Ngorongoro Crater National Conservation Area
Day 2 of Safari
1/9/13
What do you call waking up at 5:00 a.m. to frigid temperatures, receiving a bill for the alcoholic beverages the group consumed the night before despite being told it was an "all-inclusive" resort stay, and a later than planned start to your day as a result of the confusion? In most cases, one might call it frustrating, alarming, annoying, or just plain old "b.s." In this case, however, we called it a great gift of good fortune and the best start to the morning that we could have ever imagined.
Day two of the safari began with us hitting a speed bump before we even set foot in the vehicles. The resort manager was not willing to allow us to leave until we paid for our previous night's drinks that we had believed were included in the price we already paid for our stay. At $2 or $3 a bottle, the price was not overwhelming. However, the hassle of having to come up with the money was enough to get us a bit fired up on a chilly morning when we were eager to get going. After our leader for the trip, Jake, and our drivers, Eric and Joe, met with management and resolved the issue, we were on our way.
Our delayed departure meant that we arrived at the park gate along the crater rim at 7:00 a.m. rather than our planned arrival time of 6:00 a.m. Eric and Joe went to the gatehouse to pay the required fees for 9 visitors, 2 drivers, and couple of rugged off road vehicles. The vehicles themselves exuded power and durability while also providing surprising comfort. As our guides paid for our entry, we popped the tops on our all-terrain vehicles. This allowed us to stand inside the truck and look out at the surrounding flora and fauna without leaving the comfort of the vehicle. The top of the trucks remained attached and provided a shelter from the sun (which wasn't at full strength yet) and from the rain (which was pleasantly non-existent). When our drivers returned to the vehicle, we were cleared to proceed and we began our journey down the inside of the rim wall towards the crater floor below.
The scenery was fantastic from the start, and Joe and Eric quickly demonstrated their knowledge answering any questions we had about the park, its inhabitants, and its vegetation. We became acquainted with the flat top Acacia tree early on, which we were told by one of our fellow travelers would be instantly recognizable by anyone who had been to Disney's Wild Kingdom.
As we made our way down the rim wall, we believed ourselves to be terribly lucky as we immediately spotted some zebras and elephants off to the side of the road. In hindsight, we can imagine our guides chuckling to themselves and perhaps each other as we asked for the vehicles to be stopped and started in order to take a multitude of photos. Greg took photos of everything from the trees to the animals and even some our fellow travelers. In summary, our first contact with animals in the park consisted of two or three zebras and small herd of elephants hidden in the distance by grass and shrubs. We stayed in the area for a few moments and marveled in beginners' wonder at the sight before us. We had not even made our way to the crater floor and already we had seen elephants and zebras. Little did we know how much more spectacular and wondrous the day would become.
As we made our way down the rim wall, we believed ourselves to be terribly lucky as we immediately spotted some zebras and elephants off to the side of the road. In hindsight, we can imagine our guides chuckling to themselves and perhaps each other as we asked for the vehicles to be stopped and started in order to take a multitude of photos. Greg took photos of everything from the trees to the animals and even some our fellow travelers. In summary, our first contact with animals in the park consisted of two or three zebras and small herd of elephants hidden in the distance by grass and shrubs. We stayed in the area for a few moments and marveled in beginners' wonder at the sight before us. We had not even made our way to the crater floor and already we had seen elephants and zebras. Little did we know how much more spectacular and wondrous the day would become.
The time was now approximately 7:20 a.m., and after a few more winding turns we had made it to the crater floor. We had been in the park for less than 30 minutes when, to our absolute delight, we came across a pride of lions sitting in the grassy field before us. What a treasure! It was hard to believe that we were there and these tremendous animals, that we would typically only see behind bars or glass from a safe distance, were just sitting in a field minding their business. And, as if the sight alone was not cool enough, it appeared that their business at that particular moment was hunting.
A host of other large animals were also present, most of which maintained a healthy distance from the lions but otherwise appeared to be going about their day-to-day activities. One of the most prevalent was the cape buffalo, which sports a cool looking pair of horns on the top of its head. The horns look much like a handle-bar mustache sitting atop the buffalo's head. The buffalo were mammoth animals that looked much more like domesticated cattle than the American buffalo.
