Tanzania - January through March 2008

On January 4, 2008 I fly to Tanzania via Addis Ababa where I remain for three months. I will lead five safaris, all of which focus on the wildebeest migration and foaling season and which take in some of my favorite scenery and destinations in Northern Tanzania—Lake Natron, the Gol Mountains, and Ndutu.

Three Cheetah Brothers in Gol Kopjes, Serengeti National Park

I must also use my time in Tanzania to set up safari requests for next year’s dry season and even migration and foaling safaris for early 2009. Things are always changing in Tanzania which means I need to keep my ear low to the ground. The best way to do this is to be in Tanzania as much as possible. In what time I have between guests’ arrivals and departures, I plan on doing my usual snooping such as an exploratory two-day hike along the rim of the Ngorongoro Crater. I had wanted to make it three days but the authorities are at the moment telling me I must complete it in two. I love this kind of safari because the virgin turf that I admit to attracts other adventurers. I have three guests joining me for this particular hike. Furthermore, I get to spend treasured time with my trusted guide and cook, Shabaan. It may be my last hike with Shabaan for he is taking on the exalted position in Tanzania of driver/guide. He has spent months in training. I’ve lost a few cooks and guides to the driving profession. It is only fair to be happy for their promotion and yet, when it happens, I miss the relationship I had with them as cooks. I don’t consider cooks subordinate to drivers. They work very hard. They are the last to bed and the first to rise.

On of my favorite memories of Shabaan is his leopard story which he told around the glowing embers of his cooking fire. He hadn’t been working as crew for very long when he found himself on a camping safari. Everyone had gone to bed when Shabaan thought he saw a leopard at the entrance to his tent. He woke the camp with his shouts. No leopard was found but Shabaan decided to sleep in a vehicle. He woke a short time later to see what he was convinced was a leopard. The cat had followed him into the car! He woke the camp with his shouts. But again no leopard was found. The other crew told him, “Please Shabaan, get some sleep, you are imagining things.” So he barricaded himself into the back seat with the ice chests and there he passed a miserable, sleepless night. The next morning they broke camp. They hadn’t driven very far when the guests cried out from the back seat “Leopard! Leopard!” The driver screeched to a halt and everyone piled out of the car panicked. There was indeed a “cat” in the car, a genet, a relative of the mongoose, with a long striped tail.

Genet cat at Ndutu Safari Lodge (photo courtesy Teri Gaff - Dec '06 guest)

Watch for my trip reports on January through March safaris in the April newsletter.

06-01-2008