Greetings…my name is Simon Sige and I am a driver-guide with ADS. I have just finished up my latest safari to the Northern Tanzania Game Circuit and am now back home in Arusha. Follows is my latest safari report for my trip with Don and Sue from Wisconsin, USA. The safari dates were December 2nd, 2013 to December 10th, 2013 and the itinerary featured 6 nights in the Serengeti and 2 nights at Ngorongoro Crater at the following lodges: Four Seasons Lodge, Lake Masek Camp, Kusini Camp, Lion’s Paw Camp and the Ngorongoro Manor Lodge.

My safari with Don and Sue was simply awesome. We experienced all kinds of weather from rain and strong winds to dry conditions including dust and sunshine. The excursions with the clients were wonderful, the wildlife viewing superb and we also had a great experience in all lodges including Lion’s Paw Camp in the Ngorongoro Crater. The following are some of the photos I took during the safari.

Thanks,
Simon Sige.
ADS Guide.

– Wow! This was a huge Python we found crossing the road in the Kusini Plains, which is a very unusual sighting.

– Mother Cheetah teaching her cubs to hunt in the South Serengeti. This is young dik-dik, the smallest antelope in the Serengeti.

– Male lion dragging its kill in the Ndutu area of the South Serengeti.

-Lions resting under the tree after the big meal – at Ndutu.

-A cheetah wandering through the woodlands near Lake Masek, South Serengeti in the early morning hoping for a good day.

This is ADS guide Francis Peter with a quick bush report. My safari was with a couple from California named John and Glenda. We started the safari on October 5, 2013 when I welcomed my guests to the Mara River airstrip. The first destination on our adventure was the Northern Serengeti and the Mara River area before we drove to our accommodations at Lemala Mara River Camp.

The weather was warm and there had been some recent rain showers. The entire area was very green and the water level of the Mara River seemed to be very high as it was hard to even to cross to the other side. The wildebeest migration had already crossed the Mara River and moved through the Nyamalumbwa plains on the way towards the Lobo and Banagi areas of the North Serengeti.

After exploring the Mara River area we extended our safari to Buffalo Camp for two nights. On our way we witnessed the beautiful scenery of the Serengeti and many difference species of animals. The whole area was covered by thousands of zebras, who are usually the first to lead the wildebeest in the great migration. We also saw large family groups of elephants with babies and a huge herd of African cape buffaloes.

The Central Serengeti was sunny and warm and landscape was considerably drier then the Northern areas we had just visited. There were lots of Thomson Gazelles and other plains antelopes grazing the grasslands. Near the Kopjes we found several lions including a lioness with tiny cubs. Another highlight was a leopard that crossed the road just 2 meters from our vehicle.

After spending one night at Sametu Camp in the Central Serengeti we concluded our safari with two nights at the famous Ngorongoro Crater at Sopa Lodge. It made for a great ending to our trip.

Here are three photos from my safari:

– In the plains just to the southeast of Central Serengeti, we found this lioness with her cubs of about two weeks old.

– Male and female ostrich with chicks near the Mara River.

– A fantastic sight of a giraffe family on the Bologonja circuit in the North Serengeti.

Thanks,
Francis Peter.

Jambo! This is ADS driver-guide Emmanuel with my newest blog posting. I am here to report on my most recent safari with 2 guests that I had from Alberta, Cananda named Sergio and Lydia.  I would also like to share my pictures with the ADS family.

The expedition was a wonderful and great one. This time we started with the Ngorongoro Crater on November 6th, and then continued to the Central Serengeti and finally finished in the North Serengeti on November 14th.

Thanks,
Emmanuel Kichao
ADS Driver-Guide

It was amazing watching several lions playing with a leopard tortoise and lastly one lioness made it to be a nice pillow for her afternoon nap.

At Ngoitoktok picnic area in Ngorongoro crater – I enjoyed been with you my friends – Lydia & Sergio.

A pride of 14 members along Lobo Hill in the North Serengeti. They had a kill which was still fresh. It was during mid-day so everybody is hiding from the sun and taking a nap.

This young cub was busy eating and tempted to us have our lunch close to them.

Vultures devouring a buffalo kill left by lions just a few hours past.

A leopard and cub. We enjoyed watching these two as they were very playful and showing no fear from our presence.

This leopard cub was one of my guest’s favorite sightings.

A rock mouse  found in Ngorongoro Crater.

Lions mating. We found this couple in the Crater along the Munge River.

My clients loved the landscape and the storm up in the mountains. This was along the Malanja depression on our way to the Serengeti.

Cheetahs. Mother and Cub during the evening scanning the plains. This was in the Central Serengeti – Seronera Area.

A Nile crocodile having a sunbath after finishing a meal. This was in Seronera Valley of the Central Serengeti.

