August 2009
Message Stick is few days early this month as Hilary and I are sneaking off to Queensland for a few days to visit my daughter whom we see far too infrequently!
We have been somewhat busy this last month with a number of clients travelling. By all reports so far they have had a great time and things seem to be working really well. Weather has been kind and so have game viewing opportunities.
The World Cup Soccer in South Africa next year is causing us some difficulties in that hotels have virtually all been block booked and it is extremely difficult for us to get people into hotels that are normally available. We have also been informed that a 50% non refundable deposit is now required for all bookings, including game lodges, for the period 11th June to 11th June 2010! We will live with this as we are not involved in the Cup bookings at all but we do have a number of people wanting to do a Safari before or after the event. Most of these we can manage with our standard terms and conditions.
Staff News.
Tracey’s (Morris) husband has been deployed to Afghanistan until early next year and so she will have the sole responsibility of taking care of their four children. As a result of this she will be spending less time with us but will continue looking after all the payments, accounts and MYOB. We look forward to having Kel return safely.
Sandie (Gosper) has now taken on greater responsibilities having been elevated to the lofty ranks of managing all the client services – including itineraries, client contact and communication, bookings, dealing with our African suppliers and also such things as sending out DVD’s and ensuring that all Wish Lists and client enquiries are dealt with expeditiously. She does a sterling job and we just love having this Zimbabwe bred lady as part of our team.
Jo (Banner) has also recently joined us and brings with her a wealth of experience having worked for a UK Travel Agency as their Africa specialist. She is fitting in so very well and she is mainly involved in delivering high quality itineraries and keeping up her excellent communication skills by managing the clients allocated to her.
I am still the luckiest guy alive in that I just play all day doing things that I really enjoy and some people call this work!! My passion for Africa and its wild life grows by the day and I get a huge a kick out of hearing from people that we have sent over telling us that we have changed them forever! The amazing enthusiasm of these retuned travellers is indeed awesome!
Postcard from Tanzania Part 4. Hilary
We awaken early for the final leg of our Tanzanian odyssey. Today will be spent mostly driving, retracing our steps back to the Ngorongoro Crater. Eventually we leave the flat plains of the Serengeti and start to climb through the ridges and valleys of the Ngorongoro conservation area, dotted with manyattas (Maasai villages) and colourfully attired locals tending their small herds of cattle and goats. The conservation area was once part of the Serengeti when the park was established in 1951. But due to conflicts between the Maasai and the park authorities, the government split off the conservation area from the park in 1959. The conservation area covers approximately 8,288 square kilometers and was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979. The Crater is special for many reasons: firstly it is the world's largest unbroken, unflooded volcanic caldera and secondly because of the density of animals who call it home. It formed when a giant volcano exploded and collapsed on itself some two to three million years ago, is 610 meters deep and its floor covers 260 km².
We arrive at our overnight destination, the Ngorongoro Serena Safari Lodge, in the late afternoon. It is a large stone structure cloaked in indigenous creepers and perched on the jagged rim of the crater, thus commanding excellent views of the crater itself (clouds permitting). It is reminiscent of a ski-lodge, not least because of the biting wind that has us reaching for our jackets. Rope-lashed timber walkways, that skirt the buttressed roots of ancient, liana-hung trees, link the collection of buildings that comprise the lodge at the heart of which a log fire glows reassuringly. Most of the 74 rooms have private balconies overlooking this breathtaking natural wonder. Though from this distance it is difficult to imagine that the pasture below is rich enough to supports over 25,000, predominantly grazing animals, including some of Tanzania's last black rhinos.
Because the Crater is one of the most popular sites in Tanzania, we decide to beat the rush and start off early. We arrive at the Eastern entrance gate just before 6am to find the rangers grappling with a very stubborn lock. Just as we are about to despair, the lock releases the gate and Habibu disappears inside to pay the exorbitant entry fees: US$150 per person and US$250 for the vehicle per half-day. We inch our way down the one-way track and arrive at the bottom of the crater just as particles of light begin to filter through the darkness sufficiently to notice the layout of the landscape of steep inner slopes giving way to open grasslands which cover most of the floor with several species of grasses that are the main food source for most of the larger grazing animals. Resentful of the need to drag myself out of bed in the middle of the night, I am more than pre-disposed to disliking the Crater as I cast a grumpy eye over the early morning scene until my gaze comes to rest on one of the rare black Rhino. As we drive along the muddy tracks, past the black Rhino, families of hyena, zebra, buffalo a lone vehicle in this vast natural wonderland we have a sense that perhaps we have gone back in time to an era before man roamed the earth.
