Trip Report: Rwanda and Tanzania in Feb 2007
Mar 13th, 2007, 07:46 PM
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Patty-
Yes, Tree Lodge was full for the second night (depressing because I did plan on using their pool in between game drives...perhaps next time). You know what was interesting; Tanzania Under Canvas was not full every night (one night there was only 3 of us) even with Camp 2 (Klein's Camp) being closed. Perhaps people were canceling reservations because of the weather....weather was stellar by the way!
Monica
Yes, Tree Lodge was full for the second night (depressing because I did plan on using their pool in between game drives...perhaps next time). You know what was interesting; Tanzania Under Canvas was not full every night (one night there was only 3 of us) even with Camp 2 (Klein's Camp) being closed. Perhaps people were canceling reservations because of the weather....weather was stellar by the way!
Monica
Mar 14th, 2007, 04:59 AM
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Monica,
Even in perfect weather in September, Tanzania Under Canvas was not running full. When we left there were only 2 people remaining in the 8 person setup. There were 6 people during our four nights. I got the impression from the staff that the camp was often not full. It was the trip highlight for us, so I was surprised.
Even in perfect weather in September, Tanzania Under Canvas was not running full. When we left there were only 2 people remaining in the 8 person setup. There were 6 people during our four nights. I got the impression from the staff that the camp was often not full. It was the trip highlight for us, so I was surprised.
Mar 14th, 2007, 07:44 PM
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THE SERENGETI
Rocco had recommended staying the last 4 nights at one place. In my quest to see as much as possible, I wondered if I might miss out on something. His advice was spot on. I didn’t feel hurried, I enjoyed the time so much more as I felt I got a better perspective on the area and took the time to “smell the roses”.
So back to the trip…..The next morning we headed back to Lake Maynara for a flight to the Serengeti to Tanzania Under Canvas. I was excited but a little apprehensive since we had met some people that came out of Camp 1 and complained about the management, confusion and overall experience. The flight in was memorable. During the flight, the pilot turned around, said there were animals on the runway and that we would be buzzing the runway to scare them off. Ok, sounds reasonable. The next thing you know we have taken a hard left and are dive-bombing the runway. It was fun in a scary kind of way. We learned we had four giraffes on the runway, aka strip of grass, and a few minutes latter we arrived. We were picked up and the guide wondered why he had 7 passengers instead of the 5 he was told about. Oh no, do we have another problem? He called the camp and said he would hear back from management, in the meantime, relax and enjoy the game drive. Hmmmm…..
During the game drive, his cell phone rang and was told we were expected and we would be in Camp 3. Wahoo! I learned that Camp 1 was the first mobile camp of Tanzania Under Canvas, Camp 2 is Klein’s Camp which is a permanent camp (which was closed due to water…no one in or out) and Camp 3 was the newest mobile camp. Camp 1 and 3 were in Ndutu. Camp 1 and 3 are not always with each other, but in Ndutu they end up being in the same area.
We were greeted by the camp staff, offered juice and taken to our tent. Wowee……this place was a dream come true. Big tent with a comfy bed, a flush toilet, bucket showers, lights and two washbasins. Our tent was overlooking a riverbed (with very little water) where herds of zebra gathered daily.
Dale was our butler and Emme would be our guide. We did a safari that day at 4pm and went to see the migrating herds. It was very impressive; animals as far as the eye could see. The sun was setting and the scenery was spectacular.
Back at camp, we showered with our bucket shower under the stars (how do they get the water temperature just right?) and then to the campfire for drinks before dinner. Let me stop here and tell you the food was outstanding. Herman, King of the Kitchen, is an amazing cook and I always looked forward to the meals. Lamb, chicken, pork, mash potatoes, pizza, pasta with killer sauce and desserts that make your heart sing. Chocolate mousse, baked bananas with sauce and one night they even baked us a cake for our anniversary. I also loved the lunches in the bush. They came with a bunch of little dishes and then always a dessert. As Rachel Ray would say, Yumm-o!
