The Mighty Zambezi

Just as you can't write 'leopard' without prefixing it with 'elusive', it appears that Mighty and Zambezi just have to go together.

Which is fair enough - it is a magnificent river, especially the awesome spectacle of Victoria Falls.  It doesn't matter how much you've read and seen before about the Falls (and we all have) - when you stand on the lip and watch this huge mass of water hurl itself over the edge, the great curtains of water falling in slo-mo into the chasm below, the roar and mist rising from the abyss, it takes your breath away.

We sit in Devil's Pool, a natural jacuzzi inches from the lip.  It is ludicrous how much fun this is, squirming onto the rock ledge to peer over the lip and into the depths as the water swirls past your elbow.  Health & safety - sorry, can you spell that please?

A couple of days later, we find ourselves floating down the same river in canoes. The same river, but how changed from the restless power of the giant that you see at the Falls; here in the Lower Zambezi National Park, TMZ is a wide and lazy body of water, meandering between low-lying islands with happily munching elephants and gape-mouthed crocs lying on the banks.

What a great way to experience the river this is, floating slowly with the current, with plenty of time to take in the teeming life on the river bank - everything from gorgeous Carmine Bee-eaters to monitor lizards and drinking elephants.

Coast Trip

Jules & I are in chilled mode after a wonderful week away at the coast with a small group of friends.  Let's call it a recce...

We started out at Capricorn, simple yet lovely self-catering bandas near Kigombe Village, about 20 kms north of Pangani.  The highlight here (apart from great seafood BBQs and delicious pizza, general chilling and much-needed R&R) was the birdlife.

Traditional ngalawa at dawn

To the north, there is a shallow bay that drains extensively at low tide, fringed with stands of mangroves, so there are hundreds of plovers, sandpipers and other shorebirds, all feeding enthusiastically in the mud.  In particular, there were lots of Greenshank, Terek & Common Sandpipers, as well as Grey & Ringed plovers.  Plus a colony of 100+ Madagascar Bee-eaters roosting in the mangroves, wheeling and trilling just before they settled for the night.

After Capricorn, we set off for Saadani safari Lodge - a great beach'n'bush destination in Saadani NAtional Park, set on a wide sweep of golden beach near the Wami River.

Beach at Saadani Safari Lodge

Top Saadani treats: tracking Marsh Mongoose, Spotted Hyena and Civet (and Jules...) on the beach each morning;

Tracking on the beach...

- stunning boat trip on the Wami (more fab birding, hippos, crocs and Angola Colobus);

Great White Egret

Spoonbills & Yellow-billed Stork

Angola Colobus

and a game drive to a beautiful palm-fringed pool, much visited by elephant and buffalo, judging from the sign; more R&R.

Here comes trouble...

... oh, and these vervets playing on the makuti roofs in camp!

Ngorongoro Crater and Serengeti

Ngorongoro Crater, a cold, cloudy morning. A male ostrich displays to his consort, an elegant, balletic performance.  She indicates her approval, and they mate.

A lioness lies by the road, hidden from a nearby wildebeest herd by the slope of a drainage ditch.  She focuses on 3 animals that are drifting closer to her as they feed.

Their path changes subtly; decision time. If she waits, they may walk out of range, but if she charges, she risks missing them as they are still a good distance away.  In the end, hunger drives her to make the attempt, and the startled gnus run panic-stricken from her.

Her presence is now known to all, so she decides to move on, try pastures new.  She walks surprisingly fast.  It is warm, approaching mid-day, an indication of how hungry she is.  She spots a lone zebra out in the plain - single animals are easier to approach than herds, which have the benefit of lots of eyes all looking out for threats; alone, the zebra must rely on its own senses to survive. 

She starts her stalk along a small gulley.  The zebra, unaware of the danger, moves onto more open ground.  Suddenly he spots her approach and stares at her, snorting. She realises the game is up and moves off once more.

From a small rise, she spots a line of wildebeest on the move.  She moves fast to intercept them, getting into position in a grassy thicket close to their line of march.  The herd keeps coming – it seems that they must walk right over her.  There is a sudden tawny blur, wildebeest scattering in all directions.  When the dust settles, she is left standing there.  She has missed again.  Frustrated, she lies down in the grass and begins to groom.  It’s not as easy as it looks being King (Queen?) of the Jungle.

Kogakuria Kopje, north Serengeti.  A dead spider lying on the path.  A wasp, shiny blue-black, emerges from a small hole, looks at the spider then continues excavating once more, showering earth particles backwards, like a dog digging.  After a few minutes of energetic excavation, the wasp returns and drags the spider into the hole, which looks far too small.  Somehow the wasp manages.

The spider isn’t dead at all.  The wasp has paralysed it’s prey with a carefully placed sting; it will now lay a single egg on the spider – the grub will be provisioned with plenty of fresh food when it hatches, a neat solution to the problem of food storage.  Not a great outcome for the spider though…

 Mara River.  Thousands of wildebeest are pouring across the river, a great honking, bleating, mooing horde, driven by some ancient urge, the-grass-grows-greener...

