Posts From March 2013

By Francis Peter – Events From The Bush

Greetings from warm and sunny Arusha, Tanzania. My name is Francis Peter and I am a driver-guide with Africa Dream Safaris. Having just completed my most recent safari (March 18th to March 28th) , I can tell everyone that the wildlife viewing in the Serengeti especially for the big cats and also the great migration has been extraordinary this March. We have received a sufficient amount of rainfall lately, which has transformed the Serengeti plains into a lush green oasis. This has attracted many difference species of herbivores and likewise good concentrations of carnivores.

My guests this time were two couples from the United States named Susan and Jeff & Ruthanne and Kirk.  We enjoyed 10-nights on safari with 3 nights at Mbuzi Mawe in the Central Serengeti, 3 nights at Ndutu Lodge in the South Serengeit, 2 nights in the Crater at Ngorongoro Serena Lodge and 2 nights in Tarangire at Kikoti Tented Lodge. All the game viewing was great but nothing can compare to the Serengeti currently. Here are a few pictures I have taken.

 

Mating pair of lions on the shore around Lake Masek, South Serengeti.

The wildebeest Migration at Ndutu, South Serengeti.

 

Elephants in  Tarangire National Park. It is their breeding season.
Down by the big marsh at Ndutu we came across these two brothers.
Here is a cheetah who was chased up a dead tree by a group of wildebeests. This was in the Kusini Plain, Southwest Serengeti.
It was early morning on Kusini plains (southwest Serengeti) when this pregnant lioness hunted down the full grown wildebeest. It was amazing!
These giraffes seemed to be posing for a picture. This was on the outskirts of Moru Kopjes between Olubaye Mountains and Mbalageti river circuit in the Central Serengeti.
More giraffes near Rongai hills in the Central Serengeti.
A spotted hyena trying to drag the whole wildebeest column. This was in the Eastern Serengeti.
Buffalo in the Ngorongoro Crater.
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A Trip of a Lifetime…Twice!

Every day a new adventure….literally. Our first safari was on July 2011 and was amazing. This one, in March 2013 was so different that it was AS amazing as the one before! The trip was flawless and everything was taken care of by ADS.

Our guide Anglebert was incredible! He knew where to go, what to look for, where to park the car to have the best view. We really can´t say enough about his knowledge and expertise!

We saw lions and cheetahs hunting. Lion cubs of all ages, Serval cats, lions resting on trees, leopards and rhinos, which we missed on our first trip…. the list goes on and on.

The lodges and camps were great! Once again our expectations of a safari were exceeded. Incredible Tanzania, perfect guide, wildlife everywhere what an incredible safari!!

Alejandra M. and Family
Mexico
Safari dates: March 26, 2013 to April 3, 2013

 

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By Ally Dhulkfil – Experiencing The Maasai Lifestyle

One of the highlights for many of the guests going on safari with me is visiting with the Maasai people that live in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area or NCA. The NCA is situated just outside of the Sernegeti National Park. This is esepcially true for my younger guests who seem to get a lot out of the experience by learning about the Maasai culture. The Maasai live a traditional semi-nomadic lifestyle that remains mostly unchanged. I have included here some photos I took on my most recent safari. I encourage all guests who are interested to stop at one of the villages in NCA to learn about the Maasai.

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Having A Private Safari Made All The Difference!

We had been planning our safari with Sharon for over a year, and our expectations were very high – but the safari was better than we had even dreamed!

In the first two days, we saw more animals than we thought we would see the entire trip, and it just kept getting better. We saw leopards (and their cubs) sleeping in trees. We got to know at least a dozen cheetahs, thanks to our guide Pokea’s ability to spot cheetah ears in the tall grass from at least half a mile away! We hung out with dozens of lions, and even spent an hour watching two of them mate (and then mate again…and again…and again!). We fell in love with the zebras and wildebeest, especially after we witnessed two baby wildebeest and one baby zebra being born, and then up and walking within 15 minutes! We loved the hippos, and the elephants, and our favorites – the warthogs! Oh, and the hyenas, the jackals, the gazelles…we even saw seven black rhinos on our last day, in the Crater.