Speaking of our anniversary, the camp staff made it so special. I mentioned the cake, but when we returned from our game drive, there was a bottle of COLD champagne with a card waiting for us in our tent. After dinner they sang and danced for us and then another bottle of COLD champagne with the beautiful cake. It was so much fun and really touched our hearts.
We did our safaris with one other person, David from Toronto. David was a great safari mate and he was volunteering in Africa for a couple of months. He had lots if interesting stories to tell us and we enjoyed his company. The first full day of safari we went out from 8:00am until dusk. It took us all morning to find a pride of lions but it was worth the wait. We saw lots of other animals that day including zebra, elephants, hyena, eagles, and giraffes. The second day we stayed out until 4 and had the pleasure of seeing a mom cheetah with her two 1-year-old offspring eating a kill. Stayed and watched them until they were done eating and the vultures came in. We then were looking for lions and decided to stop for lunch. We spread out our blanket in the midst of the plains of the Serengeti and ate. Emme started chuckling while eating his lunch in the car. He then came over and then told us he saw a lion. All three of us looked suddenly sat up much straighter. Sure enough, a female was just lying in the tall grass.
This is the only time I felt a little frightened. The Lion got up out of the grass and took a few steps towards the vehicle and she got a little too close for my comfort. I immediately stopped filming and jumped behind my husband. Emme laughed for a good 5 minutes at my actions. Ok, so I was a little intimidated…………
Speaking of lions. The first night as we were being escorted to our tent, Dale noticed eyes shining back at us. I stopped and he assured me it was just a hyena. My husband says, it looks like a lion to me. Dale again assured us it was a hyena. When we got to the front of our tent and we looked again, Dale said, and I quote, “Ohhhhhhh my god, it is a lion…..get in the tent.” He didn’t have to ask me twice. He zipped us in and told us not to come out for any reason. Pretty sound advice, I thought. I then proceeded to make sure every window was zipped up in case the lion decided it wanted in to eat the ½ of a power bar I still had left inside the tent (this is were my husband rolls his eyes). Strangely enough, I sleep very well that night.
The other two days of game drives were spent looking for leopards (never saw one), seeing lions, cheetahs, and other various animals. We did see a serval cat on our last night on the way back from the plains and also got lucky and saw a caracal cat.
The vehicles at the camp were very nice and you are able to charge items within the vehicle, although ours did not work. We were able to charge back at camp, which worked well for us. When it came time to leave, I was so sad. The 4 days had been magical. Just in case I wasn’t clear….I LOVED THIS PLACE!!!
Rocco had recommended staying the last 4 nights at one place. In my quest to see as much as possible, I wondered if I might miss out on something. His advice was spot on. I didn’t feel hurried, I enjoyed the time so much more as I felt I got a better perspective on the area and took the time to “smell the roses”.
So back to the trip…..The next morning we headed back to Lake Maynara for a flight to the Serengeti to Tanzania Under Canvas. I was excited but a little apprehensive since we had met some people that came out of Camp 1 and complained about the management, confusion and overall experience. The flight in was memorable. During the flight, the pilot turned around, said there were animals on the runway and that we would be buzzing the runway to scare them off. Ok, sounds reasonable. The next thing you know we have taken a hard left and are dive-bombing the runway. It was fun in a scary kind of way. We learned we had four giraffes on the runway, aka strip of grass, and a few minutes latter we arrived. We were picked up and the guide wondered why he had 7 passengers instead of the 5 he was told about. Oh no, do we have another problem? He called the camp and said he would hear back from management, in the meantime, relax and enjoy the game drive. Hmmmm…..
During the game drive, his cell phone rang and was told we were expected and we would be in Camp 3. Wahoo! I learned that Camp 1 was the first mobile camp of Tanzania Under Canvas, Camp 2 is Klein’s Camp which is a permanent camp (which was closed due to water…no one in or out) and Camp 3 was the newest mobile camp. Camp 1 and 3 were in Ndutu. Camp 1 and 3 are not always with each other, but in Ndutu they end up being in the same area.
