Tanzania – from Tarangire to Lake Natron

I slept very well in our bush camp tent, but my fellow traveller Snoopy had a more restless night, listening to the sounds of the jungle and some large animal that he thought was just outside. We got up and headed for breakfast, enjoying the sight of sunrise over the jungle.

After breakfast we continued our game drive with our guide Estomih. The park seemed quieter today, and we didn’t see any big cats. Instead we enjoyed watching some of the park herbivores, including giraffes…

….and more elephants….

…and birds.

We also admired the park’s luxuriant vegetation, and especially its baobab trees…..

and “candelabra trees”.

One large baobab had a large hole in the middle, and Estomih told us that this had been used by poachers to hide elephant tusks in the days when poaching had been a major problem in Tanzania (today the situation is much better, and the populations of hunted animals like rhinos and elephants are increasing again).

At around midday it was time to leave Tarangire and head on to our next destination, Lake Natron. We made the trip with an overnight stop at a lodge near Lake Manyara, one of the country’s salty lakes and the centre of another national park (which was not on our itinerary). From there we drove north towards the border with Kenya. Our route took us along the floor of the great East African Rift valley – a structure formed by the African and Arabian plates separating to leave a long stretch of low-lying land – and the scenery was magnificent, including the very steep and still active volcano Ol Doinyo Lengai. The sweeping plains were dotted with small villages, and we saw many Masai tending their herds of cows and goats alongside small groups of wild zebra and wildebeest.

A short drive after the volcano we made a stop, where a Masai guide led us to a small waterfall hidden in a gorge.

It was a beautiful place and a very pleasant way to spend the late afternoon before we headed on to our lodge on the shores of Lake Natron. We got an early night, since Estomih warned us that tomorrow would be a very long day with a six a.m. start.

Previous Post: Tarangire National Park

Next Post: From Lake Natron to Serengeti National Park