Some young animals, having already crossed once, decide to cross back again.  It's the wrong move for one unfortunate - a large, scaly head slices through the water, easily overtaking him.  There is a brief swirl and the water closes over his head.
Video - Mara crossing

On the side of a road,  a magnificent Martial Eagle, feeding on an Egyptian Goose.  He has plucked his prey and eaten most of it - there's not much left but the webbed pink feet.  The eagle pants hard, from the heat and overeating.

Midday, north Serengeti.  It’s hot.  In a thick tangle of branches atop a nearby rock, we can just make out a patch of patterned fur, a resting leopard.  We wait. There is a rustle in the bush and a lithe shape emerges onto the rock nearby, followed by another.  With a mix of flirtatiousness and much snarling and apparent ill will, they mate in the typically perfunctory manner of large cats.
Video - Leopards mating

Within minutes, they mate again – and then again.  But the level of hostility doesn’t abate one jot.

  

Kogakuria, early morning.  We heard lions roaring as we set off, so we are trying to track them down.  We try one set of rocks, where we estimate the sound came from but no joy. Then Jairo spots them, distant specks.  They appear to be on the move.  Hunting?  But all have full bellies.  There is a fresh kill nearby and one small lioness has blood on her neck.

One by one, the ladies move off, until we are left with two adult males and the small lioness.  Suddenly, mayhem – the males attack the female, who defends herself ferociously, lashing out at them.  They circle her, looking of ran opening, as she crouches, ears laid back against her skull, snarling and spitting.  They move in again and she launches herself at them, a blur of whirling claws and teeth.

The males roar at the morning sky, then move off, leaving her to lick her wounds.
Video - Lion fight

SUBLIME & RIDICULOUS

There was a lot of interest generated by the close (very close!) fly-by of Asteroid 2012 da14 on Friday night - apparently it came within 27,000 kms of earth (inside the orbit of Geostationary communication satellites) before speeding off again on its own journey around the sun.  We learned that it would be visible through binoculars, so we set off into the garden to scan the right bit of sky... to no avail.   It started clouding over just at the wrong time, blotting out the stars one by one until the whole north eastern sky was covered.  

Luckily there was lovely bright sky a couple of hours earlier, with this beautiful crescent moon going down in the west:

At the other end of the spectrum, we have had an invasion of spectacularly coloured Ornate Grasshoppers for the last few weeks.  They're playing hell with Jules' radishes, but as a fashion statement they're something else!

The neighbours come visiting

Chada Camp, Katavi.  There has been plenty of rain and the whole park is a delicious green - so different from my last visit here.  There are huge herds of elephant (300+ in one group we saw) and buffalo (around 800 in one group, we reckoned).  The Chada pride appears to be making kills every other day or so - one day we find them on a fresh eland kill.  It's all happening.

As we sit on the deck one day, there is a rustling in the bushes and an elephant appears, munching happily.  Then another, and another... it's the Mahoneys, frequent visitors to the camp.  So we settle down for a happy half hour of elephant antics.

One female, with 1 tusk missing, is a proper prima donna - she holds her head high, flares her ears and stomps around glaring at us.  Then gets on with lunch again.

Here's a short Mahoney video - enjoy!  And please let me know what you think of it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B4YTCyQGs1M

A STROLL IN THE PARK- Hiking in Southern Tanzania

We are walking down a dry riverbed when a bush growls at us, a deep rumble of pure menace: not one step closer!

It is a lioness hiding in the bush, but we can’t see her, so it feels like the bush is doing the growling.  It is almost certainly the one we saw last evening, a mother with young cubs - this would explain her urgent warning.

We decide to take a wide detour around the bush…

***

A bull elephant digs patiently in the riverbed, using his trunk and forefoot. When he hits water he sucks it up delicately with his trunk before squirting it into his throat.  After drinking, he throws cool, wet sand all over his back.

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Boating on Lake Tagalala, a Humblot’s Heron – the only one on the continent, we are told – takes to the air on huge wings.   

A jewel- like Malachite Kingfisher watches from a branch...

...as a Water Monitor passes by.

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We disturb a herd of buffalo on their way to water.  They turn to stare at us before wheeling and thundering away across the plain, kicking up a curtain of pale dust that glows golden in the morning light.

***

We sit by a pool with over 200 hippos snoozing the hot hours away. Every so often, one lets out a resonant honking call: others join in, a deafening crescendo of sound, before settling down again.

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Game drive to Lake Manze.  On the track, several sets of paw marks: Wild Dog!  We follow for some time, before they veer off into thick bush where we can’t follow.

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An inquisitive Sand Snake lifts his head to have a good look at us as we walk by…

***

Udzungwa Mountains. The forest guide beckons us over to a bush.  ‘Can you see it, there?’  We peer and crane, and suddenly there it is – an extravagantly coloured and frilled Praying Mantis, perfectly camouflaged on the delicate blossom.

Later, after dinner, we find an Udzungwa Dwarf Chameleon.  He measures about 2.5" (6cm) long.

