lions – That's So Gigi

June 23, 2020June 23, 2020

The Road to Maasai Mara

After three days on the Central Serengeti, we set off on the long road towards the Maasai Mara. While the true Maasai Mara Park is actually in Kenya, it borders the northern most part of the Serengeti National Park. The Maasai Mara is known for the Great Migration. The total area under conservation in the Greater Maasai Mara-Serengeti ecosystem covers roughly 9700 square miles. Massive herds of wildebeest, zebra, and other grass eating mammals migrate South in the dry season looking for water.

My dad is really excited about the Great Migration and this was one of the factors that attracted us to Tanzania as the ultimate destination for our safari. He has talked many times over the years about wanting to see the Great Migration as it was frequently highlighted in his National Geographic magazines.

On the way to our northernmost camp, we happened across another pride of lions…this one with several young cubs around twelve in total. They laze around with moms and aunts with the young male nearby. It was incredible to get so close to these youngsters.

The golden grasses disappear and give way to flat plains that are spotted with short bushy trees. The name Mara means spotted in the local Maasai language. The road is long and desolate but beautiful.

Along the way we were lucky enough to see a large herd of Giant Eland. They are the largest species of antelope and are extremely skittish. Martin told us that we were lucky to see one, much less the large herd that we saw. There are only about 15,000 Giant Eland in Eastern and Central Africa.

Moving along the spotted plains toward our destination, I’m amazed by Martin’s ability to spot wildlife in the distance and then get us up close to it. Out of nowhere, we veered off our road and rolled up to a male lion snoozing after what appears to be a very filling meal.

We get back on the road. My dad is totally amazed at how close we got to this male lion and his meal!

Finally, we are getting closer to camp and then we see it….the Great Migration! As far as your eye can see there is a line of wildebeest with zebra interspersed. No wonder we have seen so many lions today! They are hanging out close to the buffet!

As we headed down the road, we came across a big bull elephant in the road with his family near by. He issued a warning to us and was very aggressive. We turned off the vehicle and sat quietly until he decided we were no longer a threat and wandered off. These creatures seem so docile most of the time but they won’t hesitate to fight for their family.

We finally stopped for a late lunch at the Kogatende Serengeti Airport. If you were flying in a bush plane to the Mara River this is where you would land…but look at all that you would’ve missed so far! Sometimes the long traveled road has the greatest wonders.

After lunch, we ventured to a lookout over the Mara River, waiting to see if we can see the wildebeest cross. There are hippos in the water everywhere here. But the scariest thing we see in the water are the crocodiles. It’s very clear to me why the wildebeest are so reluctant to cross the river. The crocodiles are as long as trucks and span probably four feet across. I never dreamed of how gigantic they are! We see a dead wildebeest in the water with six crocodiles fighting over the feast. One is grabbing the wildebeest and doing its barrel roll in the water.

So much more to see this day…another leopard sleeping on a rock, three baby giraffes eating from short acacia trees, a trio of Cape buffalo, a hyena den with several young…theres so much to take in that it is overwhelming.

A short thunderstorm rolls in and rains on us for a while. As we head to camp on the now very messy roads we watched zebra grazing on the plains with the orange of sunset against the dark purple clouds. I realize yet again that Tanzania is a spiritual experience….I see the expression on my dad’s face and know he feels the same.

The beauty here defies that all of this was created by one organism. Intelligent design is evident in every corner of the Serengeti.

Finally, we roll into our new camp, Lemala Mara, a very remote mobile camp that moves with the migration. The camp dining room was set up family style and all of the guests came together and had a beautiful dinner. The star of the meal was the green plantain soup. But the highlight of the dinner was when the camp staff danced around the table singing songs. The most notable song goes like this:

Jambo, Jambo bwana, Habari gani, Mzuri sana. Wageni, Wakaribishwa, Kenya yetu Hakuna Matata. Kenya nchi nzuri, Hakuna Matata. Nchi ya maajabu Hakuna Matata. Nchi yenye amani, Hakuna Matata. Hakuna Matata, Hakuna Matata. Watu wote, Hakuna Matata, Wakaribishwa, Hakuna Matata. Hakuna Matata, Hakuna Matata.

Translation:

Hello, hello sir, how are you? Very fine. The visitors are welcomed to our Kenya. Don’t worry. Kenya is a nice country. Don’t worry. A country of wonder. Don’t worry. A country of peace. Don’t worry, don’t worry, don’t worry. Everybody don’t worry. You’re all welcomed, don’t worry. Don’t worry, don’t worry.

They go on to mention Tanzania, Lake Manyara, Ngorongoro, Serengeti, and Kilimanjaro in the rest of the lyrics. I wish you could hear it sung. It is the most beautiful song and brought so much joy to my heart. It brings tears to my eyes just to write these lyrics and hear it in my head again. I wish everyone could experience this. I am truly blessed for this experience.

