a nuisance. But, after some huffing and puffing, we got going. The area we were heading to, was the Grumeti River. A two hour drive from the hotel, and we found ourselves hugging this winding river, looking out for the tell-tail signs of a leopard. No, that’s not a typo. As Alex informed, quite often the way to spot a leopard in a tree, was to look out for a lone tail dangling from the branches. They are so well camouflaged that looking for anything else would probably prove fruitless. We must have driven along the river for a good 40 minutes, before Alex exclaimed “leopard” and he backed up the vehicle to get a better view. Margaret and I were looking frantically in the trees for it, but it took Alex’ keen eye and patience to point him out to us. Literally, a mere 30 metres away, a majestic leopard sat in the nook of some tree branches. Now, that we had him in our sights, my SLR and 300mm lens came out. Even at this range it proved difficult to get the leopard, the back lit trees made it extra difficult. Nonetheless I managed to get a couple of good photographs, and the magic of Photoshop enabled me to reveal the leopard and do justice to this elegant cat. The two photos below, show the leopard as it looked in it’s surroundings, and the other is an enhanced close-up in Photoshop.

Leopard, North Serengeti, Tanzania

Leopard, North Serengeti, Tanzania

Seeing a leopard had us elated for the rest of the afternoon, and the fact that we didn’t see another, or indeed much else in the way of significant finds in the afternoon, didn’t bother us one bit. We were quite content when we arrived back at camp. We showered and had dinner, listening to the grunt of the hippos from a waterhole a mere few hundred yards from the camp grounds. At dusk-fall, we were instructed that we were not to walk between our cabin and the hotel reception without a staff member, or more to the point, an armed guard. We were in the middle of Africa, and there was plenty of wildlife about that could inflict some serious damage. Namely lions, elephants and the occasional errant hippo.

The following day we had a long safari drive ahead of us. We were going to make a straight line south, to the Central Serengeti. So, we set off very early. The early morning sun was quite spectacular on the golden grass. I photographed quite a lot of zebra on the trip so far, but the shot of the zebra and foal below was probably my best one, given how great the light was.

Zebra, Northern Serengeti, Tanzania

The drive was indeed long. We did see quite a lot of wildlife on the way, but perhaps the highlight of the journey south was the visit to massive hippo pool. This particular hippo pool was much larger than the one we had seen in Ngorongoro crater, and like the crater’s it seemed a bit out of place amongst the relatively dry terrain of the Serengeti. But, nonetheless, here was a hippo pool and it’s occupants were extremely active this morning, and proved fascinating to watch. There were just so many hippos jammed into this one pool, grunting, thrashing in a claustrophobic mud-melee. We quickly forgot about the long drive we had just undertaken, and gawped at these creatures from the safety of the river bank. What was also interesting, was that the hippos were not the only denizen of this particular mud-bath. A number of crocodiles, lay like statues at the extremities of the pool.

Hippo Pool, Serengeti, Tanzania

Eventually, we did find our way to the plains of the central Serengeti. The central Serengeti was yet another feast for the eyes. Because there were less trees, and the plains so much more open it was relatively easy to spot wildlife. Giraffes and zebra stood out particularly well. That said, lions were a little harder to see, as they were so well camouflaged by the golden grass. We were driving along very slowly at one point, anxiously looking for signs of lions, when Alex, got a bit excited and floored the accelerator. He had been listening to his radio, and picked up the fact that there had been a lion-kill about half an hours drive away. So off we went.

We thought this lion kill was a bit of a red herring, as we had seen nothing for a good while. But sure enough, we eventually came across a herd of safari trucks, huddled around a lion kill, scavenging for that optimal photo. We joined the throng. It was an incredible sight. A pride of lions had slaughtered what appeared to be a hartebeest. (Rumour suggested it was a zebra, but the legs were not striped, so I didn’t buy it.)  The lions must have been feasting for a good while, as all that remained of the hapless creature was a stripped carcass. After watching them for a while, Alex our guide asked us if we wanted to go for lunch now. We said no, we were quite happy to keep watching. He then said, but we can’t eat here, we need to go. Margaret, stuck the feet in, and didn’t shift. We were quite happy watching the lion scene from the safety of the sun-roof. But eventually, Alex’s whining proved a little too much, and I suppose we were a bit hungry after seeing the lions gorge themselves, so we headed towards the Serengeti visitor’s centre to get our feed.