***

Sitting on a granite ledge overlooking the Kilombero Valley, with the Sanje River leaping out into the void, a thin curtain of spray tumbling 170m to the rocks below.

MT MERU - CLIMBING AFRICA'S 5TH HIGHEST MOUNTAIN

It’s 1.30 am  - time to go.

We’re ready: all muffled up against the cold, headlamps at the ready, water bottles filled and energy snacks stashed in various pockets and hidey holes.

Setting off...

We are at Saddle Hut on Mount Meru and it is summit day.  The plan is to get to the summit around dawn, make our way back here in time for lunch and then carry on down to Miriakamba Hut for our last night on the mountain.

We have already spent 2 leisurely days hiking - it is important to acclimatise properly.  On the first day, we walked through beautiful forest from Momella Gate up to Miriakamba Hut, at 2500m (around 8250’).  On the way, we saw a herd of buffalo, giraffe, warthog, bushbuck, Olive Baboon, Sykes’ Monkey and the park’s signature species, the beautiful Black and white Colobus.

On the 2^nd day we woke up to glorious close-up views of Meru’s crater, with Kili’s smooth dome backlit to the east. What a spectacular mountain – it’s right there on my doorstep and I’ve wanted to climb for years, but always managed to put it off.  Until now.

Mt Meru at dawn, Miriakamba

We left Miriakamba after breakfast for the easy 4-hour hike to Saddle.  We started out in highland forest, with giant Podo and Hagenia trees all festooned with Spanish Moss, ferns and other beautiful plants. 

Red Hot Poker

Approaching Saddle (3500m, 11500’), Little Meru looms above us– Noah (our guide) said we would climb it for our afternoon excursion, which seemed overly optimistic.  In the end, it was a surprisingly easy hike and well worth the effort, with the land dropping steeply away on all sides, giving spectacular views.  

Summit, Little Meru

A short distance away, Meru’s main peak hovered, tantalisingly close.  The crater had filled with cloud and kept overflowing like a giant steam-filled cauldron, only for the clouds to get shredded by the wind and blown away.

Meru Crater

And so, here we all are in the dark, ready for the big day.  Anyone with any sense would be in bed, snuggling up against the cold.  But not us - Noah starts walking and off we trudge.  

We move at a slow pace, so as not to use up all our energy early on.  We have planned this trip to coincide with a full moon: our world is bathed in gorgeous silvery light and there is no need for headlamps as we zigzag our tortoise-like way up to Rhino Point.  Extraordinarily, there is a rhino skeleton here, hence the name – although why a rhino would want to be here seems a bit of a mystery.  (Black Rhino were common in Arusha National Park as recently the 1970’s, but were wiped out by the 80’s to satisfy the world’s weird desire for rhino horn).

From Rhino, the trail makes its way along the crater rim, veering off occasionally to skirt tricky sections.  Most of the time we are walking on ash and scree, but on occasion we have to use our hands and clamber across precarious rocky slopes.  Sometimes we find ourselves on a narrow ledge, with the mountainside dropping away to Ol Donyo Sambu on our right, while on our left, a short scree slope ends in the yawning void of the crater – a 2000’ sheer drop.

The going is hard work, especially on the unstable scree sections, and oxygen is in short supply.  By 4.30 am, we are getting tired and Jules announces that she’s had enough, is turning back.  Noah is horrified: ‘But we’re almost there!’ (Yeah, right!) ‘It gets much easier up ahead’.  Jules is persuaded and Noah is right: a short while later, the going improves and we can even see the summit.  It still looks dauntingly far above us, but now our goal is clear.  It’s quite simple really: just keep putting one foot in front of the other.

The hard slog up

Just before 6 am, the sun comes up, painting the eastern horizon in a dazzling array of peaches, pinks and oranges.  Kilimanjaro’s dome looms out of the layer of cloud, which laps at the edge of the crater just below us.  A magical scene.

Mt Kilimanjaro at dawn

It is around 7.30 when we come around a corner and there it is: Socialist Peak (so-called because this is where Mwalimu Nyerere came when he launched his political theory of African Socialism) – at 4566m, just over 15000’, Africa’s 5^th highest peak.  It is a fantastic feeling, being on top of the world after six hours of trudging.  Jules waxes eloquent: ‘Never – again!’ she manages in a quavering voice.

At last!

But the gods of the mountain have not been kind: the clouds have now gathered around the mountain and visibility is minimal.  And sadly, 2 of our number have had to turn back – the effects of altitude were just too much.  So we don’t hang around long to savour our achievement, but head back down the mountain once more.

It’s odd how down also means ‘down’.  I found the night climb relatively easy, but the descent is much more difficult.  I suspect I was a bit dehydrated and suffering from a sugar low, but there was more to it than that. On the way up I was sustained by the anticipation of that sense of achievement, of getting there: going down, there’s nothing left to look forward to, except a looooooong hot soak to wash away the grime.

Lobelia

So, of course, back home, we found that we had run out of water and had to make do with a meagre bucket shower!