TANZANIA | SERENGETI
Scenes of cheetahs stalking the endless plains, prides of lions controlling their territory and vast crowds of grazing wildebeest and zebra had captured by imagination. and so when the chance came up to accompany my Mum, I didn’t hesitate and the Northern Circuit was booked.
First stop was the Seregenti, known as ‘The Endless Plains’. After a few take offs and landings, we reached the iconic Seronera airstrip (Central Serengeti), where we were whisked away by our guide, Joel. Within half an hour, we’d seen the first arrival of migrating wildebeest and zebra from the Mara, a male lion resting feet up under a tree, a glimpse of leopard sleeping in a tree and a hyena bathing in a pool. It was obvious that the Serengeti was home to the big game.
After a warm welcome by the staff at our first camp, we settled into Nomad’s Seregenti Safari Camp, a luxury tented mobile camp that moves with the annual migration. Being in the wilderness and with game close by, we were always escorted from dusk onwards to. Lions are trusted not to attack during the day but we’re fair game at night.
Despite a sleepless night listening to the hyenas’ howls, zebras’ barks and the scurrying of animals by the tent, we were up at dawn raring to go. What I love about the safari is the morning’s excitement as you drive off not knowing what’s in store.
Beyond the game, the Serengeti’s incredible ecosystem is made up of vast horizon-stretching plains, rolling hills, acacia forests and rocky outcrops dotted throughout. Driving in the open jeep with the warm air blowing on your face whilst watching a herd of tommy gazelles dancing through the long grass will forever be etched in my memory.
The first day didn’t disappoint. We were greeted by 3 hyena sluggishly walking through the trees and then a family of lionesses including their cubs trying to catch a bite of a fresh zebra kill that the lion was feasting on. Early morning presents the best time to see them when it’s cooler and they’re actually awake (lions sleep on average 20 hours away). Two brothers playfully scrapped close by, before climbing the tree and giving each other an affectionate head rub whilst another male lion strode close by leaving his brother to enjoy his feast alone.
The notoriousy shy black rhino was on my wish list and when our guide was given the heads up of a sighting, we swiftly made our way there. Although far in the distance, there she was grazing with her calf. Tanzania has not escaped poaching and numbers have rapidly declined so seeing a rhino is very special. We sat and patiently waited for a closer view but she kept her guard and we moved on to the vast plains in search of the leopard and cheetah. With the tall grasses, cats are well camouflaged so only a movement or their protruding ears will give their presence away. It was not to be, but we still witnessed an elephant herd marching by and watched giraffes majestically stroll through the grass.
We named our final day ‘Super Cat Saturday’ with unbelievable sightings of all the cats and their cubs. As dawn was breaking, we spent time in the company of two lionesses and their pack of eight 3 month old cubs. It was pure magic watching the brothers and sisters affectionately pawing each other, jumping across the puddles and snuggling up to their mothers. We still had the cheetah and leopard to track down and in the words of our guide, Joel ‘when the guide gives up, you know there’s a problem’. He kept to his word and we headed to the Namiri Plains, the home of the cheetah.
Driving through the endless plains, a serval (also very rare to see) unexpectedly jumped out of the grass and then I knew we were in luck. Joel saw jeeps in the distance and there they were, a family of 5 cheetahs including young cubs tucking into a kill. We didn’t expect to see them, especially as previous guests had missed out so it was a dream come true. We drove closer and to my surprise, the mother was standing on the wheel of the jeep (it was something out of Planet Earth) before jumping on top. One thing I observed is that there is mutual respect between the animals and guides –they never hound or invade their space, leaving them to be after a short time, which in turn allows the animals to trust them.
Heading back to the road, we met a coalition of three male lions (brothers). To see one male lion was amazing but to see three walking and shaking their manes in tandem was amazing. They walked all the way down the road giving us a fantastic view before collapsing under an acacia tree ready for their afternoon nap. From there we saw another 6 cheetahs including a kill – it was over within seconds but observing the mother patiently watch her prey, then stalk before committing to a full sprint with the cubs mimicking their mother’s technique was like watching a nature documentary.
The last cat to see was the leopard and so we made our way back to the rock where we knew she and her cub were. We kept everything crossed and this time, we saw her lying frontwards in the tree. I would have been happy with that but we patiently waited and she suddenly jolted up and walked out in full view on top of the rock barking to her cub to join. Within a few minutes, the cub came out from hiding and climbed up into full sight before climbing down the tree to snack on the freshly killed gazelle. To see all the cats and cubs in one day is very rare and safari is a game of luck – you’re either in the right place at the right time or not.