We were greeted by the camp staff, offered juice and taken to our tent. Wowee……this place was a dream come true. Big tent with a comfy bed, a flush toilet, bucket showers, lights and two washbasins. Our tent was overlooking a riverbed (with very little water) where herds of zebra gathered daily.
Dale was our butler and Emme would be our guide. We did a safari that day at 4pm and went to see the migrating herds. It was very impressive; animals as far as the eye could see. The sun was setting and the scenery was spectacular.
Back at camp, we showered with our bucket shower under the stars (how do they get the water temperature just right?) and then to the campfire for drinks before dinner. Let me stop here and tell you the food was outstanding. Herman, King of the Kitchen, is an amazing cook and I always looked forward to the meals. Lamb, chicken, pork, mash potatoes, pizza, pasta with killer sauce and desserts that make your heart sing. Chocolate mousse, baked bananas with sauce and one night they even baked us a cake for our anniversary. I also loved the lunches in the bush. They came with a bunch of little dishes and then always a dessert. As Rachel Ray would say, Yumm-o!
Speaking of our anniversary, the camp staff made it so special. I mentioned the cake, but when we returned from our game drive, there was a bottle of COLD champagne with a card waiting for us in our tent. After dinner they sang and danced for us and then another bottle of COLD champagne with the beautiful cake. It was so much fun and really touched our hearts.
We did our safaris with one other person, David from Toronto. David was a great safari mate and he was volunteering in Africa for a couple of months. He had lots if interesting stories to tell us and we enjoyed his company. The first full day of safari we went out from 8:00am until dusk. It took us all morning to find a pride of lions but it was worth the wait. We saw lots of other animals that day including zebra, elephants, hyena, eagles, and giraffes. The second day we stayed out until 4 and had the pleasure of seeing a mom cheetah with her two 1-year-old offspring eating a kill. Stayed and watched them until they were done eating and the vultures came in. We then were looking for lions and decided to stop for lunch. We spread out our blanket in the midst of the plains of the Serengeti and ate. Emme started chuckling while eating his lunch in the car. He then came over and then told us he saw a lion. All three of us looked suddenly sat up much straighter. Sure enough, a female was just lying in the tall grass.
This is the only time I felt a little frightened. The Lion got up out of the grass and took a few steps towards the vehicle and she got a little too close for my comfort. I immediately stopped filming and jumped behind my husband. Emme laughed for a good 5 minutes at my actions. Ok, so I was a little intimidated…………
Speaking of lions. The first night as we were being escorted to our tent, Dale noticed eyes shining back at us. I stopped and he assured me it was just a hyena. My husband says, it looks like a lion to me. Dale again assured us it was a hyena. When we got to the front of our tent and we looked again, Dale said, and I quote, “Ohhhhhhh my god, it is a lion…..get in the tent.” He didn’t have to ask me twice. He zipped us in and told us not to come out for any reason. Pretty sound advice, I thought. I then proceeded to make sure every window was zipped up in case the lion decided it wanted in to eat the ½ of a power bar I still had left inside the tent (this is were my husband rolls his eyes). Strangely enough, I sleep very well that night.
The other two days of game drives were spent looking for leopards (never saw one), seeing lions, cheetahs, and other various animals. We did see a serval cat on our last night on the way back from the plains and also got lucky and saw a caracal cat.
The vehicles at the camp were very nice and you are able to charge items within the vehicle, although ours did not work. We were able to charge back at camp, which worked well for us. When it came time to leave, I was so sad. The 4 days had been magical. Just in case I wasn’t clear….I LOVED THIS PLACE!!!
