Little Things

There were lots of little things to marvel about as we toured along each day.  Here's a glimpse - 

at the place where we ate lunch -

these guys were waiting for crumbs and leftovers!  The hyrax on the right was quite large (like a cat but with shorter legs) and they were bold.

They are tree climbers too and once we saw them on the ridge cap of some lodge buildings.

The warthogs were cute - at least from far away!  Adults seemed to always eat and root around on their knees.

These tsetse fly traps attract the bugs and we saw them mostly on the west side of the park.  

These glass doors were on the park headquarters building as we exited the park.  They also had some displays about the migration routes of bird through Africa and other info, just like our parks have.  

And with that we left the Serengeti and headed into some of the driest land we would see in the whole trip.  We crossed to Oldupai Gorge, where Louis and Mary Leakey worked for more than 60 years to excavate evidence of hominoids.

Cats in the Serengeti

As we spent long hours in our safari vehicle, we had lots of opportunities to ask Chris, our driver, questions.  One question was "What do most people want to see on safari?"  His immediate response was, "The Cats!"  Some people only come to see them and don't care about much else.  We loved seeing all the pieces / types / variety of wildlife and were thrilled with everything from birds to elephants!  

There is no doubt that there are lots of cats and one day we saw a whole variety of them!  Here is a glimpse of what happened between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m..

It started with this cheetah walking through the savannah.

Remember the lions watching the Cape buffalo herd?

Chris was always looking at big shady trees and watching for "branches" hanging down.  Do you see this one?

It was really this guy, resting!  Thanks to Clarence and Sandra for sharing their zoom lens - we got some marvelous shots using it!

And then we saw a gathering of vehicles and knew there was something interesting over that way.  Here's what we found - the biggest, healthiest male lion we saw during the whole trip, I think.

He was fascinating to watch as he crossed the wide open space.  

And came to the shade of this tall tree.  Chris had predicted his move so we were already there, waiting for him to pose.

And then he laid down, right on the edge of the shade which meant as the sun moved through the afternoon, he'd stay in the shade.

Further down the road were a male and a female in the early stages of courtship.

He spent alot of time yawning and licking his lips!

And then the next morning as we were leaving the park, cruising (as if that's possible on those kinds of trails) along, Sandra suddenly called out, "Wait, wait, wait! We just passed something."  She was sitting in the back seat and was the only one who realized we'd just passed this cheetah.  Chris even missed it!

The termite hill was right beside the road and he checked the terrain and then got down to walk a little further and lay down where we couldn't see him - in the shade.  I love how he blends into the grass here.

You couldn't help but be fascinated by the big mammals!

Serengeti Landscapes

It was so interesting to watch the landscape change in the Serengeti.

Where there was water, there was green.  Palm trees even grew around some of the water holes.

And where there was no water, there was dryness and dust.

Chris said that the elders say rain is coming in 4 - 6 weeks when the acacia trees start to get green.   Now that we are home we believe him because it rained in Samburu in late December and early January, about 2 months after we were there.   

This cheetah was majestic across the savannah.

These 2 females and 1 male lion were starting courtship.  We watched awhile but other than a bunch of yawning, not much happened.

The hyenas always seemed to find a mudhole to cool off in.  You can see some hills starting to creep in here.

The termite hills were the only tall things in some parts!

And then we came upon these interesting rock formations called kopjes. 

The Serengeti plain is punctuated by granite outcroppings known as kopjes. These outcroppings are the result of volcanic activity. They were formed when the volcanoes of the Ngorongoro highlands erupted over one million years ago, spewing ash over the southernmost third of the Serengeti to create a rich and fertile, but alkaline, soil that produces short, sweet grass when it rains.

The Kopjes of Eastern Africa tend to be a refuge for life in the Serengeti of Tanzania and Kenya. Where the soil is too thin or hard to support tree life in large areas, soil trapped by Kopjes can be dense with trees while the surrounding land contains only short grass. Hollows in the rock surfaces provide catchments for rainwater. Many animals have adapted to the use of Kopjes, to include the lion, hyrax, and an abundance of bird and reptile life. One kopje likely to be seen by visitors to the Serengeti is the Simba Kopje (Lion Kopje) which was used as the inspiration for the Disney Lion King movie.  (from geocaching.com)

They were interesting and from the trail looked completely deserted.  I'm sure there were lots of animals, especially small ones including snakes, hiding there!

You can see a great map at safarimappers.com.   Here's a little explanation of the park from the website.

"The name 'Serengeti' comes from the Maasai language and means an 'extended place'. The National Park alone covers an area of 12,950 square kilometres. The Serengeti ecosystem, which includes the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, the Grumeti Game Reserve, the Maswa Game Reserve, the Maasai Mara Game reserve (in Kenya) and numerous concession areas, is roughly the size of Sicily. It lies between the shores of Lake Victoria in the west, Lake Eyasi in the south, and the Great Rift Valley to the east."

Box Lunches

When we headed out on an all-day game drive, the lodges would send along box lunches for our noon meal.  The boxes were lovely - strong cardboard, hotel logo, lots of room and the lunches were, well, interesting!

Inside were: a juice box, apple, banana, slice of pound-type cake (always very dry), yogurt, a wedge of cheese, a hard-cooked egg and a sandwich.  The sandwiches were 3 triangles of white bread, with butter on both sides, and one thin slice of a salami type meat.  No mustard - no mayo - no lettuce - none of the condiments with which we would build a sandwich.  The first couple of days it wasn't too bad but after day 8 - well, I'd had enough!  Only once did we get some celery and carrot sticks.  And even more surprising - Bob and Clarence got the very same lunches on their Kilimanjaro hike!!  There was always plenty to eat and Chris always collected the leftovers to share with the carwash boys or other employees.  The first day, the 7 boxes were stacked in 2 large white shopping type plastic bags and Chris made sure we kept those bags to reuse because not every lodge would have bags to put the boxes in so they would ride safely in the vehicle.  I definitely appreciate the way we make sandwiches at home now!!

Morning in the Serengeti

We stayed in Serengeti National Park for 3 days and took several game drives.  One day we started out early in the morning and came upon this setting where a company was getting ready for the ballooners to land and enjoy their champagne breakfast.    It looked very elegant with tablecloths and wine bottles set out.  We left the balloon ride for our next trip - it looked like a great activity but would have been an extra $1000 for the 2 of us.  

There were countless species of antelope grazing everywhere.  These are Thompsen's gazelles and Chris always called them "Tommies".

The track wended its way past this quiet pool.

And we used Clarence and Sandra's zoom lens to capture some bird pictures.  This was a lilac-breasted roller.  Rollers are named from a tumbling courtship or territorial display flight in which birds "roll" through the air. (from Mark Nolting's African Safari Journal)  We never saw them flying or rolling, just perching and watching.

Further along the way, we came upon another hippo pool where cranes were standing in the sun on the shore.

And then we found the lions!!  On the other side of the hippo pool, this matron climbed to the top of the hill to lie in the sun - 

while across the way , the rest of the pack was intent on watching a herd of Cape buffalo.  When the lions were standing, the buffalo were very wary and didn't graze.  

But when the lions laid down in the shade, the buffalo went back to grazing.  It was an amazing display of the predator - prey relationship. 

The matriarch left her hilltop -

and sauntered down - 

to cross the road right behind us - 

and rejoined the pride.

This pool, across the road from the lion's tree, marked a crossroads on the trail and after spending an hour or so, we headed out again.  We loved this corner!

Further along, we found another group, this time with cubs.

They were tuckered out and slept soundly beside mama.  We never did see any young lions playing.

All that - and more - before lunch!!

Serengeti Serena

Our hotel in the Serengeti was another interesting spot.

I'm glad I got these pictures with the data on them.  It's so amazing to reflect back on the fact that we were just 2 degrees from the equator at this place!

The hotel was built as a series of individual huts with 3 guest rooms in each one.  We were on the top floor.

There was a good space between each unit and they all blended into the surroundings.  The main dining area and pool was up behind us.  Everything was connected with an extensive walkway system that was lit with clay pots, full of holes and candle lanterns inside them.  At night we were escorted from our room to the dining hall because there are no fences and the animals can come and go as they please.

We had a balcony that looked out over the hills and trees.

The view from our balcony as the sun came up

and the zebras had breakfast right out our door.  The black line on the left side is the balcony post.  Bob had to be really quiet while doing this because zebras spook really easily. 

Loading our luggage again!  Note the two spare tires we now had!  This hotel had a beautiful swimming pool complex but I can't find any pictures of it.  Hmmm - how did I miss that?!  

One more sunset picture, this time with less sun but an acacia tree!