June 18, 2020June 23, 2020

Majestic Cats

We started today early with Dad watching the sunrise from our tent at Kiota Camp. We grabbed breakfast to-go and headed out with Martin to explore the Serengeti to see what wonders we could find.

As we are driving away from camp we immediately start seeing animals; a lone hyena walking in the grass, a hartebeest (good looking cousin of the wildebeest) standing on a hill assessing the dangers of the plains and a lone hippopotamus walking in the field. You know it’s early when you see the hippos on the ground and not in the water. They come out at night and graze. During the day they are lazing in the mud pools to stay cool. Hippos are one of the reasons it’s very dangerous to go out at night in the Serengeti.

We see Fischer’s lovebirds scouring for food on the ground. Apparently, it is pretty rare to see this many of them at once and up close.

I don’t think I’ve mentioned that Tanzania is a bird watcher’s paradise. Martin points out all the birds throughout the day but I can barely keep up! They are all exotic and incredible to see though…Lilac Breasted Rollers, Secretary birds, and my favorite Green Bee Eaters.

We are driving along and see a lone female lion off in the trees. We don’t have a great view of her so we move on a little bit down the road. There we see the most majestic male lion. He definitely knows she is close by as he puts his nose in the air and sniffs. It almost looks like he is smelling the flowers. He walks fearlessly towards our safari truck and passes right in front of us. Then he went to an Acacia tree (with very large spines) and gave himself a good back scratch before lying down.

He seems pretty confident that his lady will come around. I could sit and watch this big guy all day but we move on and our timing couldn’t have been better.

We drive along the dusty roads in the central Serengeti. The terrain is a little less prairie like here with more trees and little streams emptying into small pools of water. We see a giraffe crossing the road and it is just surreal to watch him gracefully glide to the other side.

Moving on down the road we found another large pride of lions. There were probably 16-20 lions of all ages resting in the trees. I have to laugh because they really are so similar to our cats at home…a little bit of action and a whole lot of sleeping!

We continue down the road for just a couple of minutes and find a large herd of zebras crossing back and forth across the road. To our left is water, to our right, grassy plains. One lone zebra is making a lot of noise. He is braying and very nervous. The other zebras seem unsure of what to do. They cross back and forth but they really want to get a drink of water. However, the town cryer is making them skittish. We have seen a fair amount of zebras at this point and this group’s behavior seems out of the ordinary. I look back behind us with my telephoto lens to see what the anxious zebra is braying about and I see her….a lone lioness stalking in the grass. My heart races! I set up my camera to point where the zebras are entering the water and put the mode ready for action.

Suddenly there is a rush of zebras leaving the water and the lioness charges. A young zebra zags at the right time and narrowly misses certain death. The lioness is left breathless and hungry.

This reminds me that my dad has always talked about how nature doesn’t seem fair…and this is where we get into our spiritual debates. “Why” he asks, “does the lion have to kill the impala in front of its young so the lion’s young can eat?” Life is definitely hard on the Serengeti. I think we both appreciate this more now. It’s pretty easy for the zebra and the impala to eat but the big cats work hard for their meals. They fail more than they win. Later after our trip was done we would both be watching Big Cat Tales on Animal Planet to hear their Maasai guide Jackson Looseyia talk about the plight of the big cats. He said it beautifully…”the impala gives its life for their life”. Say what you will, it doesn’t get much more Christ like than that.

We drove what felt like forever on this second day on the Serengeti. We left the trees and headed back out on the golden plains. I was convinced that Martin was driving us to the end of the earth to drop us off….probably because dad was asking so many questions!

It was hot and dusty and I was getting a little cranky. We stopped for a quick lunch under the only tree we had seen in miles. We were really in the middle of nowhere in this vast golden grass. Every so often we would see a lone ostrich and it would remind me of the lone zombie walking in the field in the trailer to The Walking Dead. My goodness, where were we going?! Suddenly, Martin stopped and there were two cheetahs. They were so close I could hear them breathing. Tears welled up in my eyes at these magnificent creatures sitting in the grass. Our incredible guide had done it again! It was as if they had a pre-arranged date with us.

On the road back to Kiota Camp we saw a few safari vehicles off to a road on the right. We took a quick detour down there and saw about 10 lions taking a break on the road. I could’ve reached out my window and touched one they were so close.

After a long drive back, I was so excited to get back to Kiota Camp, take a shower, drink a beer and compare notes with our new friends. The couple from California had been able to see a zebra being born. What a miracle!

I have to say Dad and I were both physically, mentally, and emotionally exhausted after this long safari day. It is really overwhelming to see the majesty of this place and these animals when every turn reveals more and more beauty.