Mar 14th, 2007, 07:45 PM
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TIME TO GO HOME (BOO HOO)
Our plane was leaving at 9:30 in the morning and we were going to start making out way back to Nairobi. I had no idea it would take until 4:15 to get into Nairobi. We must have stopped 7 different places, changed planes in Arusha and then again at Kili Airport. When we arrived at Kili, there was not a CCAfrica person to meet us. One of the guys asked us if we were going on Safari Link and I told him I had no idea. After some confusion, he found a CCAfrica person and she thought we were on Kenya Airways. She told us to follow the original guy through security, which we did, but suddenly he disappeared. Now what the hell am I supposed to go? My husband found the guy, he was sure we were on Safari Link and since that plane hadn’t left yet, I was inclined to agree. He had to convince the women at the counter that we belonged on that place since I had no tickets and finally we got on the plane. When we landed at Wilson airport in Nairobi, our guide said he thought we were suppose to be on Kenya Airways. I talked to a CCAfrica rep when we landed and he said we were supposed to be on Regional Air. Hey, I was where I needed to be, so it was all good!
Our guide then took us to our 5:00 appointment at the Sheldrick Orphanage. This is not to be missed. I adopted Chyulu and got to see all the baby elephants come walking in from a day in the bush. They know which stall they live in, so they go charging by us to get to the stall so that they can have their bottle of milk. They each have a keeper that stays with them overnight…yes, right there in the stall. The staff was also treating a one-year blind rhino that had just arrived within the last two weeks. Daphne and staff were working with an elephant using aromatherapy. This organization does great work and I highly recommend a visit.
Off to the Norfolk Hotel for a quick shower, burger, fries and beer.
FINAL THOUGHTS
As a first timer, I was very overwhelmed by everything I saw. It seemed too surreal and I think on my next trip I will be able to absorb more of it without being on such an adrenaline rush (or maybe not). It truly took my breath away.
Thank you to all my fellow fodorites for your help and inspiration.
AND, more pictures on the way…………….
Our plane was leaving at 9:30 in the morning and we were going to start making out way back to Nairobi. I had no idea it would take until 4:15 to get into Nairobi. We must have stopped 7 different places, changed planes in Arusha and then again at Kili Airport. When we arrived at Kili, there was not a CCAfrica person to meet us. One of the guys asked us if we were going on Safari Link and I told him I had no idea. After some confusion, he found a CCAfrica person and she thought we were on Kenya Airways. She told us to follow the original guy through security, which we did, but suddenly he disappeared. Now what the hell am I supposed to go? My husband found the guy, he was sure we were on Safari Link and since that plane hadn’t left yet, I was inclined to agree. He had to convince the women at the counter that we belonged on that place since I had no tickets and finally we got on the plane. When we landed at Wilson airport in Nairobi, our guide said he thought we were suppose to be on Kenya Airways. I talked to a CCAfrica rep when we landed and he said we were supposed to be on Regional Air. Hey, I was where I needed to be, so it was all good!
Our guide then took us to our 5:00 appointment at the Sheldrick Orphanage. This is not to be missed. I adopted Chyulu and got to see all the baby elephants come walking in from a day in the bush. They know which stall they live in, so they go charging by us to get to the stall so that they can have their bottle of milk. They each have a keeper that stays with them overnight…yes, right there in the stall. The staff was also treating a one-year blind rhino that had just arrived within the last two weeks. Daphne and staff were working with an elephant using aromatherapy. This organization does great work and I highly recommend a visit.
Off to the Norfolk Hotel for a quick shower, burger, fries and beer.
FINAL THOUGHTS
As a first timer, I was very overwhelmed by everything I saw. It seemed too surreal and I think on my next trip I will be able to absorb more of it without being on such an adrenaline rush (or maybe not). It truly took my breath away.
Thank you to all my fellow fodorites for your help and inspiration.
AND, more pictures on the way…………….
Mar 15th, 2007, 03:03 PM
#26
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Monica,
What a wonderful stay in the Serengeti. Serval and caracal, in addition to everything else. Your two lion encounters were a little scary. So Emme knew there was a lion nearby but didn't tell you? Did I get that right? And what happened to Dale after he zipped you in your tent? Did he have to face the lion alone?