Our accommodations were wonderful. We spent the first two nights at the private luxury camp and spent our first night on safari listening to lions and hyenas walk outside our tent! The staff was so welcoming and pampered us beyond belief, including the delicious lunch boxes. Then we spent three nights at Lake Masek tented lodge, in a gorgeous private “tent” with hardwood floors, a cast iron tub, and mosquito netted beds. The last two nights were at the Crater Lodge – wow! This is probably the most amazing lodging we will ever stay at in our entire lives! It was luxurious and opulent without being over the top, and we even were greeted by the resident buffalo herd on our last night walking back from dinner.

Having a private safari made all the difference. We left when we wanted (as early as possible!), stayed out to eat lunch with the animals, and spent as much time watching things as we wanted. Other vehicles would sometimes stop by our spot for 5 minutes and then speed off – but we got to really enjoy getting to know the animals and didn’t have to follow anyone else’s agenda. We think our guide, Pokea, must be the best ADS guide – he was expert at spotting animals, answered every single questions we had about them (there were a lot!), and seemed to know exactly what we wanted to see or do at every moment. We never had to worry for a minute on safari that everything wasn’t completely taken care of, from the moment we were greeted at the airport to the moment Pokea dropped us off.

We would go on safari with ADS again without hesitation and only wish that we were still on safari!

Amber H. (Washington, D.C.) and Kirsten G. (San Francisco, CA)
Safari dates: March 5-12, 2013

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By Thomson Malekia – The Marsh Pride and Other Safari Highlights

My name is Thomson Malekia and I am a guide with ADS. I have returned home from my latest safari with my guests Karen and Brad D. from the U.S. We experienced many wildlife highlights during the course of our 6-night safari in the Serengeti National Park and Ngorongoro Conservation Area.

Here are some of the highlights and also a few pictures I took with my little pocket camera.

– My first picture above is of the famous Marsh Pride. The territory of this pride consists of a broad stretch of the Lake Ndutu and Lake Masek woodlands in the South Serengeti. The pride is frequently found near the small marsh at Ndutu where they den their cubs and hence the name of the pride. It was my guests dream to see a big pride of lions like this and we enjoyed the sighting for quite some time. The cubs were very interesting to watch while they wrestled each other.

– Watching several lions in a sausage tree. Lions frequently climb trees in the Serengeti during the green season to escape the flies that can be a nuisance to them. It’s always enjoyable to watch these large cats attempt to climb. They are not nearly as skilled climbers compared with leopards.

– A large colony of Banded Mongoose. These animals feed mainly off of insects in the Serengeti and forage in large groups.

-Wildebeests bulls fighting in the Olubaye woodlands

-A large herd of elephants around Moru Kopjes

-A pride of four female lioness sunbathing in the middle of Serengeti plains surrounded by a sea of grasses stretching from horizon to horizon

-Greater Flamingos feeding at Lake Ndutu.

-Giraffe drinking water at the small marsh at Ndutu

– Three cheetah brothers stalking wildebeests. With all the young wildebeest calves currently on the Serengeti plains, cheetahs and various other predators are having a relatively easy time capturing their food.

– The great migration surrounding Matiti Hill in the South Serengeti.

Many Thanks,

Thomson Malekia
March 27, 2013

Beautiful Ngoitokitok Springs, Ngorongoro Crater

The great migration in the South Serengeti
Three cheetah brothers stalking wildebeests
Giraffe drinking water at the small marsh at Ndutu
Greater Flamingo feeding at Lake Ndutu
A pride of four female lioness sunbathing at the middle of the Serengeti plains
Large herd of elephants around Moru Kopjes – Serengeti.
Wildebeest bulls challenging to each other

Lions in a sausage tree

Banded Mongoose
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New ADS Media Gallery

We are delighted to announce the publication of our new online media gallery here at Africa Dream Safaris. Please see the below links to access the new media gallery sections. Enjoy the show!

