Trip report Tanzania March 08

Whoopee, raelond! I eagerly anticipate your report. I just got back a week ago and have been posting my report under an unfortunately mis-dated title "Doohickey's Tanzania Safari March '07 Trip Report".

Get rested up and starting posting!

Cheers!

-doo

Welcome home, raelond!

Karibu nyumbani!

Welcome back, Raelond! I eagerly await your trip report. And now the countdown is on for my trip

The minute I saw your name, I said out loud, "Oh yeah, that's right." You were headed to Tanzania for the migration. And now you're back. Glad all went well.

I have been home for almost 48 hours and jet lag has yet to kick in, so I assume the No Jet Lag pills worked. After our trip to Botswana and Zambia in June 2006, my husband and I knew we had to go back to Africa. I asked my husband what country we should go to and he picked Tanzania. I found researching Tanzania a lot more difficult as there are so many choices. Now after completing this trip I can say that there is nothing I would have done differently.

Our flight on KLM arrived on time in Amsterdam and we took the train to the central station and walked a block to our hotel. The Victoria Hotel is wonderfully located near the station and right across the street from the canel boat tours. It is a little on the high side in price, but we thought worth it as we had to leave early the next morning to caught our flight to Kiliamanjaro. Despite the cold day, we took a canel tour which was very interesting. We walked and saw the sights and had dinner at a Argentine steak house. After a good sleep we were up at 6:30 and had a great, but expensive buffet breakfast at the hotel. Back on the train to the airport and we were off to Africa. The flight was full as a flight to Kili through Nairobi had been cancelled and people were redirected to our flight. When we arrived at the airport in Kili, we were the first people off the plane via the back and were second in line for a visa. Were we ever happy as there was a huge lineup of people behind us. The visa for Canadians is still $50. We were out the door, meeting our guide in record time. We had been told that we would have Jackson from Green Footprint as our guide, but that had changed and Herman was now our guide. Herman proved to be a wonderful, knowledgeable guide. The warm, night air was wonderful as we made our way to Onsea House which was about a 45 minute drive. It is a bed and breakfast and the owners also have a restaurant on the premises. We had a snack and a glass of wine before being shown our room which was in a two room guest house. The guest house was away from the main house and very lovely and quiet. We didn't sleep well as we were too excited about being in Tanzania. I awoke early the next morning and opened the blinds. I couldn't believe how beautiful and lush the property was. We had our own balcony overlooking gardens filled with orange, banana and pomegranite trees together with numerous different types of flowering plants. There was a swimming pool in the middle of this paradise. We had breakfast and Nooje from Green Footprint met us to go over the itinerary. I asked Nooje if it would be possible to meet Jean, the owner of Green Footprint as I had a few e-mails with him over the last year. She said she would see what she could do. Herman picked us up at 9:00am and we were off to Arusha National Park.

We had heard about the bad roads in Tanzania and had our first experience with them on the road to Arusha National Park. We had a very comfortable Land Cruiser to ride in with a pop-up top. It was wonderful seeing blue monkeys, baboons and Colobus monkeys, along with many other animals. We had a lovely box lunch made by Onsea House with tuna salad, buns and cheese. We arrived at Momella Lake to be greeted by our canoe guides. One of the guides was Michael 2 who I heard about on Mydogkyle's trip report. I told Michael 2 he was now famous. He wanted to know Fodors website site to check it out himself. We paddled around the lake for about one and a half hours. It was very hot and I knew if we were out there any longer I would get burnt, as I am a redhead and burn easily. It was a lovely visit to the park. We got back to Onsea House about 5:00pm, had a dip in the pool and had a Kili beer and spent some time talking to a couple from Scotland. Dinner was trout and asparagus. We slept well despite the heavy rain during the night.

Hi Raelond, welcome home! I'm so glad you had a great trip, and I'm looking forward to reading all about it.

(And now I'm shamed into really trying to finish my trip report soon, since I've been home for almost 6 months!)

Welcome back, raelond! Looking forward to more.

This Herman?

http://www.pbase.com/leelygoes/image/78976418

Yes, that is our guide Herman. Was he your guide just for the canoe portion?

raelond, yes, he was our canoe/guide for the day at Arusha NP. Later on that same trip we had a guide through Nomad Tanzania who also knew Herman because Squack (Nomad TZ) had been camp manager at Mahale and Herman had been a guide there. We *all* loved him.