As we slowly moved further into the park, it became apparent that this was the real deal. The animals we were seeing were entirely untamed and free to roam about as they pleased. We were under strict instructions not to get out of the vehicle for any reason or for any period of time unless our drivers told us that it was safe to do so. It is likely that the animals are accustomed to the presence of safari vehicles amongst their lands, but by all accounts it appears as though the animals have retained nearly all of their natural instincts and behaviors. With that in mind, it is time to return our focus to the lions and the other animals that shared space with them.
The lions were a few hundred yards away and were situated in a position that allowed them to keep track of a herd of cape buffalo, a few wildebeests and a smattering of other animals. We snapped a few pictures from a distance that required strong zoom lenses for any degree of clarity. Our drivers took us past the lions to an area where we parked to watch a wildebeest that appeared to be in distress. Just beyond the wildebeest, there were two cape buffalo that were separated from their herd. The two cape buffalo did not care at all about our presence. The wildebeest, meanwhile, was kicking like Bruce Lee, and carrying on in such a fashion that one might have imagined his feet were on fire. Eric and Joe stopped the vehicles so we could watch the animals. Naturally, we begin to surmise that the wildebeest is sensing danger, and we assume that the lions are the natural threat. To our surprise, Eric announced "the baby buffalo is in trouble." Now mind you, the "baby" weighs somewhere around 400 lbs, and standing next to it is an adult buffalo that is likely twice the size of the baby. Since we were novices, we questioned Eric's assessment of the situation. However, he paid our protestations little mind and assured us that the baby buffalo was the lions' target.
As we slowly moved further into the park, it became apparent that this was the real deal. The animals we were seeing were entirely untamed and free to roam about as they pleased. We were under strict instructions not to get out of the vehicle for any reason or for any period of time unless our drivers told us that it was safe to do so. It is likely that the animals are accustomed to the presence of safari vehicles amongst their lands, but by all accounts it appears as though the animals have retained nearly all of their natural instincts and behaviors. With that in mind, it is time to return our focus to the lions and the other animals that shared space with them.
The lions were a few hundred yards away and were situated in a position that allowed them to keep track of a herd of cape buffalo, a few wildebeests and a smattering of other animals. We snapped a few pictures from a distance that required strong zoom lenses for any degree of clarity. Our drivers took us past the lions to an area where we parked to watch a wildebeest that appeared to be in distress. Just beyond the wildebeest, there were two cape buffalo that were separated from their herd. The two cape buffalo did not care at all about our presence. The wildebeest, meanwhile, was kicking like Bruce Lee, and carrying on in such a fashion that one might have imagined his feet were on fire. Eric and Joe stopped the vehicles so we could watch the animals. Naturally, we begin to surmise that the wildebeest is sensing danger, and we assume that the lions are the natural threat. To our surprise, Eric announced "the baby buffalo is in trouble." Now mind you, the "baby" weighs somewhere around 400 lbs, and standing next to it is an adult buffalo that is likely twice the size of the baby. Since we were novices, we questioned Eric's assessment of the situation. However, he paid our protestations little mind and assured us that the baby buffalo was the lions' target.
As we sat, watching and waiting, the lions dispersed. A couple of them disappeared over a small hill, and seemed to be walking away from the larger herd of buffalo in the distance. Two of the lions remained focused on the wildebeest and/or the pair of buffalo. The lions slowly crept closer to the animals and towards our vehicles. We observed the lions making an effort to hunt one of the animals, and it seemed almost surreal to think that the lions' efforts might be successful.
Then it happened! One of the lionesses took off at a dead sprint directly towards the two buffalo who, for some unknown reason, were initially heading right towards the lions. The buffalo quickly realized the error of their ways and attempted to change direction to flee the scene. The lion closed within seconds and, in a move that one would only expect to see on National Geographic, the lioness jumped onto the back of the baby buffalo and pulled it to the ground. Almost simultaneously, the other lionesses that had temporarily disappeared in the distance closed in and pounced from the other direction. The baby buffalo never stood a chance. Truth be told, the experience was heart wrenching and exhilarating all at the same time. Our guides were equally in awe of the experience. They were taking pictures of their own and communicating with one another over their radios. We later learned that Joe had been leading trips like this for 20 years, and he had only witnessed such an event five times in his entire career.