Lion Kill, Central Serengeti, Tanzania

The visitor’s centre was quite good actually, and there were a number of wildlife documentaries being shown. But, we weren’t there to watch a documentary, we were here to view the real thing, so we set off looking for game once more, and made our way back northwards. As we neared camp late afternoon, Alex spotted another leopard. This time, we could see a leopard in a lone tree, characteristic tail drooping. It was farther away than the leopard we had seen the day earlier, but what was interesting about this find, was that the leopard had a carcass with him. It was quite odd really. Earlier in the visitor’s centre I had watched a leopard protect it’s kill by pulling it up into a tree, and sure enough, hundred of kilometres later, this leopard had done just that. Alex, guessed that the leopard’s kill was probably a Thomson gazelle.

Leopard and Kill, North Serengeti, Tanzania

It had been a long day. We had seen yet so much. We were quite happy whiling away the late evening on the sun-deck. Enter another fascinating creature. The sun-deck was visited every evening by a couple of spotted genets. These are wild cats, and about the same size as the domestic variety. There was no end to the amount of wild-life Africa had to offer. Eventually we had dinner, and gratefully accepted our armed escort to the cabin where we crashed.

The following day was Migration day. we had already seen ample Wildebeest, predominantly in Ngorongoro, but Alex was going to take us further northwards to the Kenya-Tanzania border to take in where most of the herd was. As with every other aspect of our safari, this was yet another long drive. For the most part, this game drive delivered what it said on the tin. Herds upon herds of gazelle, zebra and wildebeest. The wildebeest migration is nature’s juggernaut. They just keep on running, despite inevitable losses that will occur to lions, crocs, and other mishaps on the way. As we were visiting in July, the migration at this point crosses the Mara River, heading from the Masai Mara in Kenya to the Tanzanian Serengeti in the south.

The Wildebeest Migration, Mara River, Tanzania

As we approached the Mara river, we came across a herd of elephants. We hadn’t seen this many elephants since the Ngorongoro crater, so it was quite a nice surprise. Eventually we came to the Kenya border crossing. Alex, had to sign a form, and then we were in Kenya. Alex made a bee-line for the Mara river bank. We were wondering whether we’d see wildebeest crossing the river, but it wasn’t to be. Instead we were greeted with yet another tumultuous mass of writhing blubber. Yes, hippos. Even more than we had seen on route to the central Serengeti. What was different with this vision, was that many of the hippos were sunning themselves on the river’s edge. Alex, informed that we should stay on the higher ground overlooking the river bank – as any closer would attract their wrath. Yes, more people are killed by hippos in Africa than lions. They are quite territorial, and despite their bulk, could easily out run you over a short distance. So we weren’t going to chance it. The photo below gives you some perspective on how many hippos there were.

Hippos on mass, Mara River, Kenya-Tanzania Border

We headed back to camp with our fill of masses and super herds. It was a such a unique spectacle, we had to keep pinching ourselves to see if were dreaming. Our last night at the camp was a notable one. The sunset was exceptionally glorious and we had a nice dinner with the hosts of the camp. But was most memorable, was being woken up at around 4 in the morning, by the roar of lions outside our cabin. Margaret and I woke up with a start. I hinted at going out onto the balcony to take a look, but Margaret informed quite forcefully that I would do no such thing, unless I wanted to be an early breakfast. So, I thought better of it. It was like an MGM sound-track for the next 10 minutes, before it subsided. Later in the camp reception, we heard out host say that the lions were wandering through camp, and had to be scared off by staff. Minutes later, our very same host informed newly arrived guests that the lions heard last night were a kilometre or two away. The roar of a lion carries easily on the early morning air apparently. Margaret and I watched amused at the change in story. Yes, we were in Africa and the animals do what they want. Waiting in reception for our ride to the airport, I spotted a Buffalo Weaver in a  nearby tree. Magnificent bird. Below is the shot.

Buffalo Weaver, Serengeti Migration Camp, Tanzania

And so our safari concluded with a visit to Lobo air-strip. Our Cessna was late in arriving, but we made it back to Arusha in time for our guide to take us to lunch, and then onto Kilimanjaro Airport for our flight to Zanzibar. The 9 day safari was an absolutely magnificent trip.