If I were computer literate enough, I could post an almost identical picture of my wife and Herman in their canoe, except Mt. Kilimanjaro is in the background, and my wife has her paddle near (but not quite in) the water.

Ah, Leely, it's so green! Was it like that for you too, Raelond? When we were there the area around the lakes was as brown as our California hills.

Herman picked us up at Onsea House about 8:00am, after a breakfast of cheese, bread, yogurt and wonderful fresh fruit. Herman informed us that Jean, the owner of Green Footprint would like to meet us at his home. Driving through Arusha was an experience, like organized chaos. We spent about 40 minutes visiting with Jean and having a cup of tea. Jean is just finishing up 5 new shows for Animal Planet and his wife runs a small school on their property. I asked Herman if we could stop and do some shopping as I didn't know if we would have a chance later. I was surprised at the cost of cravings, as in Zambia they were very cheap. We bought a few things and then headed to Manyara Park. The drive to the park was very scenic, through green, lush land. Manyara Park is beautiful with the vegetation changing throughout the park. Flamingos could be seen off in the distance. We came upon 3 elephants bathing which was a wonderful sight. We must have seen about 200 elephants in total. It was amazing. The baboons were great fun to watch, especially the babies. We saw about 50 giraffe and found the animals to be less skittish than they were in Botswana and Zambia. We saw a dik dik which we have never seen before. This one was very near and stood still while we took some great pictures. We saw meercats, banded mongoose, blue monkey, vevert monkey, jackal, water monitor and many other animals. My husband was so excited with all the many birds we saw. We loved Manyara Park and reluctantly left at 5:30. We stopped at another shop on the way to Kirurumu and bought a few more things. Drinks of gin and tonic in the lounge area, was followed by a lovely chicken (capone) dinner. A group of singers entertained us after dinner and we bought their CD. It had been a wonderful day and we retired to our large tent to dream of this beautiful land.

The additional info on Green Footprint is nice.

You saw meerkats in Lake Manyara? That is remarkable. I feel like it was a hidden 4-01 April Fool. I have not heard of that before. Is there a sandy area where they live?

Fifty giraffe aren't bad either. Maybe it was an omen for a good journey. (get it?)

"I was surprised at the cost of cravings, as in Zambia they were very cheap."
Cravings=carvings=Freudian slip?

It's great to get more Green Footprint info. We really liked the day trip we had with them. And of course we all liked Herman, especially my friend's mother who let him do all the paddling.

Sounds like an excellent visit to Manyara. I agree that it's interesting to see so many "landscapes" in such a small park.

(And to MyDogKyle, yes Arusha NP was ultra-lush and green when we were there. It's difficult for me to imagine it any other way.)

