Day 2 we drove into the Ngorongoro Crater for a game drive. I'll show a sample of what we saw after our team stopped at the viewing point before driving down into the crater.
David and Vivian Sun of New Jersey, the other members of our troop. We discovered that Vivian was worth at least 15 cows (the expensive ones with the humps) to a Masai fellow looking for a wife, although we figured she would bring a lot more than that. David shot photos of everything that moved and some that didn't; quite a photographer.
Our excellent guide was Wolfgang, who said his name could be traced to German influences around WWI. His father and grandfather liked the name. I asked if he was musical and he said no.
Here's a panorama of the park in the crater from the top. Following are a couple of shots when we drove around the crater to the single road going down into the park. Then a panorama of that entry, which was enchanting.
Finally, the main attraction, the animals, which need no introduction. There's only one road in and out of the crater and it winds round the bottom, with maybe one or two added routes, all designed to give the wildlife maximum range without human interruptions.
The female lion used her tail to give directions to the male lion following as they headed off towards a herd of cape buffalo a short trek away. We moved on into the park.
the cape buffalo
one of the ugliest animals God created, the wildebeest.
lots of zebras, and some elephants, which we were to encounter in much greater numbers the next day.
Finally, the main attraction in the park, the endangered black rhino. We saw 3 of the 32 or so black rhinos in the park that day and, since you could only see them from the road (which we had to stay on), all the vehicles in the park gathered at the best spot for photos, as you can see in the following photo.
Finally, a panorama of the animals and flamingos before returning to our lodge.
The game drive in Ngorongoro Crater concluded, we returned to the lodge, where David, Vivian and I had signed up for a "nature trek" in the adjoining game preserve. Vivian asked if the two-hour walk was a lot of ups and downs, and we were told it was just a walk "up a trail."
"up" a trail....
As it turns out, there was a lot more "up" than we anticipated, but we got our exercise and enjoyed the trek, which turned out to have more potential than we thought. We picked up walking sticks at the entrance to the conservation area, and they came in quite handy. A guide preceded us and the ranger brought up the rear most times so we would be in the middle. The ranger dragged his stick through a pile of elephant dung and pronounced it a couple hours old, around the lunch hour. It was now late afternoon. We made it to within 3 minutes of elephant falls when our guide motioned to be quiet and back up. We did silently and then learned that a cape buffalo was lying across the path and we couldn't proceed. Half way back we heard another snort from buffalos in the bushes along the trail and again were told to proceed quietly and quickly. Nearing the end, Vivian asked the ranger what would have happened had we encountered a buffalo or elephant. He said that meeting a buffalo, you drop to the ground and crawl into the bushes. He would find a way through the forest to safety. The hint of danger past is rather exciting, but I don't move as fast as I once did so I'm glad we didn't meet either a buffalo or elephant. The cape buffalo and the hypo are the most dangerous of the animals because they're unpredictable, we were told.
Back at the lodge in time for another delicious dinner.
...and an excuse to try another Tanzanian beer, Serengeti.
Returned to my room.....still intrigued by the metal animals affixed to the curtain rods...for some sleep before an early departure after breakfast for a drive from Ngorongoro to Tarangire National Park.
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