Tanzania - Serengeti, Ngorongoro Crater and Arusha National Park.

21/5/2017 to 1/6/2017

At the risk of beginning to sound a bit like a stuck record, I have yet again to say this year’s Safari was by far the best that we have done to date. It is no exaggeration to say that each Safari really does seem to get better, and I have to conclude that there really are a number of factors which make it all so special. Some of these we do have a certain amount of control over, but others are just down to good luck, good Guiding, and sympathetic weather conditions.

I am going to touch on some of the specific aspects which are controllable.

The first of these is the company who we use in Tanzania. They have really progressed in the 14 years that we have known them and from small beginnings on our first visit in 2004. They now have a very progressive and reliable company who maintain very high standards in everything they do. The Managing Director and Financial Director are both very organised and such nice people to deal with, and the Guides, some of whom we have known for a good few years, are also very special people who are very knowledgeable and interested in what they do. Emmilian, the head Guide, is in a league of his own, and the other Guides, Adrian, Gerard and Endini, make a special team. There are others too who we have worked with and who are also very capable people. Without doubt this company is an essential part of what makes the Safari so special. It is also significant to note that on the one occasion we have needed medical assistance, the company excelled in their response and assistance.

The chain of Lodges which we use has also become very important to us over the years. I can safely say that the relationships which we enjoy with every individual lodge is due in part to the personal connections made with staff, and they are genuinely happy to see us every year. Some management changes that took place before this year’s safari further enhanced our experience at the lodges we used, and we’ve now known all the Managers for some time. To add to our experience, the wonderful working relationship with the top decision makers in this group has become a very useful back up, if ever we need it.

Getting back to the wildlife aspects of the Northern Tanzania Parks, and the 'uncontrollable' elements.

We really did achieve a full bucket list. Some people consider themselves lucky if they see a Leopard and maybe a couple of Cheetah, and it is notable that we saw no Leopard on our first Safari in 2004, and considered ourselves lucky to see just one Cheetah in the far distance. On this year’s Safari, however, we were again really spoiled with sightings of 7 Leopards, two of which we saw twice, thereby increasing our tally to 9 all told. On one occasion, we saw a mother and her three quarter grown cub crossing the road as we were entering our Lodge for the night, and were told that this particular female lives in and
around that particular Camp. We did have exceptional sightings of these exquisite cats, some of which were singularly unconcerned by our presence, and the sightings were more special in that we were there with only the vehicles belonging to our group.

Cheetah were also very special this year, and it was gratifying to see there were a number of mothers who had successfully raised their cubs to near maturity. We saw no less than 21 Cheetah, and they ranged in size from adults down to playful cubs, seen mischievously climbing in a small tree. There were others on a kill, and others out hunting. In today's world these types of sighting are quite exceptional.

Lion were in abundance once again, and it is difficult not to become blase because sightings are so numerous, but their numbers are decreasing at an alarming rate. It was especially good to see a fair number of young cubs and juveniles of all ages. We were particularly lucky to see Lion in the early morning and in the evenings, when they are active, and there were a number of small incidents which included cubs clowning around.

We again did our customary toilet stop in the Ngorongoro Crater by the lake. Fortunately there were no other vehicles there, but Emmilian stopped and still had a good look around before we alighted from our vehicle. Suddenly, we heard a very loud roar and turned around to see a magnificent male standing near the toilets. He took some time to vacate the premises, but finally sauntered off through the toilets and back into the marsh.

Other memorable sightings were a Hyena den with some very small pups, and a Dark Chanting Goshawk landing on a snake right in front of us on the road. It then broke up the snake into manageable bits which it swallowed bit by bit. All in all, we were lucky enough to see 59 different types of animal.

The Migration this year was a little more dispersed than in the past, but again we were extremely lucky to see quite a large group of Wildebeest crossing the Grumeti River. This was in the upper reaches of the Grumeti and, since the rains had been poor this year, there was very little water in the river. We were very lucky to see them jumping down the river bank and crossing the largely dry river before making their way off into the distance. Our guides remarked that this was one of the best sightings they had enjoyed.

With reference to our feathered friends, we also had a very successful Safari, and among other special sightings, were able to see both the Narina and Bar-tailed Trogon's in the Arusha National park. There were a good few bird types that I had not seen before - ever. The total this year was among the best with sightings of 319 different types seen and identified.

Sadly the Tourism levy which had been anticipated for this year was introduced towards the end of last year. This was set at 18%, and as can be expected, has had a significant impact. Kenya tried to do the same thing a few years ago, but withdrew it after a couple of years. It remains to be seen if Tanzania will retract the levy or live with it.

Mount Kilimanjaro Climb.
13/5/2017 to 20/5/2017

This year we had a small group of 4 people who climbed Kilimanjaro. This was arranged through our Tanzania associates. All four reached the summit and returned safely to Arusha, where they reported that they had been very impressed with the guiding and the way in which the climb was handled by the Head Guide. This climb also highlighted the necessity of being very careful about who one chooses for this type of event. Our group passed a single climber being guided by two porters as his appointed Guide was high on drugs and clearly incapacitated! Suffice to say that he was very lucky to survive.

Kenya - Ol Pejeta Conservancy.
4/6/2017 to 6/6/2017

Nine of our group went on to spend some time at the Ol Pejeta Conservancy. It is truly amazing what is being done there in the way of Wild Life Conservation, and these few days were a real eye opener both from a conservation perspective, and also from the perspective of the different types of Wild Life that one sees in the northern part of Kenya.

Rwanda - Gorilla's
7/6/2017 to 9/6/2017

One couple went on to see the Gorillas in Rwanda, and came back having really enjoyed the experience.