Africa: Last Day of The Safari - Tanzania

We packed our bags and had breakfast before getting back in the jeep for one last safari. The plan was to spend the morning in the Serengeti and then head to the lodge at Ngorongoro Crater for the night before catching our flight from Arusha to Mafia Island the next day. We left the Serengeti lodge and soon after saw something sitting in a tree. We assumed it was another leopard but it was actually a lion. While lions aren't really tree climbers some lions have adapted to be able to climb to the lowest branches when necessary.

He had a small mane and didn't seem to have a pride with him. Once males reach a certain age they are kicked out of the pride to go and earn one of their own. They usually remain as bachelors for quite a while before taking over a pride. He wasn't nearly as graceful as a leopard while climbing and soon he scrambled to the side of the tree back to the ground. 

Up the road there was a large herd of elephants with a few young calves playing together. There were also a few zebra and giraffe right across the road.

We followed the herd of elephants for awhile knowing it would be the last time we saw them on the trip. I was feeling really sick so I lied down in the back of the jeep for awhile but the next thing I knew we where parked next to a big pride of lions. They had just had a successful hunt and were now sleeping beneath some bushes. The one cub however was practicing his climbing skills in the bush and would occasionally fall and land on one of the lionesses.

The male lion had just woken up and started playing with the little cub. He would let the cub nip him.
Once the male and cub had fallen back asleep we moved on to look for rhinos one last time. We ran into a huge herd of zebra on the way that looked like a big mess of black and white stripes.

We came across lots of wildebeest herds too.

We kept on the search for rhinos in some of their favourite spots but only found a herd of gazelle, a water buck and a few dik-dik.

We were about to stop for lunch when we spotted another big pride of lions. They were all resting in the shade of one tree. Latow parked the jeep and we watched the lions as we ate our picnic lunch. Latow had a small speaker with him and he played a lion roaring to get their attention. They all looked right at us. Having an entire pride of lions stare you down is one of the most unsettling things ever but it was really cool to see.

Once we finished we had to leave to get to Ngorongoro in time. Sadly, we left the Serengeti and crossed the empty plains. After a couple of hours we were back at the same lodge we had stayed in a few nights ago. Our rooms were literally right across the hall from our old ones. We had a nice dinner and got ready for the hectic flights to Mafia Island.

Africa: Serengeti National Park - Tanzania

I wasn't feeling great the night before and had been sick throughout the night. I had lost my appetite so I skipped breakfast. Once everyone had finished breakfast we cleaned up and got back in the jeep to go on our last full day game drive.

Not far from the lodge there was a gazelle carcass which we heard was a result of a successful leopard hunt the night before. It was a little unsettling how close it was to our lodge (hence the staff accompanying us to our rooms) plus the sight of a ripped up gazelle really didn't help my stomach. We moved on past the carcass because it was evident the leopard had moved on and ran into a huge herd of wildebeest at the end of their migration.

They had been running for miles and were on the last leg of the journey. The sound of hooves and grunts as they forge a path through the tough terrain was cool. Soon they grew tired of weaving through the trees and termite hills and thousands of wildebeest spilled out onto the road.

They all ran in an organized chaos too hard to keep track of as they raced to get a spot in the stampede. Some of the stragglers stuck to the side of the road after the were pushed off the side in the crazed rush. The sheer size of the herd makes you feel very small in comparison - like a drop of water in the middle of a storm.

Slowly the herds settled and moved off of the path enough for us to sneak by and we continued on our way. Once we got away we entered a calmer part of the park that wasn't swarmed with wildebeest. We stopped by a small group of giraffes with maybe three or four feeding from the high up branches and we knew it might be one of the last times we would see them on the trip.

Later on we spotted a large group of jeeps surrounding a patch of trees. The only thing up in a tree that could bring attention to so many jeeps was a leopard so we were eager to get a good vantage point. It turns out it was a leopard but to our surprise it was a leopard cub.

 According to one of the other drivers the mother was hidden in a tree not to far from the cub but she was nearly impossible to see. The small cub was quite comfortable up in the tree for the awkward position he was lying in and he didn't seem that frightened by us.

 After awhile he let out a big yawn stood back up and promptly found a better branch to sleep on.

Every once and a while he would peek out past the branch to see if we were still there and then contently go back to resting. We stayed for a long time before deciding to keep going.

We had a quick look to see the mother but all that was visible was a bit off her tail with the rest of her concealed by the branches.  It was great to see a leopard again as we hadn't seen one since the Mara and they are definitely one of my favourites. I think I can say the same for the rest of the family. After we left the little cub behind we ran into another large herd of wildebeest and zebras.

  We stopped at a small rest stop with a few small picnic tables with a view over the savannah. I still wasn't feeling that great so I didn't eat much but the scenery was nice. 

Soon we were back on the open road and found yet another carcass that smelled absolutely horrible. This one however had an entire flock of vultures fighting over the scraps.

