Videos - Serengeti, Ngorongoro, Lake Natron

We continued wandering around the Seronera area in Central Serengeti, and also headed for a day to the Kirawira-Grumeti area in Western Serengeti to take a look at the migrating herds. 

I hope I was able to give you a good idea of the random motion that the 4x4 makes. It was an effort to hold on and grab a few short clips. Once again, please overlook the quality, and continue enjoying the ride, sights and sounds!

We were fortunate to experience four Leopard sightings in Serengeti, and a very brief one in Tarangire. Two of our Leopard sightings in Serengeti included Gazelle kills stored safely up trees. Relatively safely, perhaps. While one Leopard was resting with the Gazelle draped around a nearby branch, a Leopard at another sighting was busy with morning breakfast. 





Our Lion sightings continued, too many to count. 





A pair was lying down for a while, when they decided to walk away a little further, probably looking for a little privacy. 





The migrating herds were scattered in the Kirawira area near the Grumeti river at the end of May. There are no public campsites in that area, so Nyani Campsite in Central Serengeti continued to be our home. We drove two hours from Nyani Campsite in Seronera to the Western area. The first part of the drive was in bright sunshine along dry, rough tracks. 




The landscape changed during the next half of the drive. Several Zeebra and Wildebeest appeared, walking towards the west. The grass appeared to be not that dry and slightly greener. The Grumeti river area and Kirwira area were home to the migrating herds at that time.









Amos drove around the Grumeti river area for quite a while. We sighted herds running madly, trying to cross, crocodiles partly submerged under the water, Marabou Storks waiting on the rocks and several species of Vultures waiting on the trees. Meanwhile, Zeebra and Wildebeest appeared mighty confused whether to drink water or not. 





Continuing from Serengeti, we headed to Ngorongoro Crater, and then to Lake Natron via Lake Manyara. The Simba Campsite perched on the rim of the Crater provided superb views of the Crater and Lake Magadi. We spent an interesting six hours driving on the Crater floor. The mountains that form the Crater rim, fields carpeted with little bright, yellow flowers and the clouds formed an impressive backdrop as we sighted Wildebeest, Zebra, Rhinos, Gazelle, Lions, Buffalo, Jackal, Hippos (in the rest area) and several bird species. 




A large, male lion took a liking to the shadow of our 4x4.




Troops of Baboons went marching by, and a few youngsters decided to explore our 4x4.




Gazelle and Zebra stood by highly alert, continuously swishing their tails.




A night in the Lake Manyara area was our pit stop on the way to Lake Natron. The landscapes and the conditions of the roads changed over the close to three hours it took us to reach. The roads were very rocky and bumpy.




After that the road got even bumpier and dusty.




The final 30 minutes was along stretches of road that appeared to be ancient volcanic streams. An extremely fine grey dust hung around the air.




The afternoon was well spent hiking up the river to the Engero Sare waterfall accompanied by a Maasai guide. The water drains into Lake Natron. Early the next morning, at 6 AM, we set off on our walk around the Lake at sunrise. The atmosphere was surreal as the sun rose and the rays caught the top of the Ol Doinyo Lengai mountain, the Rift Valley mountains and then the Lake area got brighter.




I hope you enjoyed a few glimpses of the sights and sounds around Tarangire, Central Serengeti, Western Serengeti, Ngorongoro and Lake Natron.

Next stop, Arusha.

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Related posts in this series:

Namanga Border Crossing

The Gentle Giants of Tarangire

Tarangire revisited

Endless Serengeti Plains

Migrating herds, Crocodiles and Vultures at Kirawira

Big Cats of Central Serengeti

Camping under African skies

Flamingos at Empakai Crater Lake

Ngorongoro Crater - Wildlife, Maasais and Flowers

Campsite food and Nyama Choma in Mto Wa Mbu

From green to gray, the stark beauty of Lake Natron

Videos - Tarangire, Central Serengeti

Videos - Central Serengeti, Western Serengeti, Ngorongoro, Lake Natron

Two nights in Arusha-=-=-=-=

Videos - Tarangire, Central Serengeti

Here is a collection of videos ranging from ultra-short to short duration, from about 10 seconds to maybe just over a minute. Most of the videos were shot standing up in the 4x4 while the vehicle was moving. While the left hand clutched at any kind of support available, like the prop of the pop-up roof or the grill in front, the right hand tightly hung on to the camera. The vehicle meanwhile went its merry way, bouncing along on tracks that ranged from dusty to gravel like to rocky. 

The vehicle randomly went up and down, left and right, and composed an infinite number of permutations in between. We were so intent on enjoying the proceedings fully that on one occasion in the Serengeti, one of us went tumbling down and fell on the other. There were no injuries and breakages. All for a good cause.

Many of the videos are jerky. A few clips were taken sitting down, sticking the camera out of the window. 