Our Albatross guide, Samuel was on hand to meet us at the airstrip. We regaled our Tarangire adventures, as we geared up the 4WD vehicle, to take the relatively short 45 minute drive to our lodge, and then onto Ngorongoro Crater. It wasn’t long before we were surprisingly on a well sealed road. Civilisation, and that can only mean one thing! The obligatory visit to a tourist centre for souvenir shopping. Perhaps Samuel knew the proprietor, but in any case it was an interesting shop, and it was an opportunity for Margaret to exercise her haggling skills. 30 US dollars later and we owned a Masai wall hanging.

Then onwards into the Tanzanian highlands. Passing coffee plantations, huge sunflower crops and maize farms. It was a very fascinating drive, watching the locals carrying everything from jugs, sacks and other heavy looking burdens roadside. There was a decent distance between the airstrip and the first major town, Karatu and it was remarkable watching the steady stream of people traffic walking towards the town. Apparently it was market day, and Karatu confirmed this, with hundreds of people milling about. Some herding cattle or goats roadside, others selling various agricultural wares, and some folks just happy to peer out of dilapidated shop front windows. I’d say at this point, the poverty of the area really hit home. Ramshackle mud-brick dwellings that could barely pass lean-to status, were homes to the locals.

Shortly after Karatu village, Samuel took a right hand turn down a smooth path, coated in red dust and edged on both sides by maize crops and the odd Karatu youngster. A short drive later, through some high security gates and then into the immaculate grounds of the Plantation Lodge. The contrast was not lost on us. But, we quickly forgot about it, when Samuel informed that we wouldn’t be leaving for the crater until after we’d had a sit down lunch. We were both pretty anxious to get going. We implored Samuel to get a packed lunch and we’d be off, but apparently such a fine establishment in the middle of nowhere, could not pull such a feat off. Hmm!!

Much to our chagrin, we had a couple of hours to kill, before we were to head to the notorious crater. From the Plantation Lodge to the entrance to the Ngorongoro conservation area was a short 30 minute drive. A flurry of paperwork and government kick-backs, and Samuel finished with the formalities that would allow us to venture to the floor of the crater. Not before the climb though. A winding, corrugated pass through lush, rainforest like foliage unfolded for 20 minutes or so, before we arrived at the first look out over the crater rim. It was magnificent. 250 square kilometres of extinct volcanic crater, and now an eco-system in its own right. From this height, the crater was a golden expanse, interrupted by a vast desolate soda lake at its western boundary. Ngorongoro, apparently is a complex Swahili word for “Big Hole!” I found this amusing. We frantically looked for signs of wildlife, but anything of note were merely dark blemishes at this altitude. And so into the crater we were to go.

Ngorongoro Crater, Tanzania 

Or so we thought. Both Margaret and I were thinking it was just an easy saunter down some winding pass to the bottom, but to get to the bottom, we had to circumnavigate half of the crater through winding, pock-marked roads before we could even contemplate descent. This took a good 50 minutes, and having caught fleeting glimpses of the expansive crater on route, we were pretty restless by the time we came to the start of the down road and to another check-point.

Beware the bartering Masai! A lesson I learned, after stopping at the check-point for another picture of the crater. “No thank you!” “No thank you!” “No thank you!” I machine gun fired in the direction of some very eager Masai folk.

“Nice watch, my friend….. I give you my club, I take your watch!”

Well, that was polite. At least he was offering me the club, as opposed to clubbing me and then taking it. “No thank you!”  (apparently my English was as extensive as my Swahili) I returned to the vehicle, as too did Samuel, more Tanzanian paperwork signed. Finally we descended. The crater pass was of course the worst stretch of road in the entire conservation area, and even for a decent 4WD required some careful negotiation.

