Niyam's African Adventure (August 2013)

[pault]

Great airstrip drive. Way to ease the sadness of goodbye.

[TonyQ]

Great sequence of the baby vervet! .. and the fish eagle...

Not a bad drive to the airstrip

- looking forward to next steps

Edited October 30, 2013 by TonyQ

[Zim Girl]

love the baby vervet pics!!

[africapurohit]

Thanks all . I'm off on a short break with the family to the Cotswolds today, so there'll be a pause until the weekend - when I hope to wrap up Katavi and make a start on the Northern Serengeti chapter.

[madaboutcheetah]

Groovy - I've got atleast 3 Trip reports to read amidst the long Diwali weekend.

[AKR1]

Your pictures keep getting better and better. That's some drive to the airstrip.

[africapurohit]

Our scheduled 12:20pm Zantas Air flight was expected to arrive in Kogatende at 5:30pm but was running very late. On departing Arusha, the pilot wasted his time waiting for two passengers that did not show up. We eventually left Katavi at 1:40pm! Who knew what time we would arrive in northern Serengeti?

Whiteman had already departed for Ruaha, so Nick stayed with us at the airstrip. We had to keep Niyam entertained whist we were waiting around, so we went for short walks close to the airstrip pointing out various different insects and plants. I also had a very interesting conversation with a couple, waiting for the same flight, who had self-driven from Namibia to Katavi! Their adventure had allowed them to camp in some amazing spots along the way, including the areas of Katavi where there were no permanent camps. This was the first part of their trip where they were travelling outside of their vehicle, because the flight was the only way to get to Mahale. The man had spent many years working with National Parks, wildlife management and conservation and had travelled extensively throughout southern Africa but classed his Katavi wilderness experience as unrivalled to anything southern Africa could offer – high praise indeed! I would love to read their trip report.

When our plane eventually arrived, the airstrip was invaded by elephants! There was a breeding herd at one end and two adult bulls at the other. Nick immediately got into his vehicle and drove towards the two bulls to ensure they left the airstrip and stayed clear – as this was the end of the airstrip where the plane would have to take-off at high speed!

The first stop was Mahale, then on to Tabora for refuelling, before heading to Kogatende. Although Niyam wasn’t actually sick, this journey took a lot out of him and I regretted not giving him some travel sickness medication before we left. I eventually got him to fall asleep after we left Tabora which eased his discomfort. It was a very bumpy flight but I also had sympathy for the pilot who would have been flying solo for more than 10 hours before he got back to Arusha that evening. He done well to make up for lost time and we landed in Kogatende at 5:45pm, only 15 minutes later than scheduled.

The actual flying times were:

• Katavi to Mahale = 45 minutes
  
• Malale to Tabora = 90 minutes
  
• Tabora to northern Serengeti = 90 minutes
  

The transfer to Serian Camp was only 15 minutes and the few hundred wildebeest we passed on the way seemed to amaze Niyam and perked him up. These were barely crumbs of the bakery he would eventually feast in! On arrival, we were greeted by the fantastic management team of Alex Walker and Robyn-Lee Ghaui. The experience of another new camp invigorated Niyam and we headed to tent 5 to settle in to our home for the next 10 days.

Serian's Serengeti North Camp

Tent 5 was the closest to the reception/dining area

Beautifully decorated spacious rooms

The bathroom with....

toilet and shower canvas cubicles. The funky gowns were not ours!

The comfortable chill-out zone

with one of the dining tables at the back. I saw some framed masterpieces by @@twaffle gracing the canvas walls

Edited November 4, 2013 by africapurohit

[michael-ibk]

Ah finally, another installment. Looking very much forward to the Serengeti, with 10 days to come I´m sure lots of trip report goodness awaits us.

 

And no need to be ashamed about the funky gowns, everyone after his own fashion.

[graceland]

Very impressive Mobile camp!! Wow...

 

Looking forward to the report as Serian was my fav in the Mara and have dreamed about Alex's Northern Serengeti camp.

Recognized Twaffle's beautiful photograpy. I have one gracing my home and it is a showstopper!

[Kitsafari]

lovely camp. niyam looked so at home on the day bed.