After a great breakfast at Kirurumu we headed for Lake Eyasi. A short drive on the main road we then turned off and drove through coffee plants and thick vegetation. We passed many village and the road (if you can call it that) got increasing worse. Large ruts and rocks that had you holding on. I had heard that the road was bad so we were prepared. We finally arrived at our camp three hours later. The camp (Kisima Ngeda) is in a beautiful setting, overlooking the lake. There of hundreds of palm and acacia trees and the seven large tents overlook the water which was about 1/2km away. We had a wonderful lunch of lasagna, green beans and the best fruit salad I've ever had. We decided to relax in the afternoon as it was very hot, about 32C, with high humidity. There were some clouds today and every evening so far we have heard and seen thunder and lightening in the distance. We spent the afternoon going for a walk to the lake and sitting in the shade. We were visited by 5 boys from a nearby village. They spoke no english, but we let them take turns using our binoculars and they got a kick out of seeing their pictures. There are man-made pools near the camp with fish in them. We saw a python curled up in the water which was about 3 meters long. After a short nap and shower we went with Herman up a rock formation which overlooked the lake. Here we had sundowers and drinks as the sun set. Another wonderful experience! Dinner was pork chops. We spent some time talking to the owner, Nanny who is from Argentina and a delightful woman. After spending a little time at the fire and listening to a local play a marimba and sing, we headed for bed where we were kept awake by the wind and the noise of what seemed like thousands of insects. This is a very peaceful camp and worth saying more than one night. There are lots of birds here. We awoke at 6:30am, had breakfast and headed off to visit the Hadzabe people. We decided on a visit rather than hunting with them. We picked up our interpretor and continued driving on what can only be described as a dry riverbed. The drive was more brutual than the drive to the camp. After about an hour we left the vehicle and hiked for about 30 minutes. We found a group of boys sitting under an outcropping of rocks making arrows. It was an amazing sight. They make small huts from branches when the weather is good and then move to caves or outcroppings of rock when the rains start. They had a small fire burning and a small dog with 3 puppies was lying by the fire. One of the young men had a baboon hat on and another had a baboon vest. They wore western style shorts and nothing else. They seemed eager to show us how they make their arrows. Each one carved a special design in their arrows. They then showed up how to make fire with a stick and a piece of wood at the base of the stick. They were able to produce smoke within 30 seconds. My husband tryed, but was unsuccessful. They gave him a stick and wood base to take home. We visited with some of the men who demonstrated shooting their arrows into a tree. They make metal, barbed arrows which they cover in poison. It was amazing to see how fast the arrows went. The women showed us how they smoke a pipe which was made from a bone of an animal. The interpretor told us that they smoke mariujana. We spent almost two hours with them and were able to take lots of pictures, including a wonderful one of a young mother and her baby. The visit with these people was very fasinating and educational. When we got back to the camp another couple had gone hunting with another group of Hadzabe and had followed the hunters for two hours before they shot a baboon. We had a great lunch and left Kisima Ngeda at 1:00. The road back to the main road seemed to take even longer, maybe because it was hot and we had been up since 6:30.

Once we got on the main road the drive to the crater was lovely, passing villages and lush vegetation everywhere. After Herman registered at the entrance to the conservation area we had no soon proceeded when we saw lots of baboons. We stopped the vehicle and I was looking out the side window where my husband was sitting. I glanced around to look out my window (which was open) when I was shocked to see a baboon crawling through the window. I screamed in surprise and the baboon took off. Too funny! Our first sight of the crater cannot be described in words. One has to experience it. We arrived at Serena Lodge and were surprised that our guide wasn't allowed to eat with us. Our room was nice, but the bed was rock hard. The food here was just ok and we both had some stomach problems at this time, so eating wasn't a priority. We made it an early night as we planned to be in the crater at 6:30 the next morning.

Thanks for the account of your day with the Hadzabe. A great visit.

Raelond,
When I read “there is nothing I would have done differently” I knew you had a great trip. Being in the middle of the migration, with lots of wildie babies- I can’t wait for that installment.

Onsea House sounds charming, although you don’t say much about Arusha National Park. MyDogKyle described it as the Garden of Eden I believe. You saw a wide variety of wildlife at Manyara National Park, a good spot I understand for a bird lover. How did you like Kirurumu? I’ve been reading some mixed reviews about it lately.

Thanks for telling us about Kisima Ngeda, which I’ve not heard of before, and your visit with the Hadzabe. Your description of your first sight of the Crater is what I felt the first time I saw it from the rim. It is breathtaking.

I’m looking forward to hearing about your sightings in the Crater and for the migration portion.

Yes, I'm with Dana--let's hear more. This is great.

Isn't it strange (and when I say "strange" perhaps I mean alienating and off-putting) to arrive at a lodge where one's guide isn't welcomed?

Raelond, I'm really enjoying your trip report so far.

I have to agree about the hard beds at the Ngorongoro Serena. In fact, I find all Serena property beds hard.

Your lovely descriptions of the parks and all that you saw are taking me back. Please keep the report coming!

Dana we didn't spend much time at Kirurumu, as we arrived about 5:30pm and left early the next morning. The tents were nice, the food was good and it was a good place to spend the night.