Beautiful pictures. The dik dik is a great shot. You have some lovely birds of prey. The sparing elephants in the green grass are lovely. The 3 cheetahs presented some excellent action shots. The gorillas were out in the open for you. I love the mother and baby. In addition to the many outstanding animal shots, your landscape and sunset shots were beautiful. The wildebeest in the sunset were a perfect combination for Tanzania.
By the way, what were your other honeymoon destinations before Africa emerged?
Dana,
I may start a new thread mentioning my 2009 plans. I have to be back in the US by about Aug 21 so no Sept in Kenya for me. I'm thinking 4 gorilla trips and a golden monkey trip in Rwanda, maybe Nyungwe too, 4 nights Samburu (I know that's a lot but I want to fully appreciate the gerenuk) and 4 Mara.
What a wonderful stay in the Serengeti. Serval and caracal, in addition to everything else. Your two lion encounters were a little scary. So Emme knew there was a lion nearby but didn't tell you? Did I get that right? And what happened to Dale after he zipped you in your tent? Did he have to face the lion alone?
Beautiful pictures. The dik dik is a great shot. You have some lovely birds of prey. The sparing elephants in the green grass are lovely. The 3 cheetahs presented some excellent action shots. The gorillas were out in the open for you. I love the mother and baby. In addition to the many outstanding animal shots, your landscape and sunset shots were beautiful. The wildebeest in the sunset were a perfect combination for Tanzania.
By the way, what were your other honeymoon destinations before Africa emerged?
Dana,
I may start a new thread mentioning my 2009 plans. I have to be back in the US by about Aug 21 so no Sept in Kenya for me. I'm thinking 4 gorilla trips and a golden monkey trip in Rwanda, maybe Nyungwe too, 4 nights Samburu (I know that's a lot but I want to fully appreciate the gerenuk) and 4 Mara.
Mar 15th, 2007, 04:05 PM
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"The Lion got up out of the grass and took a few steps towards the vehicle and she got a little too close for my comfort. I immediately stopped filming and jumped behind my husband. "
So the lion could eat him first?
So the lion could eat him first?
Mar 15th, 2007, 09:16 PM
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Marija-
TUC was one of the highlights of our trip also. I can’t figure out why it isn’t packed all the time myself. When we first booked it, I even had to wait list for an extra night…go figure.
Atravelynn
-In answer to your questions….
Emme saw the lion while we were all munching on lunch. He was amused because we had just spent the last hour looking for lions (he kept saying, I know there are lions out here) and as soon as we gave up to eat, suddenly one appeared. Just when you least expect it!
Poor Dale, he was in a real hurry to zip us in for the very reason you mentioned, he had to walk back to camp by himself with a lion next to our tent. He could have hung out with us a while, but his main goal was getting as far away as possible.
I can’t take credit for most of the pictures as my husband and his new camera did most of the work. I do have to admit, he did a pretty good job.
We thought about going to Egypt or Peru/Amazon. I am now trying to decide what to do for the next trip and I am contemplating Africa again (Botswana and then doing some more gorilla trekking) or the Peru trip.
Waynehazel-
Would you think less of me if I said yes?
Leely-
Thanks for the compliments….all my husband’s doing. But, the light in the evening from about 5:00pm is stunning in Africa, how could you go wrong?
Still bugging husband to upload lodge pictures….. hopefully by this weekend.
TUC was one of the highlights of our trip also. I can’t figure out why it isn’t packed all the time myself. When we first booked it, I even had to wait list for an extra night…go figure.
Atravelynn
-In answer to your questions….
Emme saw the lion while we were all munching on lunch. He was amused because we had just spent the last hour looking for lions (he kept saying, I know there are lions out here) and as soon as we gave up to eat, suddenly one appeared. Just when you least expect it!