Video Gallery

Wildlife Photos

Lodge Photos

People Photos

Vehicle Photos

If you’ve been on a safari with us and have video you’d like to share with ADS, post it to Youtube or Vimeo and send us the link. We’ll add it to our archive so others too can experience the magic of Tanzania.

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Our Dream Safari…..And it Was

We have been back about 2 weeks now and are still talking daily about some aspect of the trip and still going through the thousands of photos that we took. We have thought and thought about what we might say that would be different than what others have said about their experiences with ADS and have come to the conclusion that there is NOTHING BETTER anyone CAN say.

ADS is an outstanding, first class company to work with in every sense of the word. From our very first contact with Sharon, who actually helped us pull our trip together in about 3 weeks…YES 3 weeks!! We were planning on an October trip, but due to some extenuating circumstances the opportunity for a trip fell in our laps and with Sharon’s expert help we got it together–seamlessly. Of course that was just the beginning.

From the moment we stepped off of the plane ADS delivered on their promises. Everything you are told, you can rest assured will happen..above and beyond your greatest expectations! Our guide, Emmanuel was excellent, knowledgeable, and personable. We so enjoyed spending each day with him and learning from him. What a wealth of knowledge about the animals, the land and the people! He answered literally everything we asked and more. He knew where to find the animals and was willing to get us to them.

If all day game drives is what you want—you get them. If you want to chase cheetahs—you chase cheetahs. If you want to see a kill, you will see a kill. If you want to see a giraffe drinking water, believe me, Emmanual even found me one of those! I guess what I am saying, is that he literally did everything in his power to make this the perfect safari for us.

We ran into another ADS group and Emmanual and their guide, Reggie, would use their radios to talk to each other and let one another know what game they were seeing. This was an added bonus, as it maximized game viewing for us..GREAT TEAMWORK ADS! It was also fun meeting some other ADS clients and exchanging stories about our adventures.

We stayed at 3 different camps all of which were impeccable. The staffs were friendly and very accommodating and we really did not have a favorite place. They all were outstanding. At the 2 ADS camps the personal touch of being met each evening with a warm towel to wash your face and a glass of juice made you feel like you were coming home. Such a special “extra” they do for clients!

We must say that the Seronera Sametu Camp with Jonas and his staff was a wonderful place! We were the only people there for 3 of the 4 four nights, and were treated like royalty. The sunsets from here were unforgettable. Lake Masek Tented Lodge was our second camp. It too was amazing. Their chef, Veronica, is reason in and of itself to want to go to this beautiful camp. She is a character and an absolutely amazing chef! Our last camp was at Lion’s Paw tented camp and it was probably the most beautiful with its lush green surroundings. D.C. and his staff had a nice surprise for us on our last night, making it very special. I can’t imagine any of the other lodgings being any less wonderful…makes me want to visit all of them.

As far as the safari itself goes, we saw more in the first two days than we hoped to see in the entire trip, so we were thrilled with the outcome. There were so many highlights that it is hard to choose one or two. My husband is a passionate photographer and for him the thrill of photographing several chase/kills was a dream come true. He got some outstanding shots that we will treasure.

For me, to be in the midst of the great migration was phenomenal. I cannot think of another thing in nature that I have witnessed that has been quite so amazing. It was truly remarkable. We even witnessed a baby Wildebeest being born and timed from birth until it was up and running alongside of its mother to be about 17 minutes. Absolutely incredible–as Emmanual told us, it is Life on the move.

I could go on and on about elephants and baboons, and zebras, warthogs rolling in the mud, hyenas, jackals, hartebeests, vultures waiting to clean up a kill, lions mating, cheetahs hunting, leopards in trees, rhinos, hippos, birds, and oh so much more…..absolutely everything we dreamed about.

ADS is superb, flawless and reliable. Every member of the team in every way is there for the client. Their strength in my opinion is their customer service and attention to detail. Thank you ADS for helping us make memories that will last a lifetime. We will come back and without a doubt we will use ADS.