For those who  have not traveled to Tanzania, I hope the short clips gives you a reasonably good sneak preview. For the experts, it may bring back memories. Please overlook the quality, and enjoy the ride, sights and sounds!

The names in the frame attempt to convey the context of the videos.





















Junior plays a spot of soccer with the boys at the public campsite in Tarangire. We were the only guests, so it felt extremely special that evening. Armed rangers showed up a little while later to keep us company.




We had just been attacked by a mob of Tse-tse flies. It appeared that the Ostrich had also suffered a similar experience.



Thousands of Quelea birds fly up, around and down in unison.



Hundreds of Buffalo at the Swala Swamp in Southern Tarangire appeared to be interested in our welfare.




The drive from the Ngorongoro Crater viewpoint on the western side to Naabi Hill in Serengeti was about two hours. The cold and the fog gradually gave way to the sun peeping out from behind the clouds, lighting up the meadows where domestic cattle grazed with Wildebeest, Zeebra and an occasional giraffe. The road got winding and bumpier as we headed north towards the plains of Serengeti. 




After a hour or so, the road stayed bumpy, got dusty and very straight most of the way. 















A Lioness was stalking a herd of Zebra near a watering hole one evening at sunset. She was part of a pride of maybe 10 Lions, Lionesses and Cubs. Many mouths to feed!



The Zebra were in an extreme state of panic. They could sense the presence of a Lion. The Lion was actually hiding in the grass about 100 metres away waiting for the opportune moment. 



The Zebras ran back and forth. They wanted a drink, at the same time were panic stricken. 



All the Zebras safely retreated into the plains in a cloud of dust, away from the watering hole. A few members of the pride had branched off towards the plains away from the watering hole a little while ago. We left the scene and headed to Nyani Campsite wondering whether the Lions' plans would work that night. 



Junior had work to do. He had to set up the camera and tripod, to capture a few glimpses of the Serengeti sky at night.

Thank you for watching! The next set of videos covers sights and sounds in Central Serengeti, Western Serengeti, Ngorongoro Crater and Lake Natron. After that, we head back to Arusha.

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Related posts in this series:

Namanga Border Crossing

The Gentle Giants of Tarangire

Tarangire revisited

Endless Serengeti Plains

Migrating herds, Crocodiles and Vultures at Kirawira

Big Cats of Central Serengeti

Camping under African skies

Flamingos at Empakai Crater Lake

Ngorongoro Crater - Wildlife, Maasais and Flowers

Campsite food and Nyama Choma in Mto Wa Mbu

From green to gray, the stark beauty of Lake Natron

Videos - Tarangire, Central Serengeti

Videos - Central Serengeti, Western Serengeti, Ngorongoro, Lake Natron

Two nights in Arusha-=-=-=-=

Big Cats of Central Serengeti

The first views of the plains appeared as we approached Serengeti from the heights of Ngorongoro. After close to an hour of jarring yet thoroughly enjoyable driving, we passed the Southern areas where Wilderbeest are born every year, a part of their somewhat circular journey as they traverse the area following the rain clouds. Nabi Hill has a nice look out point up a steep section of the kopje. Amos then opened the top of the 4x4.  As we looked over the plains, we were reminded of scenes like in the Mara. The big cats could be anywhere!

Amos constantly scanned the landscape. Our game drives were punctuated by: "Do you see Lion out there?". A Lion, or sometimes a bunch of then would magically appear. We often saw solitary Lions, some were senior citizens. We wondered whether they had been driven out from the pride by younger males. If so, do they find it hard to hunt and eat? 

Some solitary Lions and Lionesses would be busy crunching bones and finishing off the meat before the scavengers started to trouble them. 

We sighted Lions, Lionesses and Cubs at regular intervals. One Lioness had a radio collar around the neck.

Some were part of large groups. Six, eight, sometimes more. 

The picture below is also called 'Spot the Lion' contest. 

Whether early morning or sunset, we spotted many Lions. After a while we stopped counting, and just enjoyed the spectacle.

Evenings were a good time to catch the big cats in a hunting mood. 

A couple of Lionesses from a pride decided to stalk Zebras one evening. 

They were a study in concentration.

Walking, pausing, lying down, walking again...

It looked like they had many mouths to feed. We tried to count, perhaps 7 in that pride. 

The target was a huge group of Zebras.

There was a watering hole about half kilometer away where a large herd of Zebras had gathered. 

The sun was going down.

While the Lionesses were calm and focused, the scene in the watering hole was the opposite. The Zebras were in a state of utter panic. 

One of the Lionesses had approached within about 100 metres, and was crouching in the grass. The Zebras must have got wind of the big cat, but may not have been able to locate her position accurately. They desperately wanted to drink water. A few brave ones approached the water. The rest followed, hesitating. 

The 'leader' would suddenly decide that the situation is getting dangerous, and would rush out of the water. The rest of the herd would follow in panic! This went on for about 15 minutes. 

After a number of back and forth group dashes, the entire herd left the the watering hole, leaving a huge trail of dust behind them. The Lioness we had noticed stalking the Zebras missed them. Maybe another Lioness from the pride was waiting on the other side?

Junior was having a hectic time that evening. Besides, he had work to do at the Campsite once we got back. The tripod had to be set up to catch the stars.

The Serengeti is full of photo opportunities. There is always scope to add a few more to the Plains and Tree collection.

And sometimes to the Plains, Tree and Solitary Bird collection. 

A break at a Picnic area feels good, weaver bird nests in the trees, plains stretching away in the distance.

"Do you see the Lions out there?".

"Do you see the Lion out there?". "Here, right next to the tree." Sometimes we would expect the Lion to be far away, while it would be only 20 feet away, lying well camouflaged.

We were happy with our Lion sightings across three parks: over 20 sightings, and maybe 70 to 80 cats, including prides of up to 10 cats. We had stopped counting long ago!

A typical scene from late afternoon game drives, with the sun lighting up the grass and tracks a warm, golden colour.

Occasionally, Amos would cry out: "Do you see the Leopard out there?". This one was comfortably perched within rocks in a kopje, hard to spot until you really determine that it is indeed a Leopard out there.

A Leopard resting on a branch high up. There perhaps was reason to rest. 

The Leopard was resting, maybe in anticipation of the meal ahead. The prey, a Thomson Gazelle, had been dragged up and deposited for safe keeping on another branch of the same tree, high above the ground.

Another Leopard jumps from branch to branch. Ok, "jumps" is a highly inaccurate work. "Gracefully walks" would be more like it. 

We came across a Leopard busy eating a Gazelle one morning, high up a tree. 

Uncomfortable with the position, he moved around on the branch.

A Leopard snoozing, body draped around a branch high up.

To take a break from Leopards, here is one from the Plains, Cloud and Sun collection. 

"Do you see the Cheetah out there?". As if by magic, a Cheetah suddenly appeared out of nowhere. 

With impending sunset, she seemed to be scanning the horizon, for the time remaining to hunt was ticking away.

The play of light and shadow on the plains is a constantly engrossing sight. 

Moses fixed cups of coffee as we reach Nabi Hill on our way out of Serengeti. It's time to check out, keeping in mind the 24-hour time duration allowed between entry and exit. 

As we wait a while at Nabi Hill for the optimal moment to register our exit, Junior reassures Mamma back home that "all is well". While the Giraffe did welcome him into the Mens' loo, we did not have any other encounters in the Campsite. 

The Serengeti had too many visuals that stuck in our minds, from sunrise to sunset (12-hour game drives, remember?), birds, big cats, ellies, giraffes, wildebeest, crocodiles, hippos, antelopes, zebras, hartebeest, elands, dik diks, the plains, trees, clouds and sunlight playing games on the grass, and sunsets that painted the sky a unique shade of red. 

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Please click below for posts in this series:

Namanga Border Crossing

The Gentle Giants of Tarangire

Tarangire revisited

Endless Serengeti Plains

Migrating herds, Crocodiles and Vultures at Kirawira

Big Cats of Central Serengeti

Camping under African skies

Flamingos at Empakai Crater Lake

Ngorongoro Crater - Wildlife, Maasais and Flowers

Campsite food and Nyama Choma in Mto Wa Mbu

From green to gray, the stark beauty of Lake Natron

Videos - Tarangire, Central Serengeti

Videos - Central Serengeti, Western Serengeti, Ngorongoro, Lake Natron

Two nights in Arusha

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Endless Serengeti Plains

The grasslands of Serengeti have been on my to-visit list for decades, since my high school days. The Masai Mara was also on my list, which Junior and I experienced in April 2013. And now it was Serengeti time! Serengeti, from the map and from traveler discussions, appeared many times larger, and travel had a reputation of being far rougher. The drive from Tarangire would last close to six hours, about a third of it on fairly good roads, up to the Ngorongoro Crater, and the remaining on tracks that only 4x4s can endure. 

Long drives are a good time to recharge batteries. Very few Public Campsites are equipped with charging points. Only the Simba Campsite at Ngorongoro was equipped with a bunch of charging points.
  

On the way, we stopped for a few seconds to pay our respects to the rich Maasai gentleman whose family is reputed to include thousands of cattle (some of which were crossing the highway), 25 wives and hundreds of children, because of which he has a school of his own. 

We crossed the lovely Ngorongoro Conservation area, skirting the famous 'Crater'. The first lookout point was completely covered with fog. It was a sea of white. We drove on, going clockwise around the Crater. A heavy blanket of fog had settled around the Crater rim. We managed to occasionally discern Massais grazing their cattle on the hillsides. 