I believe it was John Muir that said, “In every walk in with nature, one receives far more than they seek.” Today was full of abundance….a day I won’t soon forget.

June 9, 2020June 23, 2020

Glamping on the Serengeti

Seventh in a series

Now when I said we went to our first tent camp in Quintessential Serengeti, I don’t mean your summer vacation tent that took your parents two hours to put up. I don’t mean long walks to the park bathrooms and showers either. Kiota Camp, this is truly camping in style!

Our tent was a double queen with extremely comfortable beds, writing desk, running water and toilet with a shower kind of tent. Now mind you when you are taking a shower, it’s from a gravity bucket mounted outside your tent. You have to schedule your shower and if you run out of water you just yell “more shower!” and the guys outside your tent go running for more water they are heating on the fire. You really couldn’t ask for more comfort out in the middle of nowhere.

The main tent had couches and chairs and a separate dining area. They had a campfire that you could also sit around as you watched the sun go down. When walking back to your tent at night you had a flashlight and a walkie talkie. We met wonderful people at Kiota. One couple from California was a life saver when he figured out where I lost my pictures on my computer!

The men of Kiota Camp are truly the most friendly and helpful! Every day when you roll into camp after a long day on the Serengeti plains they meet you with cool wet washcloths and a cold drink. They hurry to prepare your hot gravity shower so you can truly unwind for the evening. Only men work in these camps because the women stay home with the children. Working out here is no easy task…they carry water to tents, cut firewood with rudimentary tools, cook all the meals, and haul our heavy duffel bags.

My son owns his own forging business (Bravehawk Forge) and was actually on Forged in Fire last year. I decided I would bring one of his tomahawks in case we wanted to trade for something with a tribal chief. Imagine trying to figure out how you are going to bring a weapon of this sort into a foreign country. I wasn’t sure how it would go over! But the tomahawk made it and I didn’t go in for questioning!

One night at Kiota Camp, Dad and I were watching the men of Kiota Camp breaking branches with their hands, their feet and rudimentary tools…no chainsaw or other power tools….so I went down to the tent and brought up the tomahawk. I showed it to one of the men and told them I wanted them to have it. He was so excited…he went behind the main tent where they work and showed the other men…all talking spiritedly in Swahili. They came out with the tomahawk and asked if I would take pictures with them with it. They all lined up and took pictures individually and together with the tomahawk. Such a small gift to them makes such a big difference in their lives.

Of all the places we stayed in Africa, Kiota Camp was probably my favorite. I would return in a heartbeat!

At night, lying in the dark, you could hear animals crunching the grass nearby, the grunt of a Cape buffalo, the braying of zebras, the distant roar of a lion. I wished so badly that I had night vision goggles when I looked out the window of the tent! There were things that were so close that I could not make out in the pitch black darkness.

Early in the morning, Dad stands and looks across the Serengeti plains….we have a big safari day today and what we see will be incredible….

June 2, 2020June 23, 2020

Quintessential Serengeti

Sixth in a series

The road to the Central Serengeti is a long dusty trek in the dry season. Many people bypass this part of the trip and opt to fly in to camp but I would not recommend this the first time you go on safari. You are missing the essence of the Serengeti by taking this shortcut in my opinion. I’m not sure I would have appreciated the vastness, the desolation, the ruggedness, the magnificence of this creation. Golden grass plains extend out as far as the eye can see. I feel like I’m in the middle of a golden sea. At 5700 square miles, it’s no wonder I feel like I’m lost in this ocean.

Almost as soon as we passed through the entrance to Serengeti National Park we found a grassy marsh area where we saw a large pride of lions laying in wait. I would imagine that this is the coolest place in the Serengeti right now. Water is sparse but they manage to find what’s left of the creeks. This is the only place I have seen anything green in hours.

It’s amazing to see the lions here. They are much closer than what we saw in Tarangire. They are lean. They are waiting. They are watchful. This is no time to get a sip of water if you are a nearby impala.

We finally move on after watching the pride for quite awhile. Martin is listening to the radio and quickly darts our vehicle off to a single nearby tree. We are amazed to drive up and see a fat leopard soundly sleeping on a branch above, her belly hanging over the branch. Several branches above are the remains of the impala.

We drive further into the Serengeti towards our camp. Off in the distance we see a herd of elephants marching across the plains. I have a flashback to the Disney movie Jungle Book with the patriarch Colonel Hathi marching his herd across the landscape. It is truly surreal to be here in this incredible place.

After an extremely long, dusty, and exhilarating day, we arrived to Kiota Camp, our tent camp for the next two nights. We were greeted with warm wet washcloths and cold Kilimanjaro beer. I promise you there is no better way to end the day on the quintessential Serengeti.