In the distance, clouds claw their way over the rim of the crater as the waters of Lake Makat shimmers below. Lake Makat is a soda lake, fed by the Munge River and is a magnet for flamingos and other water birds which go there to feed.
We stay bundled up inside the jeep until the sun is well over the elevated horizon. Eventually hunger pangs overtake us so we head to the nearest picnic spot for our packed breakfast. On the bank of a picturesque waterhole, we set up our camp table, complete with tablecloth, and chairs – very civilized! The emergence of the food from its wrapping attracts much feathered attention as little yellow weaver birds and glossy starlings dart around us. An over-ambitious kite surprises me by buzzing past my ear, making a grab for the Danish pastry on its way to my mouth. However a miscalculation on the part of the kite, leads to the weavers enjoying the refined breakfast rather than the kite.
After breakfast we continue to meander through this amazing eco-system, astonished at the variety and the characteristics of the resident animals, including large tusked male elephants (females generally stay outside the crater because the steep walls of the rim are difficult to negotiate during pregnancy). The animals on our list since our arrival in the crater include Black rhino, wildebeest, zebra, buffalo, eland, Thompson’s gazelle, jackal, elephant, hyena, lion, hippo, ostrich, hartebeest, Grants gazelle, baboons, auger buzzard, vulture, and monkey. We sit for a while watching a few lions demolish the remains of last nights dinner, as a hyena waits impatiently at a safe distance for any leftovers. Because the Ngorongoro crater is such a popular tourist destination, the animals (most of whom stay put in the crater all year) are less people shy and so one can get closer to them than in many other areas. Indeed they are so non-plussed about human visitors, we had to barge our way through a Zebra traffic jam, mobilizing the recalcitrant creatures with a nudge of the bumper bar of the vehicle.
Around midday we reach the western side of the crater and begin the laborious climb up, what appears to me, a boulder-studded treacherous dirt road with hairpin bends and sheer drops back into the crater. About three-quarters of the way to the top we are stopped by gun-wielding, uniformed men who inform us that the road is closed and we cannot proceed any further!! I feel angry enough to strangle the lot of them for omitting to put a sign at the bottom about the road-closure. But I know well enough that a display of irritation would be counter-productive, giving these officious little men an excuse to exert their little bit of power. There is nothing for it but to turn around and head back down to where we came from – easier said than done. It takes us 40 minutes to descend and then we have to drive the whole way across the crater to the other exit and then double back over the rim. So much for the lunch we had planned! Nevertheless the half-day excursion to the Crater has been a very memorable experience and one of the real highlights of our trip. Definitely worth any sacrifice which must be made to get there even a very early morning start!
Our next stop is the Ngorongoro Farm House, a lodge on a 500 acre coffee plantation. It consists of three separate and intimate camps of 9 comfortable bungalows. Each unit is attractively built on the style of an old colonial farm and rustically decorated with local materials. The lodge offers comfortable basic accommodation at reasonable rates as well as a friendly welcome, pretty gardens, a swimming pool and a craft shop.
The final day of our Tanzanian Odyssey dawns and we climb aboard the jeep for the relatively short trip to Arusha. We sure have covered some territory in the last 8 days and in the process have formed bonds of friendship with our travelling companions: Kate, who very kindly organized the trip for us, and Habibu who expertly and conscientiously guided us on our way. As the Bard once said “parting is such sweet sorrow”.
At the end of our long threatened trip in Northern Tanzania, we are left with the impression that Tanzania is still trading on its history and, apart from the unique migration experience and Ngorongoro Crater, seems to offer a more expensive but somewhat less sophisticated safari experience than that available in Southern Africa.
News from Savanna Private Game Reserve
(With thanks and acknowledgement to Paddy Hagelthorn and the staff of Savanna for photos and text)
Winter started this month, but only lasted for 3 days. We had a cold snap with a few showers of rain which brought us 15 ml in total. Once this cold snap had passed, the weather turned to our normal beautiful winter days, with temperatures reaching 30 degrees and not really going below 12 degrees in the early hours of the morning. There have been some wonderful early morning sunrises and the mist has come in on a few occasions, creating a white blanket which has made for fantastic photographic opportunities.
The rhino boom continues and we are seeing a number of very young rhino calves on our property. Two in particular have very relaxed mothers and as a result the calves have also become exceptionally relaxed. We are seeing these on a daily basis. There was some concern on a game drive the other day when one of these mothers walked into a pride of lions and we thought that this young calf would be extremely vulnerable. However, the lions took very little interest in them. Lions very seldom go for rhino, as rhino are incredibly nimble on their feet and can turn remarkably quickly which deters predators such as lion and hyena from taking them on.
