FUN-photos: Amazing Africa

August 26, 2019 by · Comments Off on FUN-photos: Amazing Africa 

  • We started in Durban, South Africa for 4 days with high hopes of catching the Sardine Run…the Greatest Shoal on Earth…but no such luck as they were 5+ hours south…and a whole day at sea.
  • Then flew to Tanzania for animal viewing in the Ngorongoro Crater. And from there a bush plan to the Northern Serengeti for two days to experience The Great Migration up close and personal.
  • Hit the jackpot! Tens of thousands roaming and running as far as the eye could see…and totally epic seeing majestic Mara River crossings!

 

FUN-Travel: Masai Mara, Kenya – Safari – Day 1

July 30, 2019 by · Comments Off on FUN-Travel: Masai Mara, Kenya – Safari – Day 1 

1st Game Drive 6:15 – Exquisite Early Morning Movement!

…lions…cheetahs…elephants…buffalo…leopards…hyenas.

Simba Stalking

  • Back 9:15 for breakfast & ask for twin beds pushed together. Luckily it’s an option!

2nd Game Drive 4:00 – herd of 14 elephants with 2 babies…4 cheetahs resting…

..warthogs…giant kingfishers…yellow billed storks…gray headed kingfisher…

…+ the usual suspects.

Mara River

FUN-fact – We saw the Big 4 today!

More FF – They call a game drive the “African Massage”…it’s free and guaranteed that every guide will give you one.

FUN-Travel: Masai Mara, Kenya

July 30, 2019 by · Comments Off on FUN-Travel: Masai Mara, Kenya 

  • Depart 9:30 for Kenya flight…arrive 10:30 Tarime, TZ for drive to border…

…experience typical 3rd World Customs Chaos & Immigration Extortion!

  • Need yellow fever card (medical record proof doesn’t cut it)…

…so have to pay additional $100 + $100 for Visa fees.

Airstrip Gift Shop

…catch cheetah on high alert…lurking in grass ready to pounce…

…takes 3-day-old baby gazelle down.

  • Rest of day relax and get deep tissue massage. AHH!

FUN-fact – Night Noises – Howard the Hippo howls + elephants trample + baboons grunt & hyenas stalk.

Not so FF – This camp only has queen size beds which ain’t cutting it!

FUN-Travel: Northern Serengeti, Tanzania – Great Migration – Day 2

July 30, 2019 by · Comments Off on FUN-Travel: Northern Serengeti, Tanzania – Great Migration – Day 2 

  • Repeat Yesterday…with added morning safari looking for other animals…

…see family of 14 elephants with 2 babies…pair of lions…and the usual suspects.

Then we hit the jackpot!

  • Crossing #7 has 3 different lines of wildebeests…

…all jumping in at the same time…and lasts over 45 minutes!

  • Sadly they don’t all make it…croc gets weak baby swimmer…

…adult breaks leg…swept downstream in fast moving current.

  • Happy Hour…spectacular sunset around campfire!

FUN-factIncredibly Insane! Throngs of 1000’s of Wildebeest’s amass on the banks of the river and wait until one courageous wildebeest makes the first move—the first jump. Then they pour into the rivers like ants, leaping, bleating, calling—a crescendo of adrenaline and instinct.

One interesting study likened the wildebeest crossings to a type of ‘swarm intelligence’. From the outside, the crossings seem to be frenzied and uncalculated—almost like mass suicide—but the animals are, in fact, systematically exploring and overcoming the obstacle as one single unit—or swarm.

FUN-Travel: Northern Serengeti, Tanzania – Great Migration

July 29, 2019 by · Comments Off on FUN-Travel: Northern Serengeti, Tanzania – Great Migration 

0’dark:30 wake up – depart 6 am for 2 hr drive to airstrip…

…bush plane seats 12…depart 8:20 with 1 stop…arrive Kogatende 9:50.

…within 20 minutes on drive to Mara Kati Kati Camp

…witness wildebeest’s making 1st crossing at #4 entry point on Mara River…

…lasting 20 minutes!

  • Have lunch…then afternoon safari…in search of more crossings…

…see zebra, giraffe, elands, gazelles, impalas, crocs & hippos.

FUN-factThe Great Migration has been listed as one of the Seven Natural Wonders of Africa. This is the stage on which the ‘greatest wildlife show on earth’ plays out, as more than two million wildebeest along with gazelle and zebra stragglers charge towards better grazing areas – making it the most unique safari experience in Africa.

More FF – Safari guides have no GPS, maps or signs…drive for hours… and manage to get you back to camp!