After an early breakfast we arrived at the crater gate at 6:30am and were the second vehicle down on the Serena side. It was wonderful to be in the crater as dawn was breaking. We found it hard to believe how huge the crater floor is. We came upon a elephant with a broken tusk and another one with huge tusks. The one with the huge tusks decided to stand on his back legs while reaching up into a tree with its trunk. It was wonderful to watch this huge animal balance on two legs. As we were watching this elephant, the other elephant came over to our vehicle and was almost touching it. This was unnerving and exciting at the same time. It was nice watching this scene without other vehicles around. We were surprised at how close the animals came to our vehicle. I could have reached out and touched zebras. Many zebras had young and many hadn't had their babies yet. We watched many baby zebras suckling, which was a wonderful sight. I had heard about lions in trees and had never seen this before, so we were delighted when we came across a lioness sleeping in a tree. We watched mating lions, as three lionesses slept further away from the action. We were very happy to see 6 rhinos, including a baby during our morning visit. They were a ways off and our guide told us that many roads have been closed in the crater and it makes it harder to get close to many animals now. We saw an amazing variety of animals and birds. There wasn't too many vehicles in the crater, but we did notice a few small vehicles jammed with 6 or 7 people. I couln't help noticing the safari name, Fun Safari. I thought how nice it was for just the two of us, along with our guide, to have this large Land Cruiser to ourselves. We left the crater about 12:00pm for the drive out and the road going out was far worse than the road going down. We had another visit to the crater the next morning, so we had lunch and then went on a two hour hike around the crater rim. Our guide for the hike was a Masaai who explained the different uses of plants and the reasoning behind why Masaai have their two bottom teeth missing. Lock jaw was once very common and if the two bottom teeth are removed they could roll up a leaf and feed a person through the gap in the teeth. We learnt a great deal about their culture and it was a wonderful change from sitting in a vehicle. That evening we sat on our deck and watched an amazing lightening show in the distance.

We decided to leave the lodge at 7:30am for our second visit to the crater. As Herman was registering at the gate, Masaai came up to our vehicle selling jewelery. I bought a few braclets for $5. each. We came upon a cheetah lying in the grass and as we continued on we saw four bat-eared foxes. We saw rhino again and a total of 10 lions. The highlight of the day was watching a pride of lions very close to the road. One male kept very close to a female and followed her as she moved about. He kept himself between her and the other male at all times. The pride of two males and 6 females came right up to the parked vehicles and lay down in the shade of the vehicles. As I was watching out my open window, the one male got up, backed himself up to our vehicle, right below my window and proceeded to mark it. I could have reached out and touched him as he let out a steady stream of urine. After watching two vehicles get stuck on a muddy road we turned around and went another way. We came upon a beautiful black maned male with a female close to the road. We watched as they mated and got some amazing pictures. After visiting the hippo pool we had lunch in our car. I was prepared for the horrible bathrooms, but not for having the door fall off while I was in the cubicle. We left crater and were thankful to have the opportunity to visit such a beautiful place.

Thanks for the response on Kirurumu.

You had two fantastic mornings in the Crater. I bet it was beautiful at day break.

You saw a fair number of babies, and also a lot of lion activity. I've only heard about tree climbing lions, I've never actually seen one. The lion marking his scent on your vehicle must have been a little unnerving.

I bet watching lightening over the Crater was quite a show. Glad you had such good sightings here and a great walk with your Masaai guide.

I've been having second thoughts about finishing this report as my report sounds so similar to other reports on Tanzania recently. However, I will continue!

The drive to Ndutu Lodge was wonderful, despite the road. We celebrated our anniversary of twenty years with a gin and tonic before dinner, while watching one of the most beautiful sunsets we've ever seen. We were rather surprised to see genets above us while we had dinner. The next morning we came upon a pride of lions sleeping in some bushes. We can't believe how many lions we've seen on this trip! After spotting two owls in a tree and nearing running over a turtle we went back to the lodge for lunch. In the late afternoon we couldn't believe our luck when we came upon a lioness and four cubs, about three weeks old. The scene was absolutely beautiful. The cubs were on a grassy area with thick bush behind them. The mother watched from the bush as her cubs played with each other. The vegetation in the area was lush and green, the sun was shining through the clouds and as we watched this wonderful scene a rainbow appeared. When we thought the scene couldn't get more beautiful, the moon came out. The moon, a rainbow and a family of lions all at the same time! We enjoyed watching the cubs interact with each other and their mother for over an hour, with no other vehicles in sight.