Serval cat. We spotted this elusive camp on the Lobo Valley circuit in the North Serengeti. We watched as the serval cat stalked and successfully captured a mouse.

The beautiful Lilac Braested Roller is posing for a picture.

The beautiful scenery of Bologonja Springs in the North Serengeti.

One of the last remaining herds of wildebeest in the Lamai Triangle, North Serengeti. This was very close to the Kenya – Tanzania Border.

A mother cheetah and cub. The mother cheetah was training her young cub to hunt. This was in the Lamai Triangle of the North Serengeti.

We spotted the endangered Black Rhino very close to our vehicle near Mara River in the North Serengeti.

This is driver-guide Godson Mbonye from the ADS Team reporting from Tanzania. I would like to say hello to all the ADS guests and share with you my most recent safari report.

This time I guided an extra special safari with a couple who were celebrating their Wedding Anniversary on October 18, 2013! My guest’s names were Denyce and Bill and they were visiting from Sandia, Texas. The safari started when I picked up the guests at the Mara River Kogatende Airstrip on October 15, 2013 in the remote area of the North Serengeti. The weather was dry and there has not been much rain. The bridge across the Mara River was free to pass due to the low water level in the river and we immediately headed out to try to spot all three species of big cats.

We spent a total of 8 nights in the bush. We enjoyed 3 nights in the North Serengeti split between Lemala Mara Camp and Migration Lodge, 2 nights at the ADS private camp in the Central Serengeti and a final 2 nights at Ngorongoro Lions Paw Camp on the rim of the Crater. It was a successful safari as we got see all the big five (lion, leopard, rhino, buffalo and elephant) in the Serengeti plus many other species of animals including cheetah, serval cat, spotted hyena, hippo, giraffe, crocodile, zebra, vervet monkey, black backed jackal, wildebeest, monitor lizard, ostrich, baboon and many different species of antelopes and birds.

I hope you enjoy some snapshots that I took while on this magnificent safari. My pictures are as follows:

-A mother cheetah siting on a termite hill and scanning for gazelles to chase.

-Rhinoceros (mother and calf) by the Sand River in the North Serengeti.

-Queen and prince stalking a zebra nearby Naabi hippo pool.

-A black-backed jackal managed to a kill a young Thomson’s gazelle in the Serengeti.

-Zebras at a waterhole in the Serengeti.

-The king of the jungle seen scanning for zebras at Wogakuria in the North Serengeti.

– A beautiful Serengeti wildflower

– Vervet monkey mother and baby on a termite hill

-Grey heron on a dead tree at Naabi hippo pool bridge.

-View of the sunrise at the ADS private camp

-A Serval cat hunting in the Serengeti.

-A leopard getting down from a yellow barked acacia tree in the Serengeti.

-A leopard caught an antelope and took his prey into an acacia tree at Lobo Valley.

-A monitor lizard seen in the valley near Wogakuria rock, North Serengeti.

-Elephants herd near the Mara River at Kogatende.

-Male Ostrich with chicks.

-Crocodiles in the Mara River.

-Male giraffe under an acacia tree.

Thanks,
Godson Mbonye
ADS Guide

Jambo! This is ADS driver-guide Emmanuel with my newest blog posting. I am here to report on my most recent safari with 2 guests that I had from New York named James and Kit.  I would also like to share my pictures with the ADS family.

My safari started on October 2nd when I picked up the guests at the Kogatende Airstrip, which is located only a few minutes from the Mara River in the Northern Serengeti National Park. The North Serengeti turned out to be one of the highlights of our safari. We had a wonderful close up encounter with large herds of the wildebeest migration crossing right in front of us. We also managed to spot the very endangered black rhino. My guests and I enjoyed a total of four nights in the North Serengeti with two nights at Serengeti Bushtops Camp and two nights at Migration Lodge.

Continuing on our safari to the Central Serengeti, we had three nights at the ADS private camp, where we encountered many different animals. Highlights include lions, cheetahs and leopards. The clients also enjoyed a hot air balloon ride in this area. We then departed the Serengeti for 3 nights in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area including stays at Crater Lodge and the Manor Lodge. We then concluded the trip with 2 nights at Swala Camp in Tarangire National Park, which I think made a nice ending to this safari. Overall, the safari was spectacular and the very comprehensive itinerary allowed for some amazing wildlife encounters. I hope you enjoy the photos below!

Regards,
Emmanuel Kichao.
ADS Driver Guide

This was one of the last big groups of wildebeest to cross the Mara River. We were so lucky to witness this crossing as most of the wildebeest had already moved south towards the Central and West Serengeti as for now there was more rain in these areas.

-Black Rhino. This bull was the second sight on our counts of the big five as we made the number in just two nights on the northern part of the Serengeti.

