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

13,551 thoughts on “Day 3 – Safari (Moru Kopjes & Gong Rock)”

  1. An outstanding share! I’ve just forwarded this onto a colleague who had been conducting a little research on this.
    And he actually bought me breakfast due to the fact that I discovered it for him…
    lol. So let me reword this…. Thank YOU for the meal!!
    But yeah, thanx for spending some time to discuss this matter here on your web page.

  2. Hey There. I found your blog using msn. This is
    a very well written article. I will be sure to bookmark
    it and return to read more of your useful info. Thanks for
    the post. I will definitely return.

  3. I am curious to find out what blog system you happen to be utilizing?
    I’m experiencing some minor security problems with my latest site and I’d like to
    find something more safeguarded. Do you have any recommendations?

  9. Simply wish to say your article is as astounding.
    The clarity in your post is simply excellent and i can assume
    you are an expert on this subject. Fine with your permission let me to grab your
    RSS feed to keep updated with forthcoming post.
    Thanks a million and please carry on the gratifying work.

  10. Aw, this was an extremely good post. Taking a few minutes and actual effort to
    produce a great article… but what can I say… I put things off a lot and don’t seem to
    get nearly anything done.

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

  15. I’m not sure exactly why but this website is loading incredibly slow for me.
    Is anyone else having this issue or is it a problem on my end?
    I’ll check back later on and see if the problem
    still exists.

  17. Bu gün onlayn kazinolar əyləncə və uduş imkanlarının ən populyar formasıdır.
    Oyundan həzz almaq üçün evdən çıxmağa ehtiyac yoxdur – sadəcə internetə qoşulmaq kifayətdir.
    İstifadəçilər rahatlıq, sürət və 24/7 əlçatanlığı səbəbindən onlayn oyunları üstün tuturlar.

    Azərbaycan oyunçuları üçün etibarlı seçimlərdən biri Pinco Casino-dur.

    Platforma Curacao lisenziyası əsasında fəaliyyət göstərir, şəffaf qaydaları
    və təhlükəsizlik standartları ilə fərqlənir.
    Artıq bir neçə ildir ki, Pinco həm yeni başlayanların, həm
    də təcrübəli oyunçuların güvənini qazanaraq regionda lider mövqeyini qoruyur.

  22. Simply desire to say your article is as surprising. The clarity in your post is simply
    nice and i can assume you’re an expert on this subject.
    Well with your permission allow me to grab your
    feed to keep updated with forthcoming post. Thanks a million and please carry on the rewarding work.

  28. I am extremely impressed along with your writing skills and also with the structure in your weblog.
    Is this a paid subject matter or did you modify it your self?
    Either way stay up the nice quality writing, it is rare to
    look a nice blog like this one nowadays..

  29. This design is wicked! You certainly know how to keep a reader amused.
    Between your wit and your videos, I was almost moved to start my own blog (well,
    almost…HaHa!) Fantastic job. I really enjoyed what
    you had to say, and more than that, how you presented it.
    Too cool!

  30. Fantastic website you have here but I was wanting to
    know if you knew of any community forums that cover the same topics
    talked about here? I’d really like to be a part of community where I can get opinions from other experienced people that share the same
    interest. If you have any recommendations, please let me know.

    Thanks a lot!

  31. Hi, i think that i saw you visited my site so i came to “return the favor”.I’m trying to
    find things to enhance my site!I suppose its ok to use a few of
    your ideas!!

  33. Its like you read my mind! You appear to know so much about this, like you wrote the book in it or something.

    I think that you could do with a few pics to drive the
    message home a little bit, but instead of that, this is great blog.

    A great read. I’ll certainly be back.

  38. Excellent site. A lot of useful info here. I am sending
    it to a few friends ans additionally sharing in delicious.
    And naturally, thank you on your effort!

  39. I’m impressed, I have to admit. Rarely do I encounter a blog that’s
    both equally educative and entertaining, and without a doubt, you
    have hit the nail on the head. The problem is something which not enough people are speaking intelligently about.

    I am very happy that I came across this during my search for something
    regarding this.

  40. Greetings, I believe your web site may be having browser compatibility issues.
    Whenever I take a look at your web site in Safari, it looks fine
    however, if opening in Internet Explorer, it has some overlapping
    issues. I just wanted to give you a quick heads up!

    Aside from that, great website!

  42. High-performance mud pumps are engineered for oil, gas,
    and water well drilling. With triplex or duplex configurations,
    they circulate drilling fluids efficiently,
    improve drilling safety, and extend the life of the drilling equipment.

  44. Unquestionably imagine that that you stated. Your favorite justification appeared to be at the web the easiest
    factor to understand of. I say to you, I definitely
    get annoyed even as other people consider worries that they just don’t know about.

    You managed to hit the nail upon the top as neatly as defined out the whole thing with no need side effect , other folks can take a signal.
    Will likely be again to get more. Thank you

Leave a Reply to Zing Markbit Cancel reply

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