Mara River and the Selous

 Q: What do you call it when, having waited patiently for several hours to watch the primeval drama of a herd of wildebeest crossing the Mara River, all you get in the end is a female and her calf picking their way across, without a care in the world?  Whistling a jaunty tune no doubt…

A: A double crossing.

Wildebeest are just like that sometimes and there’s not a lot you can do about it. You feel like rushing out and yelling at them, waving your arms about to start the process off.  But first off, that would scare them off completely; and secondly – we just don’t do that kind of thing.

So we just sit and wait. 

Finally, a huge herd gathers on the bank, full of nervous energy and staring at the other side; more are streaming in behind them, the pressure is building inexorably.  Yes, this could definitely be it! The level of excitement in the car rises several notches. I start to plan my approach to the river, once the crossing is well and truly under way… any minute now…

And then another vehicle goes past us, into the middle of the herd, drives in a wide circle scattering the lot of them, then comes up to us to ask if we know, by any chance, where the lioness with the kill is?  Well yes we do, as a matter of fact and what the @$#@***@!#$%!!!!!

I exaggerate of course: along with our double-crossing, we had plenty of superb wildlife viewing.  Memorable highlights included 3 cheetah brothers who had recently killed & fed, looking as though they had swallowed a basketball apiece; mating lions on top of a kopje; a Pennant-winged Nightjar (go on, you know you’re dying to ask!  Well, some of you at any rate…) and a musth bull elephant seeing off a younger rival.

But the real icing on the cake happened right in camp.  That night we had lions roaring close to camp, and in the early hours they killed a wildebeest about 100m out.  There followed a wonderful cacophony, as lions jostled with lions for their share, then took on the hyenas that had been drawn by the noise.  I’m not sure there was a lot of sleeping happening, but then who needs sleep with all that commotion going on?

At dawn, before heading out, we crept around the camp looking for an overview, to be rewarded by a glimpse of a large well-fed male lion leaving the thicket where the pride had been feasting.

***

After Serengeti, it was time to head south, to the vast Selous Game Reserve.  Our first stop was Beho Beho Camp, and we went off pretty much straightaway on the first of many wonderful walks.  This was a gentle hour-long womble, but we had fine up-close-and-personal views of elephant and a jewel-like Malachite Kingfisher in gorgeous evening light before sundowners on a viewpoint near camp.

Next morning was all about lions.  My favourite moment came when a big male, after mating right in front of the car and spray-marking a bush, turned and walked straight towards us.  This was by far our closest encounter (he pretty much brushed against the side of our open land cruiser, within easy touching distance) and I was watching the reactions of our 3 Intrepid Ladies.  Eyes opened wider and wider as he approached and all photographic activity was suspended.  In an effort to reassure, I said something along the lines of ‘Don’t worry, he’s not interested in us’.  Angela hissed back: ‘ARE YOU SURE???’  It was perfect– and we all made it, even if nobody recorded the moment when he stopped and locked his golden gaze on Grace’s eyes before going on his regal way once more.

***

Next day was the beginning of Our Big Adventure – a walking safari, taking us from Beho Beho to the banks of the mighty Rufiji.

We left early, heading east from camp, to the hot spring, where we stopped for a wallow in this gorgeous setting, a series of steamy, sulphur-stinking pools in a rugged valley surrounded by a graceful fringe of wild date palms.

After lunch in a shady spot by Lake Segesse, with water birds and peacefully grazing animals nearby, we settled down for a snooze – our camp crew had thoughtfully laid out bedrolls for us.  A gentle evening stroll took us to our fly camp by Tagalala, where we sipped our sundowners as hippos sighed and African Skimmers unzipped the mirror-silver surface of the lake with their strangely elongated lower mandibles, trying to snag small fish.

Photo by Matt... I'm SO jealous!

Having survived the night, it was time for our longest walk – a full morning’s hike to our next camp, Kogota, a remote spot right on the Rufiji.  En route, we spotted a lone buffalo bull, but were mystified when he crashed off into he bush as we started to approach; it just wasn’t possible that he had seen or heard us. A careful scan revealed a pride of lion lolling in the shade of a tree.  There was no way to get closer without scaring them off, so we went on our way.

It was pretty hot by the time we hit camp towards mid-day, so the first glimpse of the Rufiji was very welcome.  The three Intrepid Ladies sank gratefully onto the bedrolls thoughtfully laid out in the shade by our camp crew, and I had to wheedle a little to persuade them to join me for lunch!

Stiegler’s Gorge was our next stop, a 2-hour boat trip upstream from camp.  Named after a hunter killed here by an elephant in the early 20^th century, this is a rugged gash carved through the sandstone hills over the millennia.   It is a serenely beautiful place, especially as you drift downstream under the great ramparts on each side.  We were lucky enough to spot a troop of Colobus monkeys and a Crowned Hawk-Eagle, high up in a Sterculia tree. 

Back at Kogota once more, we had another delicious lunch followed by the traditional siesta and a wander 

All of a sudden, there was a loud moaning, roaring sound, coming from thick bush very close by.  Hippo?  Elephant?  No – mating lions!  We waited a few minutes, and sure enough, there it was again.  So we had a couple of large honeymooning cats within a stone’s throw of camp… but no way to get to see them, as the bush is so dense right there.  Still, it was terrific to feel their presence so close by.

Our walking safari came to an end that afternoon, with a short drift by boat downstream to Sand Rivers - our first view of the lodge was in gorgeous evening light as we drifted slowly with the current.

The lodge was the perfect place to unwind after our adventures over the past few days; and there was still time for one more.  As we walked out for sundowners on nearby Lizzie’s Hill, we watched a lioness striding along on the flat ground below.  She was either unaware or unfazed by our presence.  The perfect ending to a lovely trip.

Notes:

Nightjars are nocturnal insect-eating birds, which means that they compete with bats - a tough challenge!  Ground dwellers, they are all a mottled brown, blending in well with fallen leaves around them.  In the US they are often called ‘Night hawks’ or (occasionally) goatsuckers: they are believed to creep up on unwary she-goats and suck milk on the sly!  Funnily enough, some Tanzanians share this belief.

Mature bull elephants go into a condition known as ‘musth’ once a year, characterised by high testosterone levels, when they actively seek out oestrous females.  They are more aggressive at these times.