[africapurohit]

@@michael-ibk those designs were Alex's idea! Actually many things in the camp and rooms were designed by Alex and his team, including things like the headboards for the beds and the clothes hangers! A lot of thought and personal touches had gone into the design.

 

@@graceland for a mobile camp, it was very impressive - you even had electric sockets in the rooms for the lamps and charging batteries!

 

nothing for more than two hours while we were waiting but the moment we start boarding the plane, the elephants show up!

 

@@Kitsafari Niyam was earning his keep by posing on the day bed - the moment I took the photo, he ran into the tent because there were tsetse flies around

[africapurohit]

During our stay in northern Serengeti, I decided on a routine that would involve leaving the camp at 6:30am every morning (with a packed breakfast), returning to camp for lunch by 1:00pm, followed by an afternoon drive from 3:30pm until 7:00pm. On our first morning we were introduced to our guide Mdebe and our Maasai spotter/tracker, Lonyoki. Mdebe's plan was to head towards the Wogakuria Kopjes but to also keep an eye out for wildebeest crossings. There are a number of crossing points along the Mara River in northern Serengeti. For the majority of these crossing points, both banks of the river are in northern Serengeti. Only crossing point 10 has one bank on the Serengeti side and the other on the Masai Mara side. Another defined boundary where the animals cross to and from Tanzania and Kenya is the Sand River in the Bologonia area. My highlight for the trip to the Kopjes was finding a clan of hyenas, which eventually relaxed in our presence, allowing us to get close and show Niyam what hyenas with ears look like - including a cute fluff-ball that must have been about 5-6 months old.

 

A Black-backed Jackal tentatively approaching a whole wildebeest carcass. Seeing dead wildebeest scattered around northern Serengeti became a common theme during our stay - many were untouched by predators or scavengers. In these times of plenty, even the scavengers could pick and choose!

The Wogakuria Kopjes cover a large area and are further differentiated into three sections known as "Olakira", "Nomad" and "Adventure".

Sightings of Oribi amongst the kopjes were almost guaranteed.....

but I was surprised to find waterbucks there

Brown Snake Eagle

Fluff-ball

[africapurohit]

We soon headed off to find a suitable spot for breakfast and settled on Picnic Site 4 which was positioned close to a crossing point in between points 7 and 8. (Originally 10 crossing points were identified but over time the wildebeest have found other crossing points, so these are either named or allocated tags such as "5a" etc). Wildebeests seemed to be gathering in large numbers, so we positioned the breakfast table, giving Niyam a front row view whilst he enjoyed his corn flakes and coco pops.

 

After breakfast we went to investigate some resting lions that Lonyoki had spotted before returning to the picnic site where the momentum was gathering.........

Edited November 4, 2013 by africapurohit

[Safari Cal]

Great stuff @@africapurohit, absolutely love the Baby Vervet and the Fish Eagle... in fact too many to mention, what an awesome adventure you captured in your photos

[africapurohit]

Whilst the tension was building where we were, Mdebe received a call that a crossing had begun at crossing point 7 so we raced about 2km down river. This particular crossing point has a rocky island in the middle which some wildebeests used for a breather before continuing to the other side. There was one comical moment when one wildebeest jumped on to the back of another, despite having plenty of space either side (see final photo in this series).

 

 

As this crossing slowed down, we received a call that a crossing had begun where we were originally waiting so we raced 2km up river.........

 

But some of the wildebeest that had made it to the other side turned around and came back again, as only wildebeest do!

 

 

 

 

 

[Kitsafari]

oh wow. seeing those crossings makes me wish i was back again on those days we saw the crossings towards the north. they are such tremendous undertakings and i always feel such an overriding relief when all of them cross safely, and yet such admiration for their exhausting and dangerous swims.

 

what an adventure Niyam and you had!

[Geoff]

Excellent, excellent, excellent report. Some very nice images too.

[madaboutcheetah]

Excellent, excellent, excellent report. Some very nice images too.

 

Plus one - I'm slow with catching up on trip reports ............... I've seen all the stunning images and read bits and pieces so far. Awesome report, @africapurohit ............ what a great experience for Niyam and his generation will have a big responsibility in helping to save all the wild spaces in the world Africa or elsewhere.

[Zim Girl]

Fabulous pictures of the crossings!!!