The next day the weather was much cooler and we saw another lion and a large number of wildebeast and zebra. We saw vehicles in the distance and when we got closer we saw five vehicle watching cheetah. We decided to wait from a distance until some of the vehicles left. Shortly all the vehicles left except one and we watched two cheetahs for over an hour. They walked about, drank from a stream and marked a tree. It was great to see their powerful bodies, as the cheetah we saw in Botswana slept while we watched them. Dark storm clouds were gathering and as we were in an area of silt type soil, our guide thought it best we head back to the lodge. After lunch we left for Olakira. The rain started and we couldn't believe it could rain that hard in Africa. We thought we were at home! While Herman was at the ranger station, we waited in the vehicle. The thunder was so loud and it was raining so hard you couldn't see very far. All of a sudden lightening struck not more than 200 meters away from our vehicle. The road to Olakira was flooded, but we made it without getting stuck. The camp was not a pretty sight when we arrived. The rain had stopped, but there was water and mud everywhere. We relaxed in our tent until the late afternoon, then went out and saw two male lions (one black maned) and one female. We later saw two other lions. Dinner was excellent. The food was much better than Ndutu Lodge. We heard lions roaring during the night and slept well in a wonderfully comfortable bed.

Thanks for continuing your report, Raelond! I've been hoping to hear about the rest of your trip and thought maybe I missed it.

Similarity is no problem! The good sightings you had show consistency the consistency of the wildlife viewing for anybody delving into Tanzania reports in hopes of a trip.

Glad you had your lion and cheetah show before the showers.

Raelond, all northern circuit TZ trip reports are not the same. Each individual brings his/her different experiences to the page. For example, I don’t recall anybody else mentioning the moon, a rainbow, and a family of lions all at the same time! Celebrating your 20 year anniversary with the most beautiful sunset you’d every seen is very fitting. You seem to have been a lion magnet on this portion of your trip. I hope I’m that lucky next year when I’m in the same are around the same time.

Please continue….

raelond - I'm so enjoying your report - I'm just starting to plan a trip for early 2009. Could I ask you a few questions.....

- my husband has a dodgy back - not terrible but we have to take it into account for travel planning. How hard was the driving? How long was it very rough - and how rough was it?

- it sounds as though Herman was a private guide - how did you arrange that - directly with Green Footprint?

- We are also considering Zambia and South Africa (possibly all at the same time - we are also Canadians and we could spend up to two months in AFrica) - how would you compare the destinations?

Thanks for any help you can provide - I'm just starting planning so I'm probably asking really basic questions!

Elizabeth, the worst road we were on was to Lake Eyasi and I found the road to Arusha National Park rather bad. Our driver was very cautious and took his time, not like some drivers I saw who drove too fast for the road conditions. Our guide works for Green Footprint and was wonderful. I booked the trip directly with Green Footprint in Arusha. We went to Zambia and Botswana two years ago and it was wonderful. However, if I can ever afford to go back to Africa, my husband and I agree that we will be returning to Tanzania.

Raelond, I'm so pleased to be reading the rest of your report. It's a lovely descriptive read and fun to hear about your experiences. Please keep it coming!!

Raelond:
Just caught this--great. ditto with lynn-please continue.

Glad you started back up again, raelond. Thank you--and please do continue.

That's quite an endorsement for Tanzania! And for Green Footprint!

We headed out for an early morning game drive to Nabi Gate and the migration could be seen in the distance from the view point. We drove to the Gol Kopjes and were surrounded by zebra and wildies. A mass of black could be seen in every direction. It was an unbelieveable sight. We were literally driving through animals that jumped out of our way, just like one sees on tv shows about the migration. Herman said there were over a million animals, as there was no end to the mass of black. We found two lions lying on a kopje and one started to chase a wildebeast. The other lion joined her, but they didn't seem very hungry and they soon gave up. The migration is truly an amazing sight, with amazing sounds. We got back about 1:30 for a wonderful lunch. After a bush shower and a rest we went out again in the late afternoon looking for a leopard which was known to be in the area. That leopard eluded us the entire three days we were at Olakira camp. During dinner it started to rain heavily and we were beginning to think we might have rain the entire four days we had left in Tanzania.