Klipspringer. We saw them in the early morning as they were hiding from the predators. The kopjes are good spots to look out for danger.

These Cheetah cubs were very playful and healthy. We stayed with them for almost an hour as their mother was scanning around for prey. At this moment she needs to hunt almost every day as she is still nursing.

A leopard tortoise. The trip was very productive and after we were done with the big five, we started to look for the small 5! The little ones can be the toughest to find.

A herd of buffalo under the shade as it started getting warmer. This was our first sighting near Kogatende Airstrip just a few minutes after I picked up my clients from the airstrip.

Leopard at lobo valley. It was a beautiful sighting as my clients loved the scenery and the way she was posing for pictures. It actually made the day!

Bee eaters – As they like to be together, my clients liked them and James was pointing out every time he spotted them.

A leopard taking a nap on a Hammerkop nest. These nests are huge to be able to accommodate this big cat. It probably took at least six months to build. After they finish and lay their eggs, they leave the nest and it is taken over by different animals.

Sametu lion pride. We got there just in time as this pride had just killed a zebra. It was a pride of 5 lioness and 4 young ones.

A sunset at the ADS private camp.

My clients loved the balloon ride and suggested I should do it too sometimes. However, I am very afraid of heights! This was in the Central Serengeti.

This was at Simba Kopjes in the Central Serengeti. The pride was trying to get away from biting flies and climbed a tree. The giraffe was heading to the same tree, but it didn’t take long for the lions to be spotted. He was able to see them and they took about 15 minutes starring at each other before the giraffe changed direction and moved away.

Blue Sykes monkey – A very sincere looking monkey. This was at Lake Manyara National Park.

Vervet Monkeys with babies grooming each other. It’s a way of keeping friendship and bonding together among the troop.

A Rock Python – One of the things my clients wished to see was this huge snake. It looked like it had eaten recently. This was in Tarangire National Park.

Tawny Eagle. We were looking at the front of its head, eyes and beak and commented on how well designed they are for airborne hunting. This one was also Tarangire National Park, which is an excellent park for raptor viewing.

Warm greetings from our office in Arusha, Tanzania. This is ADS driver guide Simon Sige. I have some information to share with the ADS family including many photographs from my recent safari that I very much enjoyed. I had the pleasure of being the guide for Larry and Jane M. who are from Arizona.

We were on a 10-night safari from October 18, 2013 to October 28, 2013. We visited the 5 most popular areas for wildlife viewing during this time of year that is known as the dry season. We explored the North Serengeti (Mara River, Lamai, Wogakuria and Lobo Valley areas), the Loliondo Game Reserve surrounding Buffalo Camp, the Central Serengeti (Seronera Valley, Maasai Kopjes, Sametu, Makoma Plains, etc.), Ngorongoro Crater and Tarangire National Park (including the Tarangire River and Silale Swamp circuits).

These are photos I would like to share with you starting with the Northern Serengeti.

The first morning – sunrise at the Mara River as we started the safari.

Me (Simon Sige) at Kogatende, North Serengeti.

A lion pride is waking up and looking forward to a beautiful day in the Serengeti.

A clan of spotted hyenas.

A Giraffe having a drink of water after a hot day.

Giraffes wondering who is taking their picture while chewing.

Black Rhino in the Mara River area of the North Serengeti seeking good grazing.

A female rhino with her calf.

The Central Serengeti was full of cats as usual. We saw many lions and cheetah relaxing.

Topi on a termite mound spotting for predators.

Elephants at Lobo Hills in the North Serengeti migrating to for better browsing.

Three brothers resting and waiting for prey.

Tarangire National Park was full of elephants. There were large herds around Silale Swamp.

Zebra and Elephants at Silale Swamp.

Candelabra tree at Silale Swamp Tarangire.

Thanks,
Simon Sige
ADS Driver-Guide

Good morning! This is ADS driver-guide Patrick Clement with my latest bush report. This time I had a couple from Indiana, USA named Robert and Dawn as my guests. It was a fantastic ten day safari. We began our safari on October 18, 2013 in the North Serengeti at the Mara River with 2 nights at the nearby Lemala Camp.  

We continued our safari in the Serengeti with 4 more nights split between Buffalo Camp in the Northeast Serengeti and the Four Seasons Bilila Lodge in the Central Serengeti. After departing the Serengeti, we explored the Ngoronongoro Crater area for 2 nights followed by our last 2 nights in Tarangire National Park at Kikoti Camp. Our safari concluded on October 28, 2013 when I dropped off the guests for their flight back home on KLM Airlines.