Richard and Toni O.
Rifle, Colorado
Safari dates: February 19-March 3, 2013

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Banu’s Tale – A Story From FAME Medical in Tanzania

Dear ADS,

I think I mentioned in my last eNews, that on many days it feels like a pediatric ward in the new hospital. We are just so glad to be here for these little people. There are certainly the darker moments, like this weekend, when we had a 10 year old boy die from cerebral malaria. He arrived to us too late, already in a coma. The doctors and nurses were still hopeful that they could get him back, but he just couldn’t fight anymore. Fortunately, little Banu in the attached story had a different outcome. And right now in the ward, another little guy is making a good recovery from pneumonia. Thanks for all YOU are doing through ADS to help us help Tanzania. Thanks for sending your wonderful clients our way. Thanks for giving so much….

With Love & Gratitude Always,

Susan Gustafson
Co-Founder/Co-Director
FAME Medical
Karatu, Tanzania
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Banu’s Tale

Severely dehydrated and lethargic Little Banu was admitted to the FAME Hospital on Friday afternoon. His Mother had brought him to the Rift Valley Children’s Village where she knew there was a twice-monthly FAME mobile clinic, and where she knew someone would help. Only 2.0 kilograms and two months old, it was obvious he was suffering from severe malnutrition. Recognizing the seriousness of the situation, a team from the children’s village ( ahome for orphaned children) transported him down the mountain to FAME. Upon arrival, FAME doctors and nurses provided urgent hydration and began developing a long term plan for nutritional supplements. The FAME team learned that Banu’s mother had been unable to produce breast milk for some time. He was immediately started on infant formula by NG tube and within a day began to stablize.

As he gained strenght, a plan was established by the nrusing staff to educate his mother about a proper feeding schedule. But it wasn’t that simple. Upon discharge, Banu and his Mother would return to a situation in which the $16 per week to procure formula was simply not witin the realm of possibility. Impoverished and alone, she would need help. And then help arrived. With assistance from the Rift Valley Children’s Village and their team, an ongoing formula supply was secured for Banu. A glimmer of hope in his Mother’s eyes, Banu would have a chance afterall.
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Africa Dream Safaris is proud to be a major sponsor of FAME and Dr. Frank Artress since 2008 and was honored with the Tanzanian Humanitarian Award specifically because of our work with FAME. Our ongoing monthly donations help FAME fund their mobile medical clinic bringing medical care to children living in remote areas. Many medical conditions can be treated correctly with proper healthcare including respiratory infections, waterborne diseases and diabetes. We suspect many children with juvenile diabetes simply die in rural Tanzania due to limited access and resources.

You may be asking yourself “How can I help?” The good news is that it doesn’t take much to make a real positive impact. Please consider a $50 donation to help Dr. Frank and Susan meet operational expenses for their Mobile Medical Service, purchasing laboratory equipment to provide more comprehensive diagnostic services, and completing the next phase of the medical project which involves expanding the existing Outpatient Clinic into a small hospital. The facility will include 12 inpatient beds and a major and minor Operating Room.

Africa Dream Safaris will match dollar for dollar any $50 donation thus turning your contribution into $100, which has real significant purchasing power in Tanzania. Please click here to contribute to FAME and to learn more about the organization. Make sure to enter ‘Africa Dream Safaris’ in the designation field to ensure that your $50 donation is matched correctly.

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By Michael George – Perfect Moments On Our Safari

I have just finished my latest safari with guests Tina and Shawn (March 11th to March 19th). We had a great time with extraordinary big cat viewing (leopards, lions and cheetahs). Another highlight was watching the wildebeest migration. The game viewing was really good in the Serengeti! Kindly enjoy some of the snapshots I have taken on the safari.

With best regards,

Michael George
ADS Driver-Guide
March 20, 2013

Lion and lioness near Ngoitokitok Springs in the Ngorongoro Crater. They are part of pride of 17 lions that were feasting on a buffalo kill. Lions frequently hunt buffalo in the Crater.

A leopard cub crossing the road in the Seronera Valley.