Despite the rain all night we slept well and left camp about 10:00 with box lunches. The plan was to see the migration again. We got stuck near the camp and six of the staff had to dig us out. On our way to Nabi Gate we saw a young lioness laying in the grass calling for her pride. She seemed to have become separated from them. We were surprised at how much distance the migration covered overnight. At the Gol Kopjes we once again saw lions on the rocks sleeping. We followed two cheetah as they calmly walked through the migration as if on a mission. Every day we see hyena and jackal and today we also saw eland and topi. Our last day at Olakira ended with another wonderful meal and good conversations with other guests.

raelond - thanks for the reply - the more I read the more interested we are in Tanzania and a private guided tour - I fear I'm starting late for next year but am trying to get it together. Would you be comfortable telling me the cost of your Green Footprint tour - if you prefer you could email me at

eseibertca AT yahoo DOT ca

I'm just trying to figure out if it's even affordable from the outset............thx

Great Serengeti sightings. As others have noted, I believe lions are employed as gatekeepers because we all see them there.

A "mass of black" as far as the eyes can see, in all directions. It can't get any better than that. I'm sorry the leopard eluded you, but cheetahs, topi, and eland in addition to the migration. As Lynn said, you had some great sightings.

Thank you for continuing your report Raelond. Those of planning trips really are quite interested. And, even when not planning it is fund to read about others' trips.

It rained during the night, but not as much as the first night we arrived at Olakira. After a good breakfast we left at 8:15 for Suyan camp. It was good to leave the mud and dampness behind. All the staff came out to say goodbye. As we headed north, the road was very bumpy with lots of water. We saw buffalo, thompson gazelle, eland and hyena as we drove into the Lolindo area. We stopped the vehicle to watch two jackals chasing a wild cat until it went down a hole. The drive continued through green short grass, over beautiful, rolling hills towards the Gol Mountains. Not a vehicle in sight! We drove up a hill to a ridge and out of nowhere two staff members of Suyan camp appeared. We had to walk down the other side of the hill through a natural rock path to the camp. Here we had an emotional farewell to our wonderful guide Herman. We continued on another rock path to our tent which was beautiful. I knew this camp would be a great place to end our trip to Tanzania and I was not disappointed. The tents were wonderful, spacious and elegant. The view from the tent was of the green, rolling hills. We had an outstanding lunch and met the manager Simon who was very personal. In the late afternoon we went for a walk for about two hours with our camp guide and a Maasi. After drinks by the fire we had an amazing dinner with the manager and another couple. Sleeping was wonderful with the sound of lions during the night.

We were surprised to find out that the Lolindo area is owed by the Saudi's who in an agreement with the Tanzania government about 32 years ago, signed a 100 year lease with the government.

We awoke to beautiful sunshine and after a great breakfast we went for a walk with Lucas and our Maasi guide to the rock painting that are over 3,000 years old. We then went to a Maasi boma where we were able to go inside one of the huts where a young mother was nursing her baby. We saw lots of children who seemed to have colds and one little girl whose eyes were crusted over and flies were sitting on her eyelids. We had walked for over three hours and on the drive back to camp be saw zebra, wildies, eland and giraffe. The next morning we went for a game drive and saw lot of giraffe, including babies. Wild dog haven't been seen here in almost a month and many dogs had been poisoned further north by the Maasi. Off roading is allowed here and we had a great morning seeing caracal and about 400 eland. We had a tour of the kitchen, which is a tent up a rock pathway. It's amazing that the cook can make such impressive dishes in such a kitchen. In the late afternoon we headed up a hillside for sundowners. The camp was full this night and we had a barbeque with ribs, chicken, sauage and beef.

We had to be up at 5:30am in order to get to the air strip for our flight to Arusha. On the way we saw hyena, wildies, zebra, lion and cheetah. It was a wonderful way to finish our trip. We spent the afternoon at the Kia Lodge and then went to the airport for our flight home. There was a wonderful shop at the Kili airport and the prices were good. Our eight hour layover in Amsterdam went fast as I had money left and had fun shopping at the great stores there. It was a wonderful trip, with amazing memories.

Raelond, you've made my day. I just booked my trip for next year, and I've included two nights at Suyan. I can't wait to fall asleep to the sounds of lions at night!

Raelond, thank so much for sharing your experiences with us. What a great trip you had! I'm so glad Green Footprint did as great a job for you as they did for us.

You've added some ideas to my "next-time-I'm-in-Tanzania" wish list...