As the vultures settled down a bit we left the carcass and were able to breath once more. Farther past the vultures there was a jeep stopped in the middle of the road. We couldn't see anything they could be looking at so we assumed they must have been stuck. Once we got to them though we saw that there was a big lioness in the grass right beside them! 

The other jeep was nice and moved up the road a bit so that we could get a closer look as well. They told Latow that she was hunting with some other females that we couldn't see in the grass. She came and sat right outside our window. She let out a big yawn showing off her huge teeth almost as though to say I could try and eat you I'm just being nice. After awhile she got up and crept past us and into the bushes towards a small herd of zebra.

There were four other lionesses that were preparing a hunt and had circled around behind the zebra for 

an ambush.  Patiently the lioness slunk forward as quiet as a mouse making her way slowly to the herd. The zebras must've started to catch on and moved out of the ambush zone because we never saw the other lionesses and the hunt was over before it began. The lioness followed them for awhile longer but it was a lost cause and soon she lied back down among the bushes in defeat. 

Latow heard on the radio about a pride of lions with cubs not too far from us. We didn't have a lot of time before we had to go back so we decided to make it a quick stop.

All the lionesses were sleeping but the cubs were running and jumping around all over them. We were about to head in for the night when Dad remembered he had forgotten his extra layer at the rest stop where we had lunch. It wasn't on the way home so we lost a bit of time and weren't able to stop much after that. We did however see a huge male giraffe trying to get a drink of water on the way.

Apparently this is the most dangerous time for a giraffe because they can not defend themselves at all like this. And it takes a long time to stand up again afterwards so an attack would most likely be fatal. It was really cool to see and so close too.

We arrived at the lodge later than we would've liked so we thanked Latow for the extra time in the jeep. We had a nice dinner and I was feeling a lot better than the night before. Kaden, Zaddek, and I left dinner a little earlier to go to the cabin early after a long day. One of the staff had heard that our parents had spent their honeymoon at this same lodge 17 years ago and brought them a cake out after we had left. Sage has always been really shy and when they brought out the cake they sang and danced and according to Mom Sage was curled up in a little ball the entire time. Nonetheless it was really kind and it meant a lot to them. 

Africa: Lions in the Rain - Serengeti National Park - Tanzania

After a long drive from Ngorongoro Crater on which Latow told us we were given an African massage (it was really bumpy) we finally made it to the entrance of the Serengeti National Park.

Because the park is so big we didn't actually go through the checkpoint until further in. A quick rest stop while Latow registered us there and we were back on the road.

It was quite grey out and rain was pouring down on the endless sea of grass. Unlike the Masai Mara, the Serengeti had an empty horizon with plains as far as the eye can see. The only things sticking out of the grass were these large rock formations that seemed like mountains compared to the flat terrain.

Soon we ran into a group of jeeps with their cameras pointed to the right way off in the distance. We scanned the grass until we spotted the two male lions, their coats perfectly blending in with the background.

They were walking right towards us at a steady pace and gave a small herd of gazelle quite a spook.
They weren't interested in them at all though and continued to barge a path through the tall grass right towards the road. They made it within twenty to thirty feet off the road and then started walking parallel with it.

The one male had an all blonde mane unlike any of the other lions we had seen so far. We followed the two of them down the road for awhile before the blonde one let out a small roar flashing his huge teeth as the rain continued to beat down. Making for one of my favourite photos.

The two lions started towards the road and all of the jeeps quickly got out of their way. Once they had crossed they created a new path on the other side of the road out into the never ending sea. After the two lions disappeared we kept going further into the park. 

As we got closer to our Lodge there were more and more trees and shrubs appearing on the horizon. Once we hit the heart of the park it ended up looking a bit more like the Mara than it did at the entrance. We were about twenty minutes away when we spotted a huge group of jeeps. They were watching yet another male lion grooming his fur in the rain. This one had a bright orange mane and a dark coat and was constantly having to shake with all the rain.

After awhile we realized that there was also a lioness sitting in the bushes behind him. They must have been a mating couple that broke off of the pride for a few days.

Once the male got up he did a lap around all the jeeps and then sat down within ten feet of our jeep. He was so close you could see all the colour in his eyes and it was honestly a little menacing seeing how huge they are up close.

After he practically stared us down to show who's in charge he walked between all the jeeps and off into the distance. It was then that Mom went back to her seat on the other side of the jeep and right out her open window was the female. Mom could have reached out and touched her!

Some of the jeeps followed but after the great morning we had had in the crater we decided to drive the rest of the way to the lodge.

This time our rooms were in separate hut-like buildings all over the grounds and if you wanted to go to the main lodge after dusk or before dawn then you had to be accompanied by staff who were patrolling the grounds. Once we were settled in we had someone take us to the dining room for a nice dinner and then back again after. I don't think the lights were off for a minute before we all fell fast asleep.