Here is the mother of the above shown cub.

Male and female Dung Beetle rolling an elephant dung

Three adolescent cheetah cubs watching the wildebeest migration.

Baboon on our hood in Lake Manyara National Park.

Playful cheetahs…watch what happens next.

Cheetah jumping off a nearby vehicle

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Travel Guide – Safari Recommendation #3

Planning an african safari to the Serengeti, East Africa is a complicated endeavor. The Serengeti National Park is an enormous ecosystem (roughly the size of Massachusetts). Though the park is arguably the finest african safari destination in all of Africa due to its large concentrations and diversity of wildlife, the vast distances makes maximizing game viewing an inherent challenge. Safari tours to Tanzania offer seemingly limitless options so below are some quick planning tips to help one develop the best itinerary possible: #3. Diversity is the key (i.e. not having all your eggs in one basket) to planning the perfect african safari tour. To further increase your wildlife viewing opportunities, choose an additional night of two (over and above the previous four nights mentioned) exploring some of the more remote and off the beaten path areas. After all, the quality of one’s animal sightings can be just as important as the sheer number. If it wasn’t, a trip to the local zoo might yield the same results and would certainly be substantially cheaper. Great off the beaten path areas are the eastern Serengeti plains in the green season and the Loliondo Game Reserve in the dry season.

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Picking ADS Was The Best Decision We Made!

A trip to Africa on a safari was something that I had always dreamed of. When I talked to my husband about it, we decided to make the dream come true sooner than later. The first step to making this trip come alive was doing our research and figure out which safari company could best meet our needs of what we wanted to both see and do. There are so many companies out there to choose from, but there was something about Africa Dream Safari’s website that caught our eye. We read every detail on the website and requested a brochure. It was the best decision we made! Africa Dream Safari took care of everything, from the time we were picked up at the airport, to the time we were dropped off at the airport.

Sharon played an essential role in planning our itinerary, and now that we are home and looking back at our trip, there is not one thing we would have changed in that itinerary. She worked with us, giving us an itinerary that would give us the best experience of Tanzania. Her emails were always prompt and very informational. We also felt the Africa Dream Safari handbook was excellent in making sure we were entirely prepared for everything when out on safari.

Another person who played an extremely important role in the success of our trip was our guide Michael. We realized early on in our safari that without a superb guide our trip would not be the “trip of a lifetime”. Michael was a superb guide! Everyday he had something new to show us. We would be driving along and suddenly come to a stop and he would see a dark spec in the distance that ended up being something spectacular to watch. We may have seen some of the same animals each day, but each day brought something new and different to view.

Michael was very flexible with us in letting us watch the animals as long as we wanted or had suggestions for other viewing options. He was a joy to be with and everyday when we parted for the day, we thanked him for another incredible day. He was extremely knowledgeable about the animals, birds, trees, plants and his country. He was a fantastic guide!

Our itinerary consisted of a variety of lodges. We stayed at each lodge for two days, then would move on to a new lodge and a different area of Tanzania. We were able to see the beautiful countryside of Tanzania when traveling to our next destination. We thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to stay at so many different resorts.

Our favorites were the tented lodges, so we were happy to be able to stay at more than one tented lodge. The tents gave us the sense of being so much closer to nature and the animals. We still remember the thrill of seeing a Cape Buffalo right outside our tent, on our second night, while being escorted back to our tent from the dining tent. Or, watching the Zebra and Wildebeest off the deck of our tent. The tents were not like the camping we are used to, but instead had all the luxuries of home. The staff at all the lodges were extremely friendly and very welcoming.

After 10 days of safari, it was time for our trip to come to an end. This safari exceeded our expectations. There is not one animal that we wished we could has seen, and did not see….we saw it all. On our flight back home, we talked about what was each of our favorite parts of the trip. We both had a difficult time coming up with just one favorite part. This was a “trip of a lifetime” and we each had many favorite parts and Africa Dream Safari made it happen….Thank You!