The wildebeest migration was very scattered over large areas as the weather is dry at the moment. The water level in the Mara river is low enough to enable easy crossings of the bridge, which allowed us to explore the beautiful Lamai Triangle. This area can be good for predators including lions and hyenas.

I hope you enjoy  few of my photo highlights from the safari:

A pack of hyenas at a watering hole finishing off the carcass of a wildebeest.

Here you can see a giraffe very close to the Mara River, trying to stretch his neck to reach the leaves at the top of the tree.

After crossing the river in the middle of nowhere, a male lion wandering on the grass plains of the northern side of the Mara River, North Serengeti.

A beautiful female lion joining the above male lion. My clients were so happy to see them together.

A big male hippo in the Mara River of the North Serengeti. He was opening his mouth, ready to attack another male to fight for the territory.

A black rhinoceros raising his head above the tall grass. Note the very sharp horn.

Mother and baby rhino, North Serengeti.

Two brother cheetahs at Lobo Valley in the North Serengeti enjoying the morning sun.

Here is a family of elephants drinking and wallowing in a swamp. This was taken on the eastern side of Seronera Valley in the Central Serengeti.

A large male leopard relaxing in an acacia tree. It was very early in the morning near Silale Swamp in Tarangire National Park.

Regards,
Patrick Clement
ADS Driver-Guide

This is ADS driver-guide Peter Huka reporting from Arusha, Tanzania. I would like to provide a report from my latest safari (Nov 1st to Nov 9th, 2013) and also share some photos that I took while on this trip. This time I had two delightful guests from Florida named Donald and Jennifer. We had a great safari together and we were very lucky to see many extraordinary animal sightings. We saw several hunts from the various predators in the Serengeti including lions, cheetahs and crocodiles.

Our safari started on 01st November 2013 at the Kogatende airstrip next to the Mara River in the North Serengeti. We started a game drive along the Mara River and we saw some groups of hippos and crocodiles. We also drove around Kopjes where we saw a few groups of wildebeest and Thomson’s gazelle. Then we were very fortunate to spot a lionesses with three cubs, as well as several spotted hyenas.

We departed the Mara River area of the North Serengeti for our accommodations at Mbuzi Mawe Lodge. Along the way, we encoutered families of elephants and many groups of zebras and elands, which are the largest antelope in Africa. Near the Grumeti River circuit we saw a pride of lions (six in total) before reaching Mbuzi Mawe very late in the evening.

The next day we started early in the morning and we decided to explore the Central Serengeti area around  the Seronera River Valley. There were big herds of zebra and we were entertained watching several lionesses trying to hunt them. It was incredibly exicting to watch. We also saw a big pride of twenty-two lions. It was really nice to see such a strong and healthy pride. Also in the Central Serengeti but this time around the famous Maasai Kopjes we were fortunate to get a good leopard sighting.

For our 3rd and 4th days on safari we headed to the beautiful Western Serengeti for 2 nights at Mbalageti Tented Camp. We had a great experience in the Western Serengeti, which we also refer to as the western corridor of the Serengeti. Highlights included seeing some of the wildebeest migration, a cheetah successfully hunting an impala and a black and white colobus monkey.

After 2 nights at Mbalageti we headed to Serena Serengeti Lodge to continue our exploration of the Central Serengeti. We conducted a game drive around the Moru Kopjes and Lake Magadi area. One of the highlights was at the Mawe Meupe picnic site where we found a female leopard with two cubs with a kill in a tree. She came down to the picnic site and was seated on the table. In all my years as a driver guide all over Tanzania, I have never see anything like this before. It was unbelievable and good thing I have the pictures to prove it! Afterwards we headed into the Moru Kopjes where we saw a lion in a tree and also a family of elephants.

On our last day in the Seronera Valley of the Central Serengeti, we watched a pride of lions hunting and chasing a buffalo. We spent about 1-hour watching that action which was great as it was just 5 meters from our car.

The following are the photos:

We watched from the beginning with the lionesses hunting this male buffalo all the way up until they began eating. It took about 1-hour.

Zebras drinking at Seronera River – Central Serengeti. Several lioness tried (unsuccessfully) to chase down the zebras. It was very exciting for my guests and I to watch.

A big pride of lions together at Seronera valley.

Lions with a zebra kill around Makoma Hill in the Central Serengeti.

A Crocodile caught a wildebeest in the Grumeti River in the Western Serengeti. This was really interesting to watch because of the shallow water in the river. The crocodile was trying to pull the wildebeest down but the water wasn’t deep enough.

Family of elephant swimming in the Grumet River, West Serengeti.

This cheetah hunted an impala in the Western Serengeti.

This was really amazing! A female leopard with two cubs at the Mawe Meupe picnic site

Lions at Moru Kopjes, Central Serengeti.

Thanks,
Peter Huka
ADS Driver-Guide