Day 3 – Safari (Moru Kopjes & Gong Rock)

Breakfast at the camp this morning before leaving at 7:30. We are heading South today in search of the Black Rhino. It was quite the drive so Ally drove with a purpose today so we could get there, search then begin the long drive back. Driving with a purpose here has a whole new meaning for me…lol!

There is a Black Rhino project here where the monitor the species to help from extension. Poaching here is still a huge problem so there are rangers in this area who live on top of the cliffs to help protect them. We learned that often poachers are just killed here because too many have been arrested but go back to poaching when they get out so it’s easier to just eliminate them. Something to be said for repeat offenders of violent crimes in the states. Visited the Rhino information center to learn about their history. A great guide full of knowledge and passion for these animals. You would have to love it to live way out here. You sure can’t just run down the street for milk if you forgot it on your way home.

No luck in spotting a Rhino today though. Since there are only 23 monitored animals on these planes, and they mostly graze alone, there was no telling where they were. The trip however gave us the opportunity to see the Kopjes, which are forms of rocks like none I have ever seen. There are many difference Kopjes, named for the tribe that lived there many centuries ago. This is Massai country. When in Arusha, we saw many of the Massai tribe which are easy to spot as the men still wear the red draped clothes as their daily attire. Would have been something to see these people still living upon on these rocks. There was one particular area where steps have been built so that you can climb to the top. Ally said he normally would not allow us to climb there unless there were other vehicles around because it has been known to have lions up there. But we all agreed we were game to try it. I know…wreckless right? Ally led the way making lots of noise to scare anything that might have been visiting the area. A few remnants of lions were present but no lions to be found. Let me say how glad we are we made that decision. What an amazing site from up there.

Back in the jeep and off to a lunch spot for a packed lunches. Arrived a favorite spot by many and were told we couldn’t be here because the President of Germany and the President of Tanzania would be visiting there soon. They were already setting up a huge spread for them by the Zebra refreshment company…lol! So we left in search of a new lunch spot.

Now for the excitement of the day. On our way to find a new spot we ran across a pride of lions laying in the shade of a huge tree not far from the road. It was an amazing site. 10 juvenile cubs in all and 7 lionesses (we never did see the males) however it was the same pride we saw yesterday, noted by one with a monitoring collar and one with a huge gash in her nose. Within a few minutes, one of the females raised her head and they all looked in one direction towards a herd of zebras who were making their way across the road into the area of the lions. In a split second 5 of the lionesses each rose and moved with grace to do their particular job. Can you believe this? A kill is just about to happen right in front of us. I didn’t think I wanted to see this at all until I watched how these amazing animals worked together with patience and purpose to feed their family. In a matter of maybe 15 minutes, they had completely formed a parameter around the herd and were waiting for their opportunity. In a split second one lioness made a move and the herd scattered, charged, ran…you name it. One of the lioness had to lay down in the road to keep from getting trampled. In that split second their opportunity was lost…they got away! We have a video of the whole thing and believe it or not it was sad. I hate to see the zebra loose it’s life but it was such an amazing thing to watch. Ally put it well, the lion laid down because no one wanted to die that day. They all made it back to the tree with the cubs to rest from their big chase.

We needed to make a trip back to the airstrip anyway (I’ll mention in a future post why) so decided to just have lunch at the airport. Now, keep in mind, without thinking, when were going to the same airstrip where both Presidents were expected in shortly. A guard at the entrance just let us on in, we parked and walked to the small building with our lunch boxes. We laughed because you can’t even get within 5 miles of the airports at home when our president is flying in. Tons of safari vehicles lined up to meet their arrival. A few armed guards and mostly people like us standing around with cameras. There was no concern to be standing along the strip for a photo op so I took it. Now, I have no idea who the president of Germany even is but figured it would be a great moment for Ally to have photos of “his” president. Planes landed and I snapped pictures of anyone coming off the plan. Ended up with great pictures of the German president but the Tanzania president was not there. Only the Interior ministers were there to meet him. Fun adventure to this trip, even though our original trip to the airstrip was not a success 🙁

Before heading back to camp we saw another Leopard in a tree. It’s so funny to see how they just chill and are so uninterested in us.

Back at camp at 4:30. Showers again at 6. Dinner at 7. Tonight we were joined by all the staff of the camp, except the chef. We had asked them all to join us when we first got there and they said they would on the last night. It was a great meal and a lot of fun. This crew has over exceeded our expectations. It will be hard to top it at the next camp. During our dinner, we were joined by a Hyena, just beside the tent. That just sort of cracks me up. I watched JJ leave the dining tent and walk to the kitchen tent, in the dark, with the Hyena sitting right there. He said, He knows me! They also shared that a few weeks ago a pride brought down a buffalo right in the camp area and stayed there for a solid week. JJ said they had approached him carrying the buckets of water to the tents to get a drink. He just dropped the buckets of water, walked away, let them get their drink and then picked up his buckets and carried on. OMG!!!! I guess there is something to be said for living in this country and feeling comfortable.