It started to get clearer as we drove on. 

Domestic cattle grazed peacefully with Zebra and Wilderbeest right next to Maasai villages that dotted the hillsides and valleys. Further down,we noticed that Giraffes had joined the party. Sunlight starting appearing from behind cracks in the clouds, revealing plains in the distance. 

The second lookout point was fog free, but a bitterly cold wind was blowing as we peered into the crater.

More of the plains became visible. It was a feeling of expectations with patches of cloud and sunlight covering the plains far away. 

The track got rougher. Bump, bump, bump, over the dirt track. Our bone jarring journey to the Serengeti began. This was going to be our life for the next few days. This was what we were waiting for. This experience is also known as the 'African Massage'.  

After a little over an hour, we were welcomed into the Serengeti National Park!

The track across much of the route was very straight and very dusty. Looking back from the arch of Serengeti Park, we could see the mountains of the Ngorongoro area in the distance.  

The kopje at Naabi Hill, almost 20 km from the welcome arch, is the point where you pay the fees and get a good glimpse of what is ahead. The plains stretched on and on. We were reminded of the landscapes we had experienced in the Mara a year ago. It felt really good to be back! 

May the game drives begin! More often than not, our 4x4 left a long trail of dust behind us.

This post is a small collection of views of landscapes, trees, birds and 'non-big-cat' wildlife that we spotted in Central Serengeti over 4D/3N.    

Zebras rest their chins on each other and keep a watch for predators. Teamwork!

A large Secretary Bird perched on top of a tree.

For the perspective, this is where we spotted the Secretary Bird.  

Vast plains and with an occasional tree are a very common sight, almost seem to represent the Serengeti. The trees must be getting lonely, I thought. 

Is that an African Fish Eagle? In the plains of Central Serengeti? I was under the impression that these eagles live near large bodies of water.

A Marabou Stork up a tree. That was the first time I have seen this giant bird up a tree. Had no idea they could fly high!

Up until then I had seen Marabou Storks on the ground. I understand they are scavengers. 

Landscapes that you can gaze at, all day. This is an evening view. 

A Saddle-billed Stork surveys the grasslands.

It's not easy identifying a bird that is staring straight at you! A Northern White-crowned Shrike.

An Acacia tree with birds.

Blacksmith Lapwing Plover. Many of the bird species have been identified via 'crowd-sourcing' from experts in the TripAdvisor forum. I was too busy admiring the views and forgot to take notes.

Eastern Chanting Goshawk. Atop a kopje.

A Chestnut-bellied Sandgrouse.

Not too far away, a Yellow-throated Sandgrouse. Sort of similar looking.

Ahhhhh, those landscapes again! Junior adds to his Plains, Sun and Cloud collection. 

A large group of Hippos in the evening, noisily snorting and splashing away.

A Black-backed Jackal looks suspiciously at us. One of the smaller carnivores. 

Black-backed Jackals appear to be quite active earlier in the day.

A Black-backed jackal runs away with the head of a rabbit early in the morning.

A spotted Hyena crosses the track. We came across several groups, laughing away eerily in the grass. 

Part of the Plains, Sun, Cloud and Rain collection. 

Hello, down there! 

This picture is from the Plains and Solitary Tree collection.

Worried Hartebeest make sure we are not invading their territory, beyond a point. 

A Monitor Lizard basks in the early morning light.

While an Agama Lizard gets a tan.

Another one from the Plains collection, as the sun prepares to go down, and we prepare to race back to the Campsite. 

Well, this was a quick look at the plains and some of the wildlife of Central Serengeti. I think it would be right to say that we traveled to admire and experience the landscapes, the atmosphere and wildlife, the sunrise and sunset, to just be there, to camp out in Public Campsites and take it a moment at a time. Pause to admire the large predatory birds perched high up on Acacia trees during sunset. At least a couple of Marabou Storks there.

We did not have any specific expectations about wildlife sightings. It was as if being there was wonderful enough, we felt blessed to be among the privileged few who get an opportunity to experience the magic of being a mere speck wandering around in the 'Endless Plains'... leaving a momentary dust trail behind. 

Enduring memories... the vast, seemingly endless plains of the Serengeti. 

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Please click below for posts in this series:

Namanga Border Crossing

The Gentle Giants of Tarangire

Tarangire revisited

Endless Serengeti Plains

Migrating herds, Crocodiles and Vultures at Kirawira

Big Cats of Central Serengeti

Camping under African skies

Flamingos at Empakai Crater Lake

Ngorongoro Crater - Wildlife, Maasais and Flowers

Campsite food and Nyama Choma in Mto Wa Mbu

From green to gray, the stark beauty of Lake Natron

Videos - Tarangire, Central Serengeti

Videos - Central Serengeti, Western Serengeti, Ngorongoro, Lake Natron

Two nights in Arusha

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