So by around 3pm, we made it to the floor of Ngorongoro and what a sight to behold. Masses of grazing wildebeest, zebra and gazelle in seemingly every direction. It was like being in the most remarkable zoo. Zebras crossing in front of your vehicle nonchalantly. Even lions revealed themselves a short distance away. Samuel took us straight to the centre of the crater. It wasn’t long before a new African animal endeared us with their presence. The Spotted Hyena! A few of them in fact. Samuel was quick to point out that there was a fair chance there had been a nearby lion kill. Call it good judgement, or perhaps the 10 stationary safari vehicles, 100 metres away was some clue. A rather cool looking hyena sauntered by our truck with a hunk of zebra leg in its gob. Nice work Mr Hyena! This shortly followed by 4 lions heading straight for our vehicle. The lions were seemingly quite happy to patrol the streets of Ngorongoro. They clearly were not afraid of us, and this message was delivered in no uncertain terms when a passing lion gave me the look. I was peering over the roof of the 4WD, and one lion brushed the side of the truck beneath me, and looked at me, no doubt thinking.

Scavenging Hyena, Ngorongoro Crater, Tanzania 

“I could eat you, but I’m full! And you are Australian, and no wallaby has ever been mauled by a lion in recent history! I respect that!”

On the lions marched, before giving us a short-lived impression they were going to stalk some zebra. On to see the rest of the park.

Ngorongoro revealed another of the Big Five, albeit at the rather obscure distance of 100 metres. A black rhino! That brought our tally to 4 out of 5, all we needed to see now was a leopard, and Ngorongoro apparently boasted this shy animal. Our anticipation grew. The afternoon revealed more zebra, wildebeest, a lone hertebeast (an exceptionally ugly antelope), and a hapless buffalo (even uglier than the hertebeast) – literally caked in dried mud. Eeek! I’m sorry, but this pathetic creature is not worthy of the Big 5 accolade.

The afternoon wound on. More zebra, hoards of wildebeest, and that punctuated only by our guide Samuel ‘Checking the Tyres’ – an apparent euphemism for a toilet-stop. Now, where do you go, in the middle of an African national park, teeming with wild and very dangerous animals? More to the point, where do you go, when there are cavalcades of safari 4WD vehicles laden with Paparazzi? There’s only one thing for it! Survey the area with the binoculars for predators – all clear – ensure that there are no vehicles hurtling in your general direction, then alight from the safety of your vehicle, place yourself at the rear of your 4WD – and then squat, pray, spray and quickly. Be sure also to have your back to the vehicle and face outwards. Doing it the other way around, could disrespect a lion or mortally offend a tourist’s camera lens. Thankfully, a lion did not take our guide in mid-squat, so Samuel lived to show us a glorious flock of crimson flamingoes in the crater’s soda-lake, before negotiating our way up another winding pass, (taking note of the roadside entertainment – Olive baboons of the “pick my pink arse” persuasion) to leave the crater and then back to our lodge. We made it out of Ngorongoro park just as they were shutting the gates right on 6pm.

Zebra Sunset, Ngorongoro Crater, Tanzania 

Our evening was a relaxing one. Delicious 4 course meal, washed down with Tanzanian beer. I couldn’t quite work out whether I preferred Kilimanjaro or Serengeti lager. I was informed by another chap enjoying his honeymoon safari, that they were both average beverages, and that I should rectify my errant drinking behaviour and go the way of the Tusker. I scoffed at this and quaffed my Kilimanjaro.

Retiring to our very comfortable room – to notably an open log fire and a sultan-sized bed, the presence of a billowing mosquito net did not go unnoticed, especially by Margaret. Mosquitoes mean one thing, a ‘Fecker Inspection’*. Thankfully no mosquitoes were discovered in the room.

* Fecker Inspection: A travel term first coined by Margaret when traveling a few years ago in mosquito riddled regions of South America.

The next day, was another day in Ngorongoro Crater, the difference this time was that we had a picnic lunch and so we were going to be in it all day. We set off just before 8am, and after Samuel gave an alleged backhander to the park official (to ignore the fact that we were visiting the crater on consecutive days, which apparently is frowned upon), we were on our way. We descended to the crater floor, the same arduous and painstaking way we had taken the previous day. We were on the crater floor by about 9:30am.

Yes, wildebeest, zebra and Thomson Gazelle aplenty there were, but our appetites for lion fodder had been satisfied the previous day, so we were looking for more obscure camera morsels today. Namely, the cheetah and leopard! Samuel took us to the far side of the soda-lake into a small wooded area, dubbed the Lerai forest, in the hope of spotting one of these elusive cats – namely the leopard.. Not to be though, the only animals that revealed themselves were a lone, one-tusked elephant and a band of Vervet monkeys.