Tina & Shawn L.
St. Paul, Minnesota
Safari Dates: March 11, 2013 to March 19, 2013

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By David Chando – Serengeti in the Green Season

Greetings from Tanzania. My name is David Chando, driver-guide extraordinaire, and I have just concluded my March safari with clients Linda and Bob from the U.S.A. We saw a tremendous amount of wildlife for a relatively shorter duration safari. It was amazing! We had 3 nights camping at Naabi Hill, 2 nights at Lake Masek Tented Lodge and 1 night at Ngorongoro Crater Lodge. The green season is one of the best times for a safari and it always amazes the guests the diversity and abundance of game that can be seen in just a few days. Follows are a few of my pictures I took while on the trip.

Warm Regards,

David Chando
ADS Driver-Guide
March 19, 2013

 

Cheetah.
Eat my friend, before the vultures are here.

 

Lion and Lioness.
Look there is plenty of food around, don’t worry.

 

Lion Mating.
Let us make more lions in the Serengeti.

 

Vultures.
Wooh…am I late :>

 

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We recommend ADS to anyone looking to take this trip of a lifetime.

Many months of planning and anticipation finally came to fruition on February 20, 2013 when we arrived in Arusha to start our safari with Africa Dream Safaris. After being whisked through the VISA process, we were happy to have listened to planner extraordinaire Sharon and only brought carry-on luggage. Soon we were on our way out of the airport and on to Mt. Meru Hotel for an extra day of rest before embarking on our safari. I highly recommend this extra day, as we felt rested and refreshed on February 22 for our flight into the Serengeti.

We were met at the Seronera airstrip by our guide Reggie who briefed us on safety and promised that if we were patient we would see amazing things. This turned out to be very true and we ended up seeing much more than we ever imagined possible.

Barely out of site of the airstrip, we were already seeing gazelle, hartebeest, warthogs, and more. I started clicking away with my camera not realizing that there would be so much more (I needed to relax and be patient—but it was just so exciting!) I had read half a dozen books in preparation for the trip and had an idea that we’d see most of what I was interested in with the exception of perhaps the elusive leopard or rhinos. But leave it to Reggie to find 3 leopards on the very first day…and one that walked no more than 3 feet away from our cruiser!

In addition to the leopards on the first day we also saw a lion eating a giraffe, black-backed jackals, bat-eared foxes, hyraxes, dik dik, giraffes, and many birds. We ended our first day at Seronera Sametu Camp, greeted by Jonas who has the biggest smile in the Serengeti. It had started to rain, but we were ushered in with an umbrella, a cool washcloth, and delicious juice. We very much enjoyed Sametu Camp, where we were virtually the only guests for 3 nights. The food was excellent and we even got to watch the “TV” on our last night (code word for camp fire).

The highlight of day 2 may have been watching a newborn baboon with its family. Or was it coming across a pride of 9 lions napping under a tree? Or finding 2 more leopards? Day 3 included a trip to the Sametu Kopjes, where Reggie spotted 2 cheetah on the way—our first sighting of this curious cat. In another area Reggie pointed out some dangling wildebeest legs hanging from a tree (that was all that was left) and upon closer inspection he saw a baby wildebeest lodged in an adjacent tree. He knew we were in a leopard’s territory and with patience, we found it (if you’re keeping count, that’s 6 leopards by day 3).

We enjoyed a lovely sunrise and breakfast on our last day at Seronera Sametu Camp and began our journey toward Retima Hippo Pool. Slightly delayed by a flat tire, we encountered some other safari-goers who stopped to chat. We talked about what we had seen and quickly learned we’d seen WAY MORE than they had—which became a common sentiment from people we encountered traveling with other companies and guides. One of the advantages of ADS is that their drivers have a lot of experience and they aren’t competitive with one another—they share information and sightings via radio to give their guests the best.

We spent the next 3 nights at the lovely Lake Masek Tented Lodge. This may have been our favorite place, with its luxury accommodations, great food, friendly staff, and relaxing deck overlooking the lake (which goes perfectly with a Tusker beer). Setting out early each day (with Reggie, you’re always the first out) from Lake Masek we encountered so many sights.

