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Early
Morning Scuffle
I awoke under the
cover of dark, up at 4:15am for a sunrise
balloon ride. After a quick gulp of coffee it was time to head to
the launch site. Normally night drives are forbidden in the park, but
the balloon company has an exemption. We saw a spring hare and later
a hyena walking in the roadway, and a hippo grazing by a pond. Suddenly
a large male lion came into view. As the driver turned to point the
headlights at him, a female lion came tearing out of the brush, snarling
and clawing at him. He shook her off and continued again across a clearing
when another female attacked, biting and swiping. The male seem unconcerned
and kept walking. Once he was gone, the females returned to the brush,
where small cubs could be seen hopping in the grass. The females had
been protecting their babies, as male lions are known to kill cubs that
are not their own.
Up,
Up And Away
 Soon
we came upon a large field where two large shapes could just be seen
against the dark purple sky. As the balloons were filled, we got a quick
safety lecture. My balloon Tembo (elephant) holds 16 passengers and
is the third largest in the world. The smaller balloon Simba (lion) holds 12. The
Serengeti's steady wind would lift the balloon as soon as it was righted,
so we climbed in while the basket was on its side, then held on tight
as hot air filled the canopy and carried us into the shy. The sun rose
just as we took off, quickly changing the plains from gray to brilliant
gold.
 We
stayed fairly low, just skimming the tops of the acacia trees that dotted
the landscape. Below us Tommies darted frantically, crossing back and
forth as they tried to elude the large balloon's shadow. Nik, our British-born
pilot, explained that the lower an animal was on the food chain, the
more skittish it would be at the sight of the balloon. The zebras ran,
but less frantically than the Thomson's gazelles, and the larger elands
and waterbucks watched for a while before causally trotting away. As
the orange sun rose,
we passed high over ponds full of hippos and rocky kopjes. The simba
kopje, named for the frequency that lions are seen there, had two tents
on it, a precarious private camping spot. I was very thankful to be
spending the night in the relative safety of a tent camp. The highlight
was spotting a pair of female
lions feasting on a kill. Hyenas circled nearby, a sign that they
had made the kill and been chased off by the hungry lions.
Before the flight
we had been told we would land on the basket's side, lying on our backs.
 Nik
was aiming for a bare patch called Kuba Kuba West, but a sudden downdraft
called for a change of plans. He urgently yelled out for us to assume
our positions and apologized in advance for the bumpy landing. He hit
the ground hard and bounced high before hitting again with a jolt. I
feared that the 75-year-old woman next to me might go flying, but she
stayed in place as we dragged and bounced before coming to a rest. Nik
called it a "sporty" landing.
 We
were driven to the other balloon landing site, where champagne bottles
 overflowed
and we toasted to an amazing flight. Then we were taken to a long table
set with fresh linens and white china and sterling silverware. We were
served an incredible breakfast in the open air, all prepared on a tiny
camp stove in the middle of the grassy field. The soft morning light
glowed around us as we feasted on sausages and eggs, fresh fruits and
delicate pastries, hot coffee and more champagne. And all this before
9am.
On To Camp
 We
slowly made our way to camp, spotting hippos, giraffes and lion cubs
on the way. It was hot when we reached the Rongai
campsite. These "classic" camps are set up for only a
few days at a time, then move to a new location before lions and other
predators become comfortable enough to wander through. As always, we were greeted
with cool juice and warm welcomes. From the dining tent we looked out
onto a sloping field thick with acacias. Giraffes sauntered among the
trees about 150 yards away. The camp had a dozen two-person tents that
were anything but rustic. The firm, comfortable camp cots felt like
beds. Outside my tent sat a chair and washing table with a small pan
and pitcher of  water
for washing (with warm water delivered each morning). There was even
a mirror. Behind the tent were two smaller tents - one had a hand-pump
toilet, and the other a shower. This was more luxurious than any camping
I had ever done.
Melodic Rocks and Rare Beasts
The afternoon drive
took us to the Senorena area of the park, where  we
made our way to the large Moru Kopje and climbed up. On top was an odd crescent-shaped
rock with even rows of white dots. We used a small rock
to bang on round indentations in the large rock. The sound was unreal - a deep,
hollow clang that seemed to come from the opposite end of where the
rock was struck. Before the Maasai were driven from the park, they would
use these Gong
Rocks in ceremonies. Nearby was a small cave with fading Maasai
paintings decorated the walls. The paintings were fairly recent,
dating from the 1800s.
We continued viewing
wildlife when on the horizon we saw a back rhino. Our guide was amazed.
Only three rhinos live in the entire park, migrants from Ngorongoro
Crater. It was hard to spot without binoculars, but we could see the
distinct horns peeking above the tall grass. Nearby, three ranger vehicles
kept watch. Poaching is so great concern that the rangers never let
the rhinos out of their sight. I couldn't believe our luck - we saw
three of six in the crater and one of three in the Serengeti. It was
sad to realize how few are left.
We headed back to
camp as the sun set among the acacias. Dinner was another opportunity
to be amazed. The dining tent was lit by lanterns, giving  the
feel of an outdoor candlelight dinner. The camp staff cooked the most
incredible meals on a tiny grill and a metal
box that served as an oven. Nederburg (our new favorite wine) flowed
as we chatted and laughed through the meal. A roaring fire blazed after
dinner, but I was exhausted after my long day and we were getting up
early for a sunrise game drive. My tent was the second to last, and
as I brushed my teeth by the soft glow of the lantern I suddenly felt
very exposed. Any number of wild creatures could be lurking in the darkness
just beyond the tent. I quickly finished and scrambled into the relative
safety of my tent.
Early
To Rise
We arose early on
the clear cool morning, woken up with a friendly "Jambo Jambo"
and a pitcher of warm water for washing. We ate breakfast in the dim
pre-dawn light and were off  to
explore. There is nothing unique about loving a sunrise or a sunset,
but on this trip I came to appreciate them more than I ever had. The
quiet transition from dark and featureless to brilliant and spectacular
seems both gradually and sudden. While the early rising did not reveal
any active animals as we'd hoped, just seeing the sunrise was worth
it. In the distance we could see the two balloons making their regularly
scheduled flights. The previous morning's adventure seemed like a year
ago.
I rode with Samson
today, and he made up for the lack of animals with an adventurous off-road
journey to what he suspected could be a cheetah, the one major animal that had eluded us. The photo safari group that
shared our camp had spotted four cheetahs resting on a ridge the day before, so
we were anxious to spot  one
ourselves. Samson bounced us over the plains until we came upon a pointed
stick that he had mistook for cheetah ears. I'm sure he knew it all
along, but wanted to liven up the morning. When we stopped, the vastness
of the plains really hit me. The slight breeze whipped the grass but
otherwise there was no movement in any direction. It seemed like the
plains had swallowed us up. It was the most peaceful moment of my trip.
Amour
in the Wild
Back on the road
we spotted a group of juvenile lions, perhaps the same from our first
day  in
the park. We came across a large group of baboons, some playing in the
treetops, some grooming one another, and one sitting quietly, just looking
at us .
Then we approached a group of vehicles clustered around two sleeping
lions barely visible in the tall grass. The male stood up and started
huffing and bellowing. Before we knew it, we were watching two
lions mate. It was over in a matter of seconds, with the female
snarling and snapping at the male as he dismounted. Then both rolled
over back down into the grass. Lions mate as many as 80 times on the
first day and continue at a diminished rate over the next three days.
The pair soon walked off to a more private location. Nearby a smaller
male sat, the loser in the battle for the female.
It was a day of
lions. We came across the juveniles again, and also saw a pair of females
under a tree. Before the day was out, we had spotted over 15 lions.
 We
also saw an unusual sight - a giraffe being chased off an acacia tree
by a huge herd of elephants. Normally the animals have no contact, but
occasionally elephants will bully other animals for fun. The giraffe
ran off - another unusual sight for this normally slow-moving creature
- but he kept circling back and stayed close by, unwilling to give up
so easily. There were over 25 elephants, including a tiny four-month-old
baby nursing under its mother. Some stood under the shady tree for a
quick nap while other walked in a line on the other side of the road.
A small elephant held its mother's tail with its trunk. Elephants surrounded
us, but they seemed unconcerned with us as they crossed over to the
tree.
 As
the day wore on we saw two giraffes splaying their legs and bending
their long necks down to nibble on grass, a very funny sight for so
large a creature. A two-day-old Grant's gazelle stopped in the road
in front of us, looking surprised before darting off with its mother.
John's creative animal spotting also led us to spot turtles, sheep and
a male lion that turned out to be a wildebeest. It was one of the most
fun drives of the trip.
We returned to camp
for lunch and a nap. As I dozed off in the warmth of the afternoon I
heard a roar. My first thought was "Lion!" but I quickly laughed
at my overactive imagination. Later the guides informed us that is was
a lion roar, but assured us that the lion was very far off.
Cheetah
Chase
We set out on our
last wildlife drive of the trip, determined to see the elusive cheetah.
We saw a few more lions but little else of note for a while. With the
sun low in the sky and only 30 minutes before we had to be off the park
roads, our guide heard a cheetah had been spotted on the main road.
It was far from where we were, but he was determined to get us there
in time. We sat down and held on as he flew over the bumpy roads,
kicking up huge clouds of dust in our wake. We flew by a pack of hyenas
with a fresh kill - a cool sight but with so little time left our priority
was the cheetah. I would have been happy to catch a quick glimpse of
spots in the distance, but as we approached it was on a mound not
15 feet from the side of the road. In the orange glow of the setting
sun, the cheetah seemed to pose for us, turning to show every angle,
looking directly a us, even crossing between our vehicles and back over.
We silently cheered, exhilarated, amazed, and overwhelmed. We had seen
so much, and at the last possible moment, got our cheetah. It was the
perfect end to our last wildlife drive.
Night
Falls
We celebrated our
last spotting at our farewell diner. We were all in high spirits as
we marveled at all we had seen. We chatted and stargazed by the campfire
for a little while, and then suddenly it was just Mary, Erica and I.
We planned to stay a bit longer but the unmistakable call of a hyena
very close by scared us back to our tents. In the night, I heard baboon
howls, a lion's roar and grunting just outside my tent. My mind conjured
up pictures of warthogs rooting in the dirt, but the next morning I
learned it had been female gazelles snorting and stamping to chase away
a male. In the middle of the night I got up to take one last look at
the night sky before bidding farewell to the dark night. >>
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