Trip to Kenya and Tanzania - Part III - Central Serengeti and Ngorongoro

My stay in Central Serengeti was for four days at Nyota Luxury Camp which is run by M/s Lion King Adventures. The camp is upscale and really luxurious. Like all other camp accommodations in the area, Nyota is located amid forest and visited by wild animals in the night . Their calls may disturb your sleep. On the first night I  really got disturbed by Hyena squealings.

In terms of wildlife , numbers and species, Central Serengeti is simply wonderful . One gets to see all  the wildlife which Africa is famous for. It's so totally unlike India . Central Serengeti is miles and miles of flat land stretch dotted with long yellow wild grass , wild animals and Acacia trees.  There are , in one part of it ,  small outcrops called "Kopje"in Swahili on which one often finds animals sitting , mostly the Lions, Dik - diks and Leopards. 

From wildlife photography point of view Central Serengeti is amazing. But the roof open safari vehicles are not ideally suited for camera work. Side open vehicles offer  more latitude for eye level shooting. I couldn't help the situation and tried my best to take good shot from my roof open safari vehicle.

I told Mweta about my preferences . Some Elephant shots , some Lion and of course animals on Kopjes. And true to my wishes Mweta tried his very best to drive and locate my preferences. But in this process I suddenly realized that I had run critically short of memory cards. And I had still 2 days to go in the wild - one day at Central Serengeti itself and the other at Ngorongoro. I cursed myself for the situation. Why  didn't  I bring some extra memory cards? Why did I act so careless  on a trip to a land like Africa ? But nothing could be done to correct the situation. So I decided to idle the camera and try to seek pleasure from visual sighting.

                                                                                   

                                                                                  

                                                                               

Serengeti unfolded some wildlife dramas. Parked on the jungle road I was watching a coalition of Lions,  4 individuals, sitting under an Acacia tree on to my right  when about a kilometer long herd of Cape Buffalos  was  seen crossing the road in single file  some  500-600 metres  ahead of my vehicle. There were small calves too in the heard and a group of 3 hyenas were trying to ambush them.  The mother buffalos were very protective of them but the Hyenas were equally persistent . The  group members  sensed the lurking danger immediately . Reacting to the situation about 10 buffalos broke the file and forming  a semicircle charged at the Hyenas. A chase took place but the Hyenas were outpaced by the buffalos . A fleeing Hyena was overtaken by a Buffalo and charged viciously . The Hyena was tossed in the air like a ball and the moment it landed on the ground another Buffalo sent him again in the air. 

Mweta prophesied another drama. If the Buffalo herd was to turn to our side  then the feline coalition at rest under the Acacia tree will be  attacked !

The prophecy came true . The Cape Buffalo herd turned towards the tree under which Lions were lazing around . The Lions sensed the danger , got up and tried to walk away from the situation but found themselves   being chased by the  belligerent Cape Buffalos. It was  a hilarious scene and I couldn't resist taking a record shot.

                                                                                     

 

Checked out of Nyota after lunch and started for Angata Ngorongoro Camp reaching there by evening. From there I was to go to Ngorongoro in the morning. The safari timings in the crater are from 6 A.M. to  1 P.M. 

It took about an hour from Angata to Ngorongoro crater . The crater roads are full of  volcanic  dust and  lumps of Igneous rocks lay all around the road edges. But the place is full of wildlife and  its home to Black African Rhino. The presence of Lake Magadi adds to the beauty of the crater . This saltwater lake houses Pelicans and many other aquatic birds.  

I came across a resting Lion . It was a magnificent animal . It crossed the road in front of my vehicle and killed a huge  Waterhog on the other side. The scant leftover memory in the camera came handy and I made good use of it by taking few shots of this event. Also tried to locate African Rhinos but they were too far off from the camera range. Overall I found Ngorongoro a fantastic wildlife destination. 

Left the crater by the appointed time  and drove to Ngorongoro Farm House for  overnight stay. Next morning from there  I was to drive to Namanga border to enter  Kenya for my return journey home, 

                                                                                 

                                                                                      

Masai Mara, Serengeti and Ngorongoro are a must visit destinations for any wildlife lover and from my personal experience I would like prospective visitors to keep a few things in mind as follows:

1. There is dust  profusion  all over at these places. So keep your photo equipment well covered. Do keep a blower and soft brush in your bag. And do ask for a Bean bag from your tour operator.

2. Do keep 2-3 extra memory cards in reserve.

3. Do keep some medicines like Paracetamol , anti-diarrhoeal tablets , some band - aid strips , eye drops  and pain balm as well. Anti - allergics as per your need. Remember that medical aid in these places is very remote.

African hospitality is very good and you will seldom have any complaints. Tips are expected and do tip as you wish.

I will close now. Wishing you all a very Happy 2024 full of wildlife vacations.