We were usually out in the bush for 11 hours a day, taking our breakfast and lunch with us and soaking up everything we possibly could (Reggie pampered us with a table and chairs for lovely picnic-style meals.) We were fascinated by the cheetahs and following Reggie’s advice we patiently observed them which usually leads them to come close and enjoy the shade your truck or even chew on your mud flaps.

We learned so much from Reggie about the behavior of all the animals. My mom and I had a great time trying to “name that animal,” and I even tried to stump him with a sighting of something from the balcony of our room at the Serena Crater Lodge. After consulting several guidebooks, Reggie determined that the small, all black creature with the red beady eyes, and long, thin tail I saw was a Slender Mongoose.

Our last full day was spent in the magnificent Ngorongoro Crater. Reggie had informed us that for 15 years he had always been the first car at the Crater gate in the morning when it opened at 6am, and we were determined not to break his streak. This paid off as he sighted 2 Rhino within the first 15 minutes, as well as discovering a very large pride of sleeping lions. It was a special sight to watch the male and female lion sleeping entwined face-to-face. Later on we were able to get an even closer sighting of 2 more rhinos that crossed the road near our vehicle.

We ended our safari with a short trip through Lake Manyara. While this is a relatively small park, it was really great for watching baboon, vervet, and blue monkeys, as well as some really large birds. And you never know, out of nowhere you might see a herd of 6 elephant running across the road on a hurry somewhere!

We now know why this company receives so much praise. It truly did exceed all of our expectations. Thank you, Sharon, for your wonderfully planning and to Reggie for being a great guide and friend!

Best,

Rachel J. and Ann J.
Chicago, IL and Dayton, Oh
Safari Dates: February 20, 2013 to March 2, 2013

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By Peter Meena – Gorgeous Serengeti!

Warm greetings from Tanzania. This is Peter Meena reporting to you from our offices in Arusha. I have just concluded my latest safari with a very nice family from the U.S.A. Thank you Randi, Richard, Gloria, Rebecca, Samuel and Alexis. We spent 6 nights on safari in the Serengeti and Ngorongoro Crater from March 4th to March 10th. Follows is my bush report and also some snap shots.

There were big herds of wildebeests and zebra in the Moru Kopjes area of the Serengeti and also around Simba Kopjes. We did have some rain showers on the safari and I estimate more of the migration will move back onto the plains in their normal range over the next couple of days. There were several prides of lions and cheetahs in both the Ndutu area and Gol Kopjes area.  The Central Serengeti region including the Seronera River Valley was good for soem resident game including elephant, giraffe, buffalo and hippos (retina pool). Also, we saw a mama leopard with her two cubs to the west of Seronera and they had an adolescent wildebeest kill. At Sametu Kopjes in the Eastern Serengeti we came across a pride of lions with 13 individuals that were feeding on two buffalo kills.

I think the highlight of the trip was watching a leopard stalk a warthog family. The leopard dashed out and successfully caught one of the baby warthogs while the family ran away. However, after a few meters the mother warthog turned around to rescue her baby and charged the leopard. In disbelief, we saw the leopard flying up in the air like a kite and the baby was rescued. It was an incredible sequence of events and one that I will always remember.

 

This is Ngong Rocks in Moru Kopjes.

Marabou Stork reflecting himself down by the water hole.

Cokes heartebeest enjoying the green pasture in the Gol Kopjes.

Hyena feeding on a Zebra Carcass, this is Gol Kopjes.
A Black Crake down by the Sero Valley
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Greetings From The Serengeti – March 12, 2013

The animals viewing in both the Eastern and Southern regions of the Serengeti National Park has recently been tremendous. The area called Barafu Valley is breathtaking and there are some good sightings to be had here. We saw some wildebeest coming down to drink from the small stream that flows through the heart of this valley as it is the only source of water for many kilometers. There is a large pride of lions in this area with many cubs of different ages near Barafu Kopjes and also good cheetah sightings. Here are some of my pictures.

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