Back to the tent to be zipped in at 8:30. We packed, well Rich packed, played a few hands of gin and I caught up on my blog posts. Heard several lions throughout the night. I don’t think I will ever get tired of this. We leave for 2nd camp location tomorrow.
20150205_014827

20150205_072127

Posted on

6,796 thoughts on “Day 3 – Safari (Moru Kopjes & Gong Rock)”

  5. It’s a shame you don’t have a donate button! I’d most certainly
    donate to this fantastic blog! I guess for now i’ll settle for book-marking and adding your RSS feed
    to my Google account. I look forward to new updates and will talk about
    this website with my Facebook group. Chat soon!

  7. Admiring the time and effort you put into your site and detailed information you present.
    It’s awesome to come across a blog every once in a while that
    isn’t the same old rehashed information.
    Excellent read! I’ve saved your site and I’m adding your RSS feeds to my Google account.

  13. Amazing blog! Do you have any hints for aspiring writers? I’m
    planning to start my own website soon but I’m a little lost on everything.
    Would you recommend starting with a free platform like WordPress or go for
    a paid option? There are so many choices out there that I’m completely confused ..
    Any tips? Bless you!

  14. член сломался, секс-кукла, продажа секс-игрушек, राजा छह, राजा ने
    पैर फैलाकर, प्लर राजा,
    ৰাজ্যসমূহৰ ৰজা, গুৰুত্বপূৰ্ণ সঁজুলি বিক্ৰী কৰা

  17. Wonderful blog! Do you have any helpful hints for
    aspiring writers? I’m hoping to start my own site soon but I’m a little lost on everything.
    Would you propose starting with a free platform like WordPress or go for
    a paid option? There are so many options out there that I’m totally confused ..
    Any recommendations? Kudos!

  21. My coder is trying to convince me to move to .net from PHP.
    I have always disliked the idea because of the costs.
    But he’s tryiong none the less. I’ve been using
    WordPress on several websites for about a year and am concerned about switching to another platform.
    I have heard very good things about blogengine.net. Is there
    a way I can transfer all my wordpress posts into it?
    Any kind of help would be greatly appreciated!

  24. I don’t know if it’s just me or if perhaps everybody else experiencing problems
    with your blog. It looks like some of the written text within your posts are running off
    the screen. Can somebody else please comment and let me know
    if this is happening to them too? This might be a problem with my
    internet browser because I’ve had this happen before.

    Appreciate it

  26. hello there and thank you for your info – I’ve certainly
    picked up something new from right here. I did however expertise several technical issues using
    this web site, as I experienced to reload the web site many times previous
    to I could get it to load properly. I had been wondering if your web hosting is OK?

    Not that I am complaining, but slow loading instances times will often affect your
    placement in google and could damage your high-quality score if advertising and marketing with Adwords.
    Anyway I am adding this RSS to my e-mail and can look out for much more of your respective interesting content.

    Make sure you update this again very soon.

  27. Hi, I think your website might be having browser compatibility issues.
    When I look at your blog in Ie, it looks fine but when opening
    in Internet Explorer, it has some overlapping.
    I just wanted to give you a quick heads up! Other then that, very good blog!

  28. Dr Gheyi will then mark the area to be treated with you wanting in the mirror. Patel watched covetously as Dutt stood up and supplied his dick to. He can put on no matter he desires and say no matter he desires.

  37. I know this if off topic but I’m looking into starting my own weblog and was curious
    what all is required to get setup? I’m assuming having a blog like yours would cost a pretty penny?

    I’m not very web smart so I’m not 100% certain. Any
    tips or advice would be greatly appreciated. Appreciate it

  40. Admiring the time and energy you put into your site and detailed information you present.
    It’s awesome to come across a blog every once in a while that isn’t the same outdated rehashed material.
    Wonderful read! I’ve saved your site and I’m adding your RSS feeds
    to my Google account.

  44. What’s Going down i’m new to this, I stumbled upon this I’ve discovered
    It positively helpful and it has aided me out loads.
    I hope to give a contribution & help other users like its helped me.

    Great job.

  46. I don’t know if it’s just me or if perhaps
    everybody else encountering problems with your website.
    It appears as if some of the text within your posts are running off the screen. Can someone else please provide
    feedback and let me know if this is happening to them as well?
    This may be a problem with my internet browser because I’ve had this happen previously.
    Cheers

  47. Write more, thats all I have to say. Literally, it seems as
    though you relied on the video to make your point. You clearly know
    what youre talking about, why throw away your intelligence on just posting
    videos to your weblog when you could be giving us something enlightening to read?

  49. It is in reality a great and helpful piece of info. I am
    satisfied that you just shared this useful info with us.
    Please stay us up to date like this. Thanks for sharing.

Leave a Reply to royal x casino login Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *