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Published: November 22nd 2006
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What does the name Serengeti National Park bring to your mind? Endless plains teeming with animals, a sky that seems so much bigger than at home, the chance to get up close to the Big 5? This was in our minds as we passed through the gates of the Ngorgoro Conservaton Area, and then into Serengeti National Park.
We had spent the morning driving from Lake Eyasi to Oldupai Gorge, site of the discovery of early human remains. It was both educational and slightly interesting. The one thing that stands out from the drive from Lake Eyasi to the gates of Serengeti and then into the park was the road - it was the kind that James wanted to ride on, which generally means uncomfortable and bumpy in a car. Still, we stopped noticing this upon our first sighting of an animal - the Thompsons Gazelle. Side note: We are both proud that we know the difference between a Thompsons Gazelle and a Grants Gazelle. Wildlife nerds!
As exciting as a gazelle is, they do become a bit mundane after the 500th. It is at this point that we want to include our 'Things to know about safaris' list.
1. You Will Spend Hours Seeing Nothing - we drove round for over an hour seeing no animals, not even a bird. This is frustrating but makes seeing a warthog or zebra super exciting.
2. You Are Not The Only Person There - if you spot a lion you are guaranteed to draw the attention of at least ten other vehicles, making it look like a Land Cruiser convention rather than a wildlife safari.
3. You Are Not An Intrepid Explorer - this one goes out to all those who believe that it is cool to wear a safari suit.
4. You Will Jump Out of Bed At 5am - even though this is a near impossibility when you are at home and need to get to work, it is almost guaranteed that you will be bright-eyed and bushy-tailed at 5am particularly if you have been woken by hyenas howling or lions roaring.
5. A Cheetah Is A Cheetah At Any Distance - a sighting of a rhino, cheetah or leopard (all elusive) counts, no matter how far away it is.
We spent a full day on a game drive in the Serengeti and saw lots of zebra,
wildebeest, hyenas and gazelle. The major highlight was spending lunch with a lion. We were on our way to a picnic site where it is safe to get out of your car, when our guide spotted a lion - 'Look look - she is stalking the zebra'. We got our cameras and binoculars ready and poked our heads out of the hatch in the roof. This is it, we thought! But no...although she stalked quite stealthily through the grass, the wildebeest and zebra spotted her and started moving off. She obviously wasn't hungry and loped over to the nearest tree and flopped down in the shade. In the off chance that she may get motivated (keeping in mind that lions sleep for 18 hours a day), we stayed put and ate our lunch in the car. Even though she never moved, it was still exciting to look out the window and see a lion just five metres away.
The following morning was our early morning game drive. We awoke to the sound of lions roaring and zebra making that wierd sound they do when they are panicked (please don't ask us to do an imitation, it is just embaressing).
Lunch with a Lazy Lion
I love alliteration... This had us quite excited as there was a possibility of seeing a lion hunting or eating. We quickly dressed and met our guide, who had also heard the roaring and was possibly as excited as us.
Fifteen minutes into the drive and we hadn't seen anything. It was quite foggy, which made it difficult to spot any animals. Suddenly, we saw something moving - a jackal. Not amazing but still interesting. Then we noticed another jackal. Then a hyena. Then more and more hyena. 'Look, look!' Our guide had spotted the lions. There were 2 lionesses and 4 lion cubs 50m off the road feeding. Awesome. They were surrounded by hyenas who seemed to be waiting for an opportunity to steal some of the carcass. That opportunity soon came. 'Look, look! Over there - the male!' Out of the fog came a roar as the male of the pride spotted the meat. The lion cubs ran off as the lionesses ran to meet the male. There is a hierachy in feeding - the male first, then the lionesses, then the cubs. If the male is hungry then the rest get nothing. The lionesses were not happy to see
the lion and launched at the lion, growling and roaring as they tried to keep him away from the kill. Despite it being two against one, the lion overpowered them and headed straight for the food.
However, it was not all there. While the lions were fighting, the hyenas took the opporunity to scavenge their share. They bought parts of the carcass closer to the road, allowing us to see that it once was a zebra. We could actually hear the hyenas crunching on the bones (no, it did not put us off our breakfast).
It was at this point that the other cars arrived. It did give us satisfaction to know that we had had the major action all to ourselves but it was still exciting to share in such a great scene with other people. We spent another 15 minutes watching as the lion, hyena and soon vultures enjoyed their meal. We then headed back for a hot breakfast, talking about the amazing things that we had seen.
After breakfast, feeling energised by seeing active lions, we jumped back in the car and set out for a short game drive on route to the park
Hyenas stealing breakfast
James described them as something out of some fantasy movie - like the Neverending Story. Disproportionate legs and neck. Also, the females have male genetalia. Trivia nights, here we come! entrance/exit. This time we saw heaps. Much more than the day before, and all jam packed into a few hours. We actually saw plains 'teeming with wildlife'. I really wanted to see if the cliched comment was hype but no, it is true. Similar animals to those we saw the day before but in greater numbers. It was here that we also spotted a cheetah (far away and motionless) and loads of hippos.
While on a game drive, you will inevitabley start to spot animals in everything - anthills become hyenas, logs become leopards and rocks become lions. So many times we had said, 'Is that a "insert animal here"?' only to be told, 'Nope, a tree'. So when James said, 'That's a rock isn't it?' we cracked up laughing to hear Stephen say in a deadpan and unexcited voice, 'No, it is a lion.' And a great looking lion at that. The word 'majestic' comes to mind - see for yourself in the photo.
We had one more lion encounter, with a pride close to the park entrance. With this as our farewell, we left the Serengeti feeling elated and looking forward to similar experiences in Ngorogoro
Crater.
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Transient Sapiens
Love the mist photo
Great experience, I'm sure. :-)