At the beginning of the month there was a shortage of elephant herds and we were just seeing single bulls or small groups of bulls in our traversing area. However, the breeding herds have come back with a vengeance and we are inundated with elephant again! A very relaxed herd surrounded one of our vehicles at a waterhole recently without any concern for the vehicle at all. As one of our guests put it, one can learn so much about life by just watching a herd of elephant. The elephant feeding habits have changed – they are eating bark and the few leaves that are left on the bushes and this will be the time when we will be able to assess how much damage, if any, the elephants are causing in the reserve.
We were very excited to discover that Makubela, the female leopard on the south-eastern side of our property, has also produced two cubs. We hadn’t seen much of her of late, so we didn’t even know that she was pregnant. So far we have been unable to get photographs of these young cubs, as she has them hidden in a hole in the bank of a drainage line where it is impossible to get any decent photographs. Unfortunately, I don’t hold out too much hope for the survival of these cubs, as there is a huge territorial dispute between several male leopards in this particular area. These include the Thulamanzi male which we have mentioned before and the new relaxed male which we also mentioned in a previous newsletter. There is also a very large skittish male that we have seen a few times in this area, and until one of these males asserts himself as the dominant male in the area, there is very little chance of any cubs surviving.
Some good news is that the Mambiri female still has her single cub. She has moved her cub from the previous den to an unknown location, but in the last day or two we have seen her tracks and the cub tracks in the drainage line near the Mackenzie camp.
Shangwa, the female leopard from the north-east of the property, also still has her seven- month old cub and we were privileged to see her taking the cub to an impala kill late on one morning drive. This cub seems to be faring well and is being viewed on a regular basis.
The Wallingford male is coming under extreme pressure over territory from the Tegwane male and was seen being chased out of his territory a few days ago. It is only a matter of time before this old male will succumb to pressure from Tegwane and unfortunately this sort of situation normally ends in a violent death. It is very sad to see such a magnificent animal who has given us incredible viewing for the last 13 years get to a stage where he is not dominant any more. We estimate his age to be approximately between 16 and 17 years old which is a really good innings for a leopard.
Another very sad moment was when we learned of the demise of another one of the famous leopards of the Sabi Sand and that is Makwela. We were told she had to be destroyed outside the reserve as she had taken to killing domestic livestock. She too was extremely old and we believe moved out of the Sabi Sand because of pressure from other female leopards taking over her territory, one of whom was her daughter Hlabankunzi.
It seems that this month has been total carnage with the lions, as all the prides have been on a number of large kills. The Ottawa pride, who seem to have made the northern part of our traversing area their new territory, killed a giraffe about seven days ago and are still feeding on it as we write this newsletter.
The Shimungwe pride have been feasting on a number of wildebeest during the month and moved straight from one wildebeest kill to a zebra kill almost overnight. It is also interesting to have the lions drinking from my house pond during the middle of the day.
The Shimungwe pride have been feasting on a number of wildebeest during the month and moved straight from one wildebeest kill to a zebra kill almost overnight. It is also interesting to have the lions drinking from my house pond during the middle of the day.
We have had a very exciting incursion of another pride of lions that came in from the east. We believe that this pride is known as the Sparta pride and they moved onto Savanna’s property for just 24 hours before moving east. This is the second time that they have been on our property and it will be interesting to see if they make these visits on a frequent basis. This pride is made up of two adult females, one sub-adult male, one large old male and five two-year old cubs. It is a very impressive pride, but they will have to be careful that they do not cross paths with the Mapogo, as we believe that they are probably not the father of these cubs.
We have had frequent visits from the male cheetah this month and he has made a number of kills on our traversing area. One was an impala which he fed on for two days. We are not sure whether he has competition in the east, but he does seem to be spending more time on our property of late.
With the bush and the grass receding, we are beginning to see a lot of the smaller nocturnal species and we were very privileged to see a young porcupine running along the road for nearly twenty minutes in front of the vehicle.
News from East Africa
(With thanks to our friends at Governors Camp)
Governors Camp have some big news to share...
We now have customs and immigration in place at Mfangano Island.
This means that you can now combine a Masai Mara safari and a Tanzania / Rwanda safari with a short break at Mfangano Island Camp. We have a charter aircraft based in the Masai Mara and we are already arranging safaris for clients to depart the Masai Mara fly direct to Mfangano Island Camp where clients can break up their safari with a relaxing island retreat. We arrange for your clients to clear customs and immigration before flying them on to Mwanza to connect with the Coastal Aviation flight which flies daily to many destinations across Tanzania, Zanzibar and even Kigali .
This routing makes for a much simpler and very pleasurable journey between Kenya and Tanzania and Rwanda.
This safari is also available in reverse Tanzania / Rwanda - Mfangano Island Camp - Masai Mara.
News from the Masai Mara
The long rains of April and May came to an end in the first week of June, or so we thought. The puddles dried out and the tracks turned from slushy tramlines to hard baked earth and the tall grasses on the plains all dried out. We had a few showers of rain through the month which settled the dust and then the last three days of June brought some fantastic storms, with huge grey Cumulonimbus clouds, thunder and lightning.
The game this month has been excellent despite the challenge of the long grass which the animals can quite easily disappear into.
Towards the end of the month the Loita Wildebeest and Zebra migration arrived from the North-East. This is a small migration, paling in comparison to the Serengeti migration moving through the open grasslands of Masai country. This has brought with it well needed nutrition for our hungry predators.
The big news to announce this month is the arrival of the Serengeti Migration into the Mara. The wildebeest migration has crossed the Sand River and is moving northwards. They are still fairly distant, but will not be long until we are able to drive out and lose ourselves amongst the massive herds of wildebeest and zebra. The Mara grasses are a huge attraction to the Wildebeest Migration as a few of their favourite grasses are here, namely red oats grass (Themedia triandra) and Couch grass (Cynodon dactylon.)
Elephants were in abundance at the start of the month with herds of between 100 and 250 individuals converging into the Musiara Marsh and spreading up towards the ridges. The new growth of grass and sedge in and around the marsh is a mouth watering draw for these huge pachyderms. As the grass and the surrounding area dried out a little the herds have become less and spread around the Mara, seeking different vegetation to graze and browse on.
Two massive herds of buffalo are moving slowly through the plains around us. One of approximately 300 and the other of about 450 members. Buffalo are bulk grazers, they eat the larger leafy part of the grass and settle down to ruminate like cattle although they are certainly not as mild mannered as cattle.
The numbers of plains game was fairly sparse at the beginning of the month. They were more concentrated just out of the reserve where the grass is shorter, having been cropped by Masai cattle. The shorter grass is preferred by most plains game as they have adapted to more selectively graze. The smaller the animal, the more selective they are on the level of grazing and type of graze, hence less competition on any area. There have been resident and territorial herds of topi all year round in the reserve, always alert and maintaining their 'Leks.' Other plains game that are ever present are the herds of waterbuck and impala that live alongside the marsh and riverine forest of the Mara River and the dikdiks who spend their time in the shadows of the forest.
Unknowingly, the warthogs who are seen mostly trundling off through the grass with their tails high in the air like little radio antennas have been targeted by the lions.
The river has dropped to its lowest since rains stopped. Hippos have congregated in larger numbers in order to get the best pools of water in which to laze in during daylight hours. This creates some tension amongst the territorial males when they return to the water after a long night of grazing and mowing the camps lawn. Hippos are foregut fermenters; their digestive system is not quite as efficient as a ruminant antelope for example. For such a large animal (males weighing up to 3000 plus kilograms) they need to eat around 40kg during the night.
Hyena have been denning in a couple of different locations with a few pups, black in colour. They have been scavenging a lot more of late as it has been difficult for them to hunt because of the scarcity of the game and the long grass. Soon there will be plenty for everyone with the arrival of the wildebeest migration.
The 'big cats' have been seen more readily in the early mornings, whilst they are on the move. When the grass is long they like to follow existing animal tracks and roads, as they prefer to stay out of the dew and the nuisance of grass in their eyes. They will then flop down when it warms up at midday disappearing in to the grass or seeking shade under a tree or a shrub.
The Marsh/ Bila Shaka pride of lions have had lean times of late spending the first couple of weeks of the month coursing the plains, looking for prey. The arrival of the Loita migration has brought new prey to their area and they have settled in one area. One of the lionesses has two new arrivals, tiny one and a half month old cubs, which she is hiding in the long grass. The two pride males are spending more of their time with the pride as one of the males is mating with one of the three sisters.
The Paradise Pride have had better pickings in the last month as there have been more plains game on the lower plains near the river, where the grass is slightly shorter. Notch is still with his 5 sons. The younger males have been mating with three of the pride
Cheetah: Shakira and her three cubs are still doing very well, she has been working hard to keep all her cubs well fed and out of harm's way. During the month she made a Grants Gazelle kill but the moment was short-lived as unfortunately for her, before she or the cubs could tuck in hyenas sleeping in the nearby grass caught sight of them and she had to forego her meal and take her cubs to safety.
Honey's three boys have been regular visitors to the Marsh and Bila Shaka area. They are looking in great shape and very confident, as they have less cares than any female cheetah.
There is another female cheetah in the area which jumped on the pilots bonnet the other day on his way to work postponing his flight a while. She is very pregnant at the moment and will probably give birth anytime soon. She made a Thompson Gazelle kill and had her fill just days ago, so she seems to be doing very well too.
A roaming male cheetah has been through the area, spending most of his time on the short grass plains out in Masai country.
Leopard: Kijana, the young male leopard has been seen regularly between the forest and the Marsh. He is good condition, although has a small flesh wound on his left fore-leg. He was spotted hunting a Dik dik in the forest fringe with-out any luck, maybe his inexperience or just a smart Dik dik.
There has been a leopardess close to Kijana's territory. She was seen twice in the month the first just relaxing near some croton bushes and then slinking away, the second with a reedbuck kill up in a tree which was very fortuitous.
We have had another sighting of a separate pair of leopards, a male and female near the river line. Generally this indicates that they are more than likely a mating pair, but due to their elusiveness no one will ever know.
Serval cats have been seen quite regularly on game drives, stalking through the long grass. One tenacious hunter has been ambushing birds on the edge of Musiara Marsh and acrobatically leaping into the air to catch them.
Walking Safaris in Masai Land
Huge herds of wildebeest and zebra from the Loita migration have come into the area all the way up to the northern part of the reserve.
New shoots and leaves are appearing on the trees along the river lines and acacia forests. The elephants are dispersing a little more from the marsh area to supplement their diet of grass for the nutritious vegetation of the trees. We have had two sightings, of 2 male elephants slowly wandering the plains, following the female groups checking if they are in season. Unable to get too close we circumnavigated both herds with one male following us at a steady rate seeing us off.
A large pack of hyena are on the top plains denning in an old aardvark digging. The youngsters are just getting their spots, so will probably move on soon. They have been making a few wildebeest kills of late and are fat and happy.
We are picking up tracks of lion activity in the area, but no sightings yet this season. The Masai have come and gone with their cattle, the plains game have returned in force so we are expecting our local pride to settle in again soon.
We had a great sighting of a male cheetah hunting gazelle. He was spotted early on in the walk with gazelles sprinting off in different directions and topi snorting their alarm call, he gave up the hunt. We managed to follow at a distance for about half an hour. We saw him again about a week or so later in the distance, ably hunting again.
Four jackal pups are denning in a very large termite mound.
The Acacia gerradii (maasai chewing gum) has become a lot stronger in flavour since the rain has ended. To the disgust of some of the walkers, but favoured by the maasai.
After the walks we have enjoyed the constant churring of woodland and grey-headed kingfishers around the breakfast sight on the Olare Orok river.
Back in the Game Reserve open-billed storks have been in the Musiara Marsh and the Madagascar Squaco Heron is changing to white, ready to migrate back to Madagascar. A Marshal Eagle was seen feeding on a white-backed Vulture, which was an unusual sighting. Crowned Cranes, Secretary Birds and Ground hornbills have all been commonly sighted on the open plains. The Ground hornbills are very vocal with the recent flush of rains, some say they can predict the rain and their call is the first sign
The birdlife around the camps has been very good as usual with alot of birdsong to enjoy. A Narina Trogon has been perching up at Il Moran calling for its mate with a low 'Oh oh' song. Black and White Hornbills have been making raucous calls in the forest canopy and the ever present Tropical Boubou has been making its presence felt with its loud piping call. Double toothed barbets have been eating the ripening fruit of the coacoa bean bush.
Around the camps and riverlines thousands of butterflies (Brown-veined Whites, Green- banded, Mocker, Noble swallowtails and Citrus swallowtails) have been flitting from bush to bush attracted by the riverside flowers (Vernonia and Merua).
We hope to share the magic of our corner of the Mara with you sometime soon.
We have some fantastic special offers on safaris at the moment and there is still time to book your migration safari. Special offer on safaris!
We have had such long and interesting news from our friends at Savanna and Governors plus Hilary’s impressions of Tanzania that we really have run out of space this month. There is so much to tell but we will have to wait until next month or you can call us and we can discuss all your plans and give you the latest updates on Africa. Until then…………
Happy Safaris!
John
61 2 4984 9747
jma@destinationsafrica.com.au
www.destinationsafrica.com.au