May 19, 2020June 23, 2020

King of the Hill

Fourth in the series

Goodbye Tarangire. Our time was short together but wonderful! Martin picked us up and we headed out of Tarangire National Park. As we were leaving we stopped by the spot where the evening before we had seen a zebra carcass with a lioness nearby. Now there are three lionesses there and no zebra carcass. The vultures look fat and happy in the trees nearby. Things don’t go to waste in the African wild. Every scrap is eaten by someone.

So we hit the highway and headed towards Lake Manyara, a small much less traveled park on the edge of the incredibly large Lake Manyara. Lake Manyara was most famous for tree climbing lions but now those lions are seen more frequently on the Serengeti. Lake Manyara has 13 separate ecosystems according to Martin. There are areas that remind you of a North American timber forest, then there are swampy marshes, jungles, dusty desert type flatlands, and of course a big beautiful lake to name a few. Lake Manyara is also know for having the largest troops of baboons.

We watched as the troop leader left his post on top of a termite hill. A little guy decided it was his turn to try out being king of the hill. So he climbed up and sat on the top, looking out very serious. No doubt he will be a future protector of the family! He wasn’t there long before a cousin came up and they tumbled around together and off the hill!

We then drove the swampy marsh and saw dozens of hippos. There was an area where we could safely get out and walk up on a wooden bridge and overlook the swampy area. My dad really enjoyed gazing out across the marsh, pointing out hippos and water buffalo.

We went to the picnic area of the park where Martin served us a wonderful lunch. Dad really loves talking to Martin and asking him millions of questions. Martin is so good with him and explains everything and even pulls out his field guide sometimes to show him things.

The highlight of our afternoon is when we came across two big male lions snoozing underneath a bush. This was the first we had seen of male lions. You cannot believe how big their heads are! Very intimidating!

As we were watching them and I was taking pictures, Dad suddenly sneezed a very loud sneeze! One of the male lions lunged out of his afternoon stupor and roared loudly. He was not happy to be woken from his slumber by that loud sneeze! I think that was the first time that Dad or I thought we may actually be the lunch while we were on our trip! The lions are the true King of the Hill in this neighborhood.

After a long day of safari we traveled to the top of the ridge overlooking Lake Manyara park and stayed at the beautiful Serena Lodge. The sunset was spectacular with hues of pink and purple. While we sipped on ice cold Kilimanjaro beer we watched a performance by some of the Masaii tribe with beautiful singing and acrobatics.

All along the way of this trip, one thing strikes me over and over again…people here are happy. They are incredibly poor but their hearts are full of love. I think of the smiles of the young Tanzanian children as they run up to our safari truck and we hand them apples, protein bars, or bottles of water. All the stupid things we worry about at home just melt into the background of the hot African plains. I’m so appreciative to be here, to experience this, to open my heart to it all. I know when I leave this place, I will leave part of myself behind.

May 12, 2020June 23, 2020

Heaven on Earth

Third in a series

We woke to a foggy cool morning in Arusha. I wanted so badly to see Mt. Kilimanjaro that I knew was lingering just beyond the clouds. She was elusive, not yet ready to show us the beauty of Tanzania. Of course, in the light of day with a good nights sleep behind us, I wasn’t so intimidated as I was the night before. My confidence had returned! The culture shock from the night before had subsided.

My dad overlooking the foggy valley at Onsea House.

Martin, our guide for our entire trip, gathered us up that morning around 10 a.m. We drove towards our first destination, Tarangire National Park.

I was astonished by the vast openness of the countryside. There was no fencing, no barriers, no property demarkation….anywhere. As we drove, we watch Maasai women and children herding their sheep, goats, or cows to water. We watched other women carrying buckets of water on their heads. We watched very small children playing along the roadside without supervision. It was truly the Wild West!

Finally we turned to enter Tarangire National Park, one of the most famous wildlife conservation projects in Tanzania. It was established in 1970 and covers roughly 1100 square miles. It is famous for it’s high density of elephants and Baobab trees.

I was amazed at Martin’s eye. It was like he had X-ray vision! He scanned the countryside constantly as he was driving us through the park pointing out different animals and birds. However, the most memorable moment was when we drove to the Tarangire river bed and watched a huge herd of elephants digging for water. My favorite picture is of a mother elephant nudging her calf with her trunk. I look at my dad and he is smiling ear to ear. He is beyond happy. He is in his church. This is truly heaven on earth.

After a long day of driving through the park, we settled into Tarangire Sopa Lodge for the night. While waiting for dad to get a shower so we could have dinner in their excellent restaurant, I watched from our balcony the Vervet monkeys watching me. I went and sat on the bed. I then got up and moved to the balcony opening, they were closer. I moved back to the bed and to the balcony several times….laughing that each time I looked out that the monkeys were getting ever so closer to me on the balcony. Finally, I looked and they were sitting on the ledge of the balcony. Mischievous and curious…..not so unlike their cousins on the inside.