Travel day

Monday was a travel say as we drove from Lake Manyera to Serengeti. So no game drive (supposedly). That took from 830 to 715p. But this is what we saw along the way - zebras, wildebeests, antelopes, gazelles, lions, a cheetah, 3 leopards, David saw hyena cubs (I missed them). We stopped at Olduvai Gorge. Who remembers what that is? It's where the Leakeys did their dig for over 60 years. I can't tell you how incredible the museum was there. It's in a small stone building but the archeological finds they have there is amazing. All kinds of animals that are extinct. We got a great talk from the museum guide on the history of the findings. Then we crossed the Serengeti. For hours. But we saw all the amazing animals above. Plus Melanie got to piss off a bull elephant! Well no she didn't really - just happened to be in his line of sight when we we blocking his way to the watering hole and he wanted to let her know he was pissed. So he reared back and let go with a bugle call. Certainly got our attention.

I'll just tell about one pride of lions we saw. There were 9 in the pride. First we saw them sitting on a small hill and went off road to park next to the hill. The guide, John looked out and said, there's another lion sleeping right next to the car. I promptly shut the window. We drove a short distance and there was another lion form this same pride watching 5 gazelles. We stopped. As we waited the other 8 lions who were sitting on the hill and sleeping next to our car saunters and I mean saunters over. Oy. I want to warn the gazelles but how. I thought of throwing a rock at them but my aim stinks, plus I'd have to get out of the van and THERE ARE 9 LIONS NEAR BY. David wouldn't save me because he had his camera on sports mode which meant he's clicking pictures at 60 frames a minute and if I was being mauled he would get some great shots but wouldn't stop. There was another jeep there and I notices someone in that jeep whistling so I guess he was trying to warn the gazelles. It was riveting watching the lion circle around getting closer and closer. The upshot of this story is that the 8 lions just watched as this one lion went after the gazelles and the lion missed his chance. The wind must have changed and the gazelles smelled the lion and ran. They go up to 50 miles an hour. We couldn't take our eyes off the action. It was like a game where you knew one team was a sure winner (the lions) and then in the last minutes the other team (gazelles) win.

We also saw some elephants chase a leopard up a tree. Really nothing more to say. The leopard had stashed his kill up a tree. The other leopard also had his kill up a tree. Apparently leopards have the strongest neck muscles of any cat and drag the kill to a tree and then drag the kill 20 meters up the tree.

David also got a picture of a lion yawning. Quite a set of choppers on him.

Just a couple of words about the campsite were at. Very nice but we had to have an orientation and they were very clear we can go nowhere at night without a guard. That means we have to have an escort to dinner and back. These guards carry more then flashlights and look like they're in the army. They also stressed to keep our tent zipped up tight or we'd come back to find baboons in our bed. They convinced me. They asked what time we want a wake up call and said the wake up call comes as a pre breakfast. So we're going out on a game drive at 6am. Well ask for a 530 wake up call and they'll bring us coffee, hot chocolate muffins and cookies. Then we come back at 9am for breakfast. All night I've been humming, I think I'm gonna like it here. Good night all.
.

Sent from my iPad


- Posted from the ipad