We sat and watched the spectacle with awe and reverence. Eric predicated and subsequently explained that the buffalo would now herd up and run off the five lions that were feasting on the downed buffalo. A short time later, we heard a rumbling noise and a hundred or more buffalo did just as Eric said they would. The buffalo stampeded towards the lions and eventually flushed them away from the kill.
The buffalos' efforts to flush the lions from the area were successful, but they also set the stage for two more surreal experiences related to our already unbelievable time in the park. One of the lions, who had been flushed away from the kill, came and stood directly next to our vehicle. By "directly," we mean less than three feet away. It was so close that Deb could have reached out and touched the lion if she dared. It was frightening to think that there we sat in a metal vehicle with an open top and five humans sticking out of it, clearly a potentially viable target for an animal that had just tackled a buffalo minutes earlier. Perhaps sensing the nature of this once in a life time opportunity (either because we too were about to die or because we were likely never to experience something like this again), we did the natural thing and started taking pictures like crazed people.
To our surprise, the lion paid absolutely no attention to us. Instead, she was focused directly upon the vehicle that was carrying the other half of our crew. What we in our vehicle could not see was that there was a true "baby" buffalo right in the front shadows of the other vehicle. While we could not see it, the lion (and our travel companions) clearly could. In a flash, the lion, who had only minutes earlier taken down a 400 lb buffalo, sprinted directly towards the baby buffalo and pounced on it less than ten feet in front of our companion's vehicle. The lion picked the buffalo up in its powerful jaws and carried its 75-100 lb body into a ravine lined with some trees where the lion would not be forced to share its meal.
The remainder of our day in the Ngorongoro Crater was as fantastic as the first hour was. We came within yards of an unbelievable number of animals. There were zebras, gazelles, impala, hippos, ostriches, warthogs, elephants, and a wide variety of birds. Perhaps one of the most impressive, and certainly one of the more rare, animals that we were fortunate enough to see was the black rhinoceros. Our guide explained that there were only twelve of these beautiful creatures left, and we we had the great fortune to see three of them. The black rhinoceros is so endangered that park rangers are responsible on a daily basis to account for each one of them. If even one is unaccounted for by the rangers, all of the park's rangers will lose their jobs and be imprisoned.
The pictures in this entry hardly do justice of the panoramic beauty of the experience. The scale of the crater is spectacular, and the volume of animals that grace the crater floor was impressive. We had a beautiful day, and we could not have asked for more knowledgeable and pleasant guides. All told, we spent approximately seven hours in the park and toured a large percentage of its dirt roads. Certainly, there were nooks and crannies that we likely did not have time or the ability to access, but if someone would have told us that we would see even half the number of animals we in fact saw it still would have been a great experience. When we were exiting the park, we believed it was going to be very tough to top the experience the next day at Tarengari National Park.
The remainder of our day in the Ngorongoro Crater was as fantastic as the first hour was. We came within yards of an unbelievable number of animals. There were zebras, gazelles, impala, hippos, ostriches, warthogs, elephants, and a wide variety of birds. Perhaps one of the most impressive, and certainly one of the more rare, animals that we were fortunate enough to see was the black rhinoceros. Our guide explained that there were only twelve of these beautiful creatures left, and we we had the great fortune to see three of them. The black rhinoceros is so endangered that park rangers are responsible on a daily basis to account for each one of them. If even one is unaccounted for by the rangers, all of the park's rangers will lose their jobs and be imprisoned.
The pictures in this entry hardly do justice of the panoramic beauty of the experience. The scale of the crater is spectacular, and the volume of animals that grace the crater floor was impressive. We had a beautiful day, and we could not have asked for more knowledgeable and pleasant guides. All told, we spent approximately seven hours in the park and toured a large percentage of its dirt roads. Certainly, there were nooks and crannies that we likely did not have time or the ability to access, but if someone would have told us that we would see even half the number of animals we in fact saw it still would have been a great experience. When we were exiting the park, we believed it was going to be very tough to top the experience the next day at Tarengari National Park.
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