Poor Dale, he was in a real hurry to zip us in for the very reason you mentioned, he had to walk back to camp by himself with a lion next to our tent. He could have hung out with us a while, but his main goal was getting as far away as possible.
I can’t take credit for most of the pictures as my husband and his new camera did most of the work. I do have to admit, he did a pretty good job.
We thought about going to Egypt or Peru/Amazon. I am now trying to decide what to do for the next trip and I am contemplating Africa again (Botswana and then doing some more gorilla trekking) or the Peru trip.
Waynehazel-
Would you think less of me if I said yes?
Leely-
Thanks for the compliments….all my husband’s doing. But, the light in the evening from about 5:00pm is stunning in Africa, how could you go wrong?
Still bugging husband to upload lodge pictures….. hopefully by this weekend.
Mar 16th, 2007, 10:02 AM
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Hi Monica - I'm a frequenter of the Europe boards, but it's a tad slow here at work so I search the forums for trip reports. Even though the only place I've been to in Africa has been Egypt, I found your trip report to be a great read! Most of all, I just LOVED the photos! So amaaaaazing!! I'm assuming these were taken with a digital camera? Were there any special lenses, filters, etc used? They all look like they should be in magazines like National Geographic. And the colors...wow. I can't wait to see the other ones!
Mar 16th, 2007, 06:26 PM
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Trafaelwyr-
Thanks for the feedback. I asked my husband about all the camera stuff (all I know is that we carried it in backpack that was REALLY heavy!) and he said that the camera is a Nikon D200, the lens was an 80x400VR4.5. No filters were used. I do know he had to clean the camera alot...dust everywhere.
I was in charge of the video camera and near the end of the trip you can see from the videos that my "video camera cleaning duties" had come to a complete halt. Ahhhh, I kinda miss all that dust!
Monica
Thanks for the feedback. I asked my husband about all the camera stuff (all I know is that we carried it in backpack that was REALLY heavy!) and he said that the camera is a Nikon D200, the lens was an 80x400VR4.5. No filters were used. I do know he had to clean the camera alot...dust everywhere.
I was in charge of the video camera and near the end of the trip you can see from the videos that my "video camera cleaning duties" had come to a complete halt. Ahhhh, I kinda miss all that dust!
Monica
Mar 16th, 2007, 08:50 PM
#33
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New pictures added into the same photo album. Scroll to the bottom to see pictures of the lodges/camps we stayed at.
http://www.kodakgallery.com/ShareLan...fromshare&Ux=0
http://www.kodakgallery.com/ShareLan...fromshare&Ux=0
Mar 19th, 2007, 03:57 PM
#39
What a great report, Monica! And you have great pictures, too. Many beautiful wildlife shots. I also really liked "Acacia trees in the Serengeti". I don't take many landscape shots and that one is very cool.
Mar 19th, 2007, 06:31 PM
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Moremiles, bat, waynehazel, Patty, raelond and sundowner-
Thank you so much for the feedback.
Waynehazel- that picture of my toes in the bathtub at the Crater is one of my favorites. My husband rolled his eyes when I insisted we take that picture, but I knew it would be a keeper.
Sundowner-I fell in LOVE with those Acacia trees. Something about those trees that blend into the plains of the Serengeti makes one anxious to get back!
Moremiles-TUC is not to be missed. The camp staff made TUC my favorite part of my trip. And, to be honest, anyplace that serves food as wonderful as they did, moves right to the top of the list.
Thank you so much for the feedback.
Waynehazel- that picture of my toes in the bathtub at the Crater is one of my favorites. My husband rolled his eyes when I insisted we take that picture, but I knew it would be a keeper.
Sundowner-I fell in LOVE with those Acacia trees. Something about those trees that blend into the plains of the Serengeti makes one anxious to get back!
Moremiles-TUC is not to be missed. The camp staff made TUC my favorite part of my trip. And, to be honest, anyplace that serves food as wonderful as they did, moves right to the top of the list.