[africapurohit]

We were fortunate to see two crossings within 3 hours of our first game drive and I suppose it's the highlight for many visitors during this time of year. There also seems to be a pressure on the guides to deliver a crossing, especially with the number of vehicles that can gather at crossing points. I didn't want Mdebe to feel this unnecessary pressure, so I told him not to focus on crossings for the rest of the trip. I said it was fine to stop and watch a crossing if we were passing by but not to plan our drives around them. To be honest, there were crossings every day we were there and vehicles were always camped close by to crossing points in anticipation. Here are some more photos from our first day of exploration in northern Serengeti........

 

Agama Lizard

Oribi

Eland - in general we found it very difficult to get close to eland in northern Serengeti

Sooty Chat

I always wince when I see Marabou Storks resting - it looks painful!

This elephant bull was not pleased to be in the company of wildebeest and was scattering them as he went along his way

By the afternoon large numbers of wildebeest had gathered around the Wogakuria Kopjes

Long-crested Eagle

White-backed and Lappet-faced vultures sharing a meal

This baby baboon was refusing to give up its drink until the mother literally prised it off

One of the dominant males from the large troop that resides in the Wogakuria Kopjes

Despite our best efforts to find big cats in the Kopjes, this was all we could come up with - he couldn't even reward our patience with a lift of his head!

Fire in the sky

[TonyQ]

@@africapurohit

love the lizard

Spectacular pictures of the wildebeest - it must be a relief to the guide to remove the pressure from him (and you(

Brilliant bird pictures again, but I think my favourite is the oribi

Looking forward to the next chapter

[twaffle]

Absolutely loving this report. I'm glad you saw a couple of my photos … I'm heading to the camp next year and can't wait. Been to the Southern location but not the North but already it is heavily booked and we could only managed 5 days.

 

The photos are wonderful, but I wonder what the wildie jumping onto the other's back was thinking … probably not much at all.

[africapurohit]

Thanks @@TonyQ and @@twaffle. It's very easy to get caught up in "crossings fever" and I noticed that it was rife. I think you miss so many other things, racing from one crossing point to another. Those crossings were sedate compared to what I witnessed later in the trip - a truly phenomenal event that left me and even Alex quite speechless.

 

twaffle you will love "the north" and with 8 full days of reporting still to come, I hope I can paint the bigger picture. When it comes to crossings, wildebeests seem to cease any thinking processes!

[madaboutcheetah]

Phew! The Fire in the sky - amazing sunset!!!!

[africapurohit]

The plan for Day 2 was to look for northern Serengeti's elusive black rhinos in the morning and then head into the Lamai Wedge in the afternoon. Although we didn't find any rhinos, we had an enjoyable drive travelling deep into the Bologonia area. I also noticed that I started to use vultures to scratch my twitch itch! Here are some photos from the morning...........

 

Sunrise

Balloon rise

Rufous-chested Swallow - outside of northern Serengeti and the Masai Mara, it is difficult to find this bird elsewhere in Tanzania or Kenya

Red-necked Spurfowl

The Stare

This was Niyam's first sighting of a large predator feeding on a carcass - which is quite amazing considering how long we had been on safari

White-backed Vulture

Croaking Cisticola

Black-lored Babblers

Topi profile

Feeling more secure behind the termite mound

Ruppell's Griffon Vulture

Whilst in the Bologonia area, we saw hundreds of wildebeests coming from the river, so we went to crossing point 10 to investigate. This is the only Mara River crossing point in northern Serengeti where one bank is in Kenya and the opposite in Tanzania. The wildebeests were crossing from Kenya into Tanzania but then stopped, probably because some stupid drivers parked too close to their exit point. There were no vehicles on the Kenyan side of the river, as this crossing point is not accessible to guests staying in the Masai Mara.

The pause in Kenya

There must have been more than 300 vultures and marabou storks hanging around crossing point 10 - on the banks and rocky islands in the river. It was an amazing sight and something we did not witness at any other crossing point in northern Serengeti

Beautiful Thomson's gazelles - not the easiest to get close to

Poor family planning by wildebeest standards! This calf was only a few weeks old - all the others we saw were 4-6 months old.

A Pyjama Lily