We left the copse and headed towards the North-East side of the crater. We came by a swampy looking area, and low and behold we caught our first glimpse of hippos. Grunting, snorting, a collection of undulating, slimy backs, flickering ears and water lashing tails – that is a herd of hippo. Fascinating even at a distance of over 50 metres, but Samuel promised a much closer encounter later in the day.

Trundling further along in the 4WD and Samuel suddenly stops, prompting Margaret for the binoculars. He peers through them, grunts and then mutters something about cutting them off. After a sharp 3-point turn, the accelerator floored, and a pall of dust defined our wake, Samuel had enlightened that somehow he had managed to make out a Black Rhino and calf in the distance. To get there we had to back-track down the road we had come, back to a junction and then traversed the eastern rim of the crater, before cutting back in. Samuel claimed it was keen eyesight that spotted the rhino, but a steady convoy of 4WDs along the eastern rim was probably a fair indicator something was going down.

After 15 minutes of frantic driving, we came to the closest point between us and the mother and calf. It was near enough to 100 metres, and despite patiently waiting for nigh on 20 minutes they did not venture any closer to our vehicle, so even the 300mm lens could not do the sight justice. A little discouraged Samuel drove further on, and we met by the Ngorongoro bird-life, namely ostriches and bustards.

Black Rhino, Ngorongoro Crater, Tanzania 

But as nature inevitably proves, just when you think you’ve seen it all, it pulls out a surprise. Driving back towards the centre of the crater and low and behold, a flank of 4WDs had stopped road-side, it’s occupants taking in the magnificent spectacle of a black rhino – a mere 20 metres away. It was much closer than the other pair we had seen earlier. This was a real treat, as so endangered is the black rhino, (Samuel informed earlier) the population in the crater currently rests at a meagre 20.

We watched spell-bound for about 20 minutes as it foraged, stomped, made dust and generally plodded about with a prehistoric air. As you do if you’re a rhino and have a face of the triceratops persuasion. Reluctantly, Samuel implored us to drive on.

This time a phalanx of 4WD vehicles, stopped us short, and had us guessing what African creature would reveal itself this time. Margaret and I peered intently around the vehicles as Samuel strategically edged his way in for a prime view of …. of open grass land? Couldn’t see anything – so we asked a lady in the adjacent truck, who was training a pretty impressive lens on a spot in the grass about 25 metres away. “Cheetah!”, she lifted her head, whispered the magic word and returned to her photo vigil.

We had yet to see a Cheetah, so Margaret and I anxiously stared at the grass. Looking for a cheetah lying down in the swaying, golden grass of Ngorongoro, is a bit like waiting for one of those mystifying apparitions to appear after you’ve stared at one of those very very clever and infuriatingly obvious mosaics. After a good few minutes, I was able to make out what I thought looked like a spotted rump. (And no, there was no streaker involved). But then, movement, and the lithe, majestic cat sat up on its haunches and stared straight at the cavalcade. Without a doubt, this was the highlight of the visit to Ngorongoro. Seeing a cheetah, a true African icon (unlike that hanger-on the buffalo) was an incredible experience. Margaret and I could have happily sat and watched this cheetah for hours, but lunch called, and to that end after half an hour Cheetah viewing we found ourselves hurtling towards the northern end of the park, to an open picnic area. Quite surprising to have an open picnic area in the middle of wilderness, and more so considering you ate your lunch on the banks of a large hippo pool.

Cheetah, Ngorongoro Crater, Tanzania 

More grunting and sloshing as we gorged our picnic lunch – and you should have heard the hippos! Lunch was relaxing enough, keeping a careful eye skywards as Samuel warned that the hovering black hawks were notorious for stealing people’s lunches. Never mind the hawks, I wasn’t all that keen on becoming fodder myself, so Margaret and I sat hunkered down in the shade of the truck for the duration.

Lunch finished and then on the Ngorongoro track again, this time cutting across the crater to the western side. Our journey was halted after a short time, care of the small convoy of vehicles stopped in front. Samuel cheekily went off-road to get round the vehicles to see what the fuss was, but it didn’t take too much guessing. Lions. Lots of them…

Lion, Ngorongoro Crater, Tanzania 

I would have guessed this pride of lions to be about 20 in number. Some of them were lazing on the side of the road, others had parked themselves firmly in the tyre shadows of a couple of 4WD vehicles, trying to gain respite from the sun. One such truck, ladened with tourists, were shaking their truck trying to get the lazy beasts to move. We watched the spectacle, completely enthralled for a good 20 minutes.

Our last day in Ngorongoro concluded with a visit to another hippo pool. There were a darn site more hippos here then we had seen the previous day in the other extremity of the crater. It was quite strange seeing this mini-swamp, seemingly plonked serendipitously in this otherwise sweeping grassland, just for the benefit of this relatively small congregation of hippos. A few photographs of hippos later, and we had driven over to the rim of the salt lake and observed a sea of flamingoes, before reluctantly leaving and beginning the ascent to the crater’s rim and then back to our lodge. The crater was amazing, a virtual zoo in the middle of nowhere, and one we wouldn’t forget in a hurry. Our only disappointment was not seeing a leopard, but we had a few days in the Serengeti to come… so fingers crossed.

Red Flamingoes, Ngorongoro Crater, Tanzania 

"Let me show you the small-print sir!", gestured the polite desk clerk. "The ticket says 15kg, soft bags!"

Margaret and I looked at our Air Excel charter tickets, which had been handed to us by our guide the night before after touching down at Kilimanjaro Airport. We then looked at our rather large red suit-cases (of the hard-bag persuasion), both of which pushed the bounds of 20kg each.

"No point telling us now, when we get here", Margaret chimed in.

"Hakuna Matata! That will be 10 US dollars for the excess baggage!"

And so it was, our bags were checked on to the 6 seater Cessna, for our 8:45am flight from Arusha to Kuru airstrip. Before we set off, our guides from Albatross Safaris gave us the run-down of our 8 day Tanzanian safari. It took two of them to tell us the exact same thing. I assumed it was to minimise risk of making a mistake.

Our flight from Arusha to Kuru was a mere 30 minutes. The usual prayers reserved for light aircraft were in full swing at take-off and it wasn’t long before they were on stage again as the single-engine Cessna descended into the heart of Tarangire National Park, and namely Kuru airstrip. The plane buzzed Silale Swamp, a swathe of green reeds before touching down on the red dust strewn strip. A lone 4WD vehicle and it’s driver was all that was there at the end of the runway. Thankfully, it was our guide John from Elewana Safaris. Just as well, as we were the only ones alighting the plane. Margaret and I were pretty excited, gazing every which way for the sight of our first African animal as we crossed the strip, greeted our guide and loaded our hardcore hard-bags onto the back of the open-air vehicle.

John set the animal expectations early on, when he said he’d heard a lion roar minutes before we landed. As we set off from the strip up a winding trail, our eyes were peeled. It wasn’t to be a lion that we first set eyes on though, it was a Waterbuck and at some distance. The day was actually pretty overcast, and it seemed the animals had decided to go looking for the sun. At least to vindicate John that he wasn’t hearing things, we soon came across a steady set of lion foot-prints, freshly laid in the rust like dust of the road. On inspection, the paw-print matched Margaret’s hand for size. A sizeable cat that. (That’s the lion)

The animals did start to appear though. After the first hour, we’d laid eyes on a large Tawny Eagle rustling it’s feathers in a lone tree, countless blue starlings and then of all things we came across a Harem or three. No ordinary Harem though. It was a Harem of Impala. Fascinating to watch, up wards of 20 females grazing, while a solitary, antlered male kept watch.

But, Tarangire is not famous for it’s impala, but rather one of the Big 5. The Big 5 – Lion, Leopard, Buffalo, Rhino and Elephant. Tarangire is notorious for the latter. Elephant’s! Masses of them. A staggering population of over 38,000 reside in the park. It was late in the morning, after politely nodding at John pointing out yet another Impala Harem that we saw a small herd of Elephant’s grazing at the banks of the Tarangire river. The camera shutter fired, in anticipation that this shot of elephant’s at a distance of 60 metres say, was the best opportunity I would get. Our first Big 5, I wanted to be sure. But this wasn’t to be our last elephant.

We saw yet more elephant’s at a closing distance of 30 metres shortly after, and were then blessed with a panoramic view of 30 elephants grazing in the river, after we stopped for lunch on a plateau overlooking the river basin. Of course, while we ever waited for an even closer encounter with an elephant, there were various side attractions. Like herds of Zebra grazing cautiously roadside, and most fascinating was stopping to watch a mob of Olive Baboon’s cavorting in some trees. No sooner did the truck stop, when the baboons decided to up and leave. Shortly after we were treated to a procession of Olive Baboons, very young to adult, crossing just before the truck and seeking refuge in a tree 30 metres away. That was cool!!

Lunch was not without incident. The picnic spot, one of only about 3 designated in the park, was home to a band of Vervet Monkeys. Very cute and rather mischievous. We watched as one little blighter appeared from nowhere at a table next to ours, opened up a lunch box, fished out a Granny Smith and before the victim could say "Oy!"  it was up a tree, tucking into it’s haul.  We had a bit of a laugh, and then pinched ourselves at the fine spread that was put in front of us for lunch by John our guide. This was very cool!!

Vervet Monkey, Tarangire National Park, Tanzania 

The afternoon surpassed the morning for animals. I never had imagined what being less than 5 metres away from a herd of elephants would be like. They are simply incredible animals. Immense, very beautiful and fierce enough to ponder the colour of your underpants. John had to quickly reverse the vehicle at one point, as one elephant began stomping – a little agitated that we were too close. The animal soon relaxed after we backed up. (That’s the elephant!) And we waited and gawped as the herd of 6 elephants meandered  into tall grass.

That whet our appetites big time, and the afternoon closed with Tarangire revealing giraffes. If any animal exhibits class, then the giraffe has it in abundance. We were feeling pretty pleased with ourselves by the time our guide began the 2 hour trek to our lodge, where we would be staying for 2 nights. The sun had come out in the late afternoon, and these spurred on the local Tsetse flies to buzz and bite. They have a sharp stringing bite, akin to a March fly – and John informed that the sleeping sickness which these flies are famous for imparting, had been all but eradicated from this part of Tanzania. But! "And besides you need to have hundreds of bites to get it!"  At that comment, Margaret, rolled the eyes, as her body loves insects of the biting persuasion – on mass.

Point Blank Elephant, Tarangire National Park, Tanzania 

Just before arriving at our lodge, we were greeted by a bizarre sight. Not Margaret, nodding off to the dulcet rumblings of the truck, but to a couple of Masai warriors, riding a bicycle tandem. We stopped to gawp. A flurry of pixels later, and I asked John if there were lions around, cause these Masai dudes were quite happily tearing around on a pushy. "Oh yes there are lions here!"  Man, respect for the cycling Masai!! Our lodge was awesome! Tarangire Treetops, a name so given as the main reception area, comprising restaurant and bar is built around two massive Baobab trees. The Baobab, a true denizen of the African bush. Starkly magnificent trees and quite like the Boab trees of far North Western Australia I have to say.

Tarangire Tandem

The lodge has around about 20 or so cabins that radiate out from the reception area on various bush tracks. Because of this, after sun-down a guide was required to escort you from your cabin, to the restaurant. We were shown our beautiful room, and instructed on a number of important safety matters. Like the whistle we needed to blow if we needed attention. And so an afternoon relaxing pool side, followed by fine 4 course dining, with a bemused elephant striding passed our dinner table at night’s close. Enter the resident elephant. How cool! Wasn’t saying that later though, when we had to take a detour through scrub to get to our cabin, as Dumbo was blocking the path. Furthermore, Margaret noted later that I had a tick on my shoulder. Panic!! Get the whistle!! Bloody whistle didn’t work did it!! Was like Kate Winslet trying to blow the whistle for assistance in the film Titanic. Just wasn’t happening. Scarpered on to the balcony and flashed the torch up the path, and shouted something pathetic like "Number 12 needs assistance – anyone?"

A curious staff member soon arrived. I showed him the tick. I had visions of its head burrowing into my shoulder blade – letting rip with some bizarre virus that would confound western medicine. My reverie ended when I noted my saviour squashing an innocuous looking bug on the post to my right. He’d had the tick off my back in the blink of an eye. “Yes, I’m a big girls blouse!”. Rest assured, I would have said that to him, if I could have spoken Swahili.

