Serengeti

The Serengeti is simply a feast for the senses.

Its great expanses first dull and then heighten the experience, giving the feeling of discovering new land features and wildlife in its rawest forms. One look at an island of rock with tree roots rising from the soil, climbing over boulders and reaching to form the canopy of shade above will leave you awed.

This is the land of Simba (actually the Swahili word for lion) and Poombah, destined to never be friends in real life as the warthog is such a lion favourite that locals here call the wild pigs “lion chocolate”. Perhaps that is why the warthog, Ben’s favourite animal for their punk rock hairdo and expressive mannerisms, are one of the more difficult animals to observe at close range.

Lions lounge comfortably in the tree branches above knowing that in this season of migrations, their next meal is always close at hand.

The Serengeti at this time of year is famous for the massive movement of herbivores whose southern homes start to dry up, forcing huge numbers of animals to head north in search of water and food. They say that millions of wildebeest and hundreds of thousands of zebras make the trek and several times our 4x4 waited while we watched unbelievable numbers of these animals crossing our path. The sound and the motion was amazing and at times you couldn’t help feeling caught within a great landscape painting.




We arrived after lunch and did a game drive up to our campsite for the next two nights.
Before arriving we passed by the local hippo pool where all the big boys and girls were lounging around to beat the heat.

The camping location was incredible, cut right into the savannah with all buildings having wire cage over their windows. We were clearly on the animal’s turf and we had to play safely by their rules. This included avoiding solo trips to the facilities one night as buffalo were spotted close by. We slept under the incredible African star-filled skies with only a thin layer of nylon between us and some of the most powerful creatures found on this earth.

The next morning, we woke to elephants passing on the outskirts of our fragile nest, making the caffeine in our coffee quite redundant indeed.

Now that we were all well roused, we headed out to see what we could find on our full day adventure in the park. We drove down to the riverside and came across an incredible sight. A wildebeest had earlier become stuck in the soft mud (sometimes they’re actually used like living bridges by their herd when crossing water) and a wild mix of scavengers was working on the feast. The vultures were very aggressive as they pushed each other out of the way to get their chance at a meal.




Nothing is left for waste in nature and a whole host of animals specialize in cleaning up after others who already did the hard work. The tiny jackal found a great prize in leftover zebra meat from an earlier lion kill. Nature is really not for the feint of heart.

We returned to our camp and recounted wildlife stories over lunch, followed by a short rest during the hottest part of the day. Venturing back out in the later afternoon is not only more comfortable for safari goers but also for animals who become much more active as the day begins to wane. Heading down near another section of river we came across an awesome sight - a very mature and powerful lion with full mane approaching a beautiful and also powerful lioness lying in the grass. When our guide George explained that they were likely together for mating, we thought he must be kidding. Our smiles slid into dropped jaws as the big male climbed on top to work on his family inheritance, with the act clearly over as the two great beasts let out a mighty roar. All of this is now available on video for those who are in to that sort of thing…

We continued our game drive as afternoon began to turn to evening and came across a more unlikely set of herbivores, the Topi. Related to all of the other antelope in the region, the uniquely coloured Topi is said to be much more intelligent.

With the top up and our heads out we enjoyed the wind rushing across our grinning faces all afternoon and evening. The animals of the park were now mostly hidden as they made their way to their chosen resting places for the evening. For us there was to be one more slice of Serengeti on our return journey back to camp – the postcard perfect shape of the bloodred sun setting behind the flat-topped Acacia trees and savannah grass.






The next morning called for an early departure to catch the sunrise and the bustle of animal activity that occurs around those first few hours of the day. As with the previous evening, the colours and setting were breathtaking.

We were woken from our dreamlike state with an exclamation from George. The moment he had hoped for had arrived and would pass by rather quickly. He directed our attention ahead and to the right where an enormous, boulder-like mass was moving at great speed through the grass about to cross the road directly in front. We snatched up the camera and shot blindly as the seemingly ungainly hippo made its quick dash on dainty feet to the cool of the river from his night time feeding grounds. Hard to believe that such a big creature can not only move so swiftly, but also so gracefully.

From large grace to stated elegance it was when we happened upon a leopard starting to rouse from his morning slumber in a tree by the roadside. The spots, colour and features of this amazing cat were wonderful to see from our safe distance below. Things got much more dramatic than we had bargained for when with a giant leap, the leopard was on the ground and making his way directly toward our vehicle. As the professional wildlife photographers we now believed we were, we naturally did not flinch and stayed with the shot. However, when the powerful hunter paused directly below and looked up into his eyes with a yellow stare, Ben was heard to whimper “George, should I be nervous about anything right now?” No response came from our guide and the moment passed. Later we learned that of all of the animals in Africa, the guides most fear the leopard due to its unpredictable nature. Thanks for the heads up George!

Heartbeats slowing, we started to make the long drive out of the Serengeti towards our next camp for the night high up on the Ngorongoro crater rim.

We said goodbye to the many zebra and wildebeest we passed along the way as well as to a group of baboons who were cruising through the outskirts of the park. The little babies are always getting a free ride on mom’s back, giving them time to play around with whatever they can lay their hands on.

The Serengeti is a breathtaking place where nature’s beauty and harsh reality come sharply into focus and into vivid colour. It is a place that we will certainly never forget, especially as we were so lucky to share it with such a great crew.