The following day, John had us up early, to try and catch some lion. The overcast morning revealed ostriches a plenty and multitudes of zebra. As we were outside the bounds of the Tarangire park, John was within his rights to go off road and get closer to the Zebra, and in doing so a small wee antelope otherwise known as a Steinbuck scarpered through the tall-grass. John proved to be an excellent guide, with eyesight that was near extra-sensory. We would suddenly stop as though he had a thought. The truck would back up 10 metres. He’d then point up into the dark canopy of some trees, and say “Look, there’s an owl!”  Other occasions, the truck would stop for the timid Dik Diks, the smallest of the antelope, who would invariably be grazing road-side. A male and female always in pairs.

Dik Dik, Tarangire National Park, Tanzania 

The day proved excellent again for elephants. Hoards of them! We had lunch at Silale Swamp picnic site and watched a herd, process in single file across the horizon. All that it needed was a big red sunset and an acacia tree silhouette, and my photography mission would have been complete. J Later in the afternoon, even more elephants and giraffe. But the day would close with the unveiling of another two of Africa’s . Enter the buffalo. I have to say, the buffalo’s admittance to the category is rather tenuous. They’re just big cattle, with oddly shaped horns. We saw a herd of around 30 of the dopey beasts. It is funny though. If we were to see an elephant, lion, leopard or rhino we would quite happily get excited. But the buffalo, just doesn’t cut it, despite the fact that as African animals go, they are extremely dangerous.

Tarangire Elephants, Tanzania

So what of the other ? A biting equatorial sun claimed the afternoon and this resulted in sortie after sortie of Tsetse flies. “Bastid!” Swat! “Fecker!” Slap! were invariably the sounds coming from Margaret’s general direction whenever a Tsetse found purchase on Irish flesh. Nasty blighters, and apparently repeated exposure to their bites can result in some sort of narcolepsy – although John claimed, that this area of Tanzania had eradicated most of the disease ladened Tsetse flies. Margaret didn’t believe him. We headed back to the lodge quite late in the evening, and anxiously were waiting for respite from the flies, before the truck stops suddenly and John says “LION!”

“Where! Where!”, and frantically turning heads peering at grass and trees to ensure we didn’t miss seeing this. At first I thought "here we go". This will be impossible to see. But John manoeuvred the vehicle off road and there stood a lioness, at the foot of a tree. The tree had some kind of animal carcass hanging from it. John alluded that as this was outside the park, hunters had left the carcass to attract lions. John, then noticed two other lions, a short distance from the now pacing lioness. Flicking their ears, whipping their tails, and sleepily feigning as if we mattered, the lions were pretty relaxed in the amazingly camouflage that is the Tarangire grass.

Lions of the Tarangire, Tanzania

John edged the vehicle to within 4 metres of the big cats. I popped up on the back seat of the truck to get a high vantage point for a photo. “Don’t get out of the truck!” John said to me repeatedly. There was no danger of that happening. On a fourth warning, John added “If you step off the vehicle they will kill you!” You had me at “Don’t get out of the truck John!” It was pretty exhilarating stuff, watching our first African lions. We spent about 15 minutes taking it all in, before we made our way back to Tarangire Treetops. An early night was in order, as the following morning we were to be on the road early, back to Kuru airstrip for our flight to Manyara.

Two silver-back jackals broke into a trot, about 20 metres in front of the vehicle. They seemed a little uncertain as to whether they should break formation and dart into the safety of the scrub or keep going. They quickly opted for the bush, after John floored the accelerator. All this shortly after we left our Tarangire lodge for the airstrip at about 6:15am.

The sun was just hitting the tree line, and we came across many more Zebra, Impala, Giraffe, Elephant, and even a lone Wildebeest before we made it to Kuru airstrip. It was at the airstrip that we saw our first Gazelle. A Thomson Gazelle, very cute. One bounded away to the safety of a few. Our 4WD pulled up at the swathe of red that is Kuru and we waited for our charter flight.

It arrived on the button. A larger plane this time. A whopping 12 seater Cessna, and low and behold plenty of room for our hard-core hard bags. It was barely a 15 minute flight from Tarangire to Lake Manyara airstrip. But what an astounding view. Approaching Lake Manyara you really can appreciate the enormity of the Rift Valley. Lake Manyara sits at the feet of a remarkable plateau that stretches as far as the eye can see northwards. As we flew into land, we also noted how much the terrain had changed from the golden grasses of Tarangire to the more lush green of the highlands.