🐃 The 🦏 Ngorongoro 🐘 Crater 🦓 Conservation 🦒 Area 🦛

SATURDAY, July 27

We departed Moshi at 7:15am and headed west towards Karatu in two 7-passenger safari vehicles. It was a quick 5 ½ hr ride, made interesting with birdwatching and the changing scenery. Past Arusha, the landscape began turning into thorny scrubland – very flat, with fewer trees and much more rocky terrain.

Small pastoral communities dot the landscape, and every so often we would see a herder with his diversified mix of goats, sheep, regular and zebu (humped) cattle, and donkeys. They learned to do this to minimize their losses in case of drought or disease that may target just one species. We also passed by several bomas, the traditional homesteads of the pastoralist Maasai people. 

We traveled past Lake Manyara National Park to reach the lower slopes of Ngorongoro, passing through the town of Mto wa Mbu: the Mosquito River. During the rainy season, Lake Manyara floods right up to the slope of the crater, pushing wildlife up the slopes - it's why the lions in the area have the unusual adaption of climbing trees. The lake is also home to a huge flock of flamingoes - we could just make out the swaths of pale pink from high up on the escarpment.

Rashid described Karatu as a "Star Wars saloon town" - rugged and wild, with dirt-packed streets and a thick layer of rust-colored grit covering every surface. A sense of adventure hangs in the air, as this is the jumping off point for any expedition heading west on safari to the Ngorongoro Conservation Area and Serengeti National Park.

This area is known as the Great Rift Valley, a giant crack in the earth where two tectonic plates have been moving apart for millions of years. The entire valley stretches for over 3,700 miles, including geologically significant features like active and dormant volcanoes, deep valleys and gorges, high mountains (like Mt. Kilimanjaro), and some of the world’s deepest and oldest lakes. It’s also a hotspot for biodiversity, and hopefully we’ll see plenty when we visit tomorrow.

SUNDAY, July 28

Ngorongoro Crater is an extinct volcanic caldera, formed around 2-3 million years ago when a 5,000 meter tall volcano erupted and collapsed in on itself. The inside of the caldera is around 12 kilometers wide, making it one of the largest unbroken and unflooded calderas in the world. Because of the fertile soil inside, there is a diverse array of plants that support a huge range of wildlife. Ngorongoro Crater's steep walls rise 2,000 feet up, creating a fishbowl enclosure with open grassland, wetlands, lakes, and a small forest all inside. 

It’s a breathtaking experience driving up into the clouds as we climbed the rim – the iron-rich earth kicks up and coats everything near the road a rusty red, contrasting with the lush and vibrant green jungle. Near the top of the caldera, we spied movement on the side of the road - a small herd of elephants! We soon passed some zebras, and then were lucky enough to spot several Maasai giraffes grazing on the hillside. Because of the steep slopes of the caldera, it was uncommon to have giraffes inside the crater so we were happy for the opportunity to see some.

Maasai giraffes

And then we reached the crest of the rim and looked down into the wide basin, with the vast flat expanse of the interior plains stretching across the horizon, crisscrossed with streams and dotted with lakes both large and small. Driving down into the caldera was like entering a different world. You know the scene in Jurassic Park, when the characters' jaws drop when they first see the field of brachiosaurs, and the music swells and your heart starts pounding and it's the most magical moment? Yeah. Like that.

Grant's gazelle

Here and there, herds of Grant's and Thomson's  gazelles graze serenely in the grassland. (Thomson's gazelles are smaller, with a distinct black strip across its abdomen; Grant's are slightly larger with little or no stripe).

Thomson's gazelle

There was a lone cape buffalo on the opposite slope, and every so often a flash of wings would signify a flock of guineafowl, or possibly some crowned cranes. 

Grey crowned crane

 

Helmeted guineafowl

  There was a huge variety of animals everywhere.

Female common ostrich. Don't mess with her.

Kori bustard

Augur buzzard

Sacred Ibis, Yellow-billed Storks, Cattle Egrets, and Little Egrets hang out with Cape Buffalo. 
Zoom in to find the Cattle Egret who caught a frog! (hint: look in the sky to the left)

The lion pride

When we saw a jam of safari vehicles ahead, we raced over - it had to be something interesting! Sure enough, a small pride of lions was resting in the tall grass. They were hard to spot, and we stayed for a bit to try for a better view - I was intently focused on the lions, so luckily Jennice alerted me to what was behind us - my all-time favorite bird, the secretarybird! It was hunting in the grass, trying to scare out any snakes or lizards by flapping its wings and kicking its long, stilt-like legs. The secretarybird is a bird of prey, but spends more time on the ground than it does flying.

Did you know? The secretarybird is named for the long pointy headfeathers that resemble writing quills.

I was excited to stop near the ponds to see hippos, since I've only ever seen them from afar. As an added bonus, there are so many different types of waterfowl - I especially loved the flamboyance of flamingoes!

 

Common hippopotamus: hard to believe with those teeth that they are herbivores!

It's easy to understand why there is such a density of predators - this place is basically a 24-hour all-you-can-eat Vegas buffet!

Cape buffalo

Zebra and wildebeest

Look at the size of this bull elephant's tusks!!

Wildebeest

You know you're jealous of the glorious mullets on these warthogs!

There was such a vast array of wildlife, both far and near, both equally awe-inspiring. I’m well aware how poor my eyesight is, but even those with perfect vision were impressed with Rashid’s hawk-like eyes as he spotted tiny shapes in the distance and recognized them as animals that we’d be interested in – a wild jackal, faraway elands, sleepy hyenas. 

Spotted hyenas

Black-backed jackal

Rashid's ability to spot and identify wildlife is on par with professional guides - I'll never understand how he recognized the rare hartebeest, standing solo in the distance among a herd of other antelope!

Coke's hartebeest

Eland - the largest of the antelopes

 

The network of guides are in touch with each other to alert one another about exciting sightings. They radio’d us to let us know a rhino had been spotted – and we drove to the top of a small bluff to look across at a pinprick of white in the far distance – a rhino, only confirmed by zooming in on my photo taken with a telephoto lens!

I spy with my little eye... a tiny white speck!... (those are two ostriches nearby)

...It's an Eastern Black Rhino!

Whatchoo looking at?

Just as incredible were the close-up-encounters – perhaps explained by the animals being inured to so many safari vehicles that they just ignored our presence. A beautifully spotted serval trotted alongside our row of vehicles for perhaps a hundred yards, giving us an amazing view of the intricate patterns in his golden coat as well as the false eye spots on the back of his ears. The road was the path of least resistance, Rashid explained, and it couldn’t care less about us. 

Equally strange was the male lion who had found a small patch of shade by the road’s curb and had decided to take a nap with its legs sticking out into the roadway; not too far away, a spotted furry lump was a napping hyena – some thought it must be dead, but we were close enough for others to confirm it was breathing.

Anyone else have the urge to pet the fuzzy rock?

So...close...I...can...almost...reaaaccchhhh...

On our way out of the caldera, we passed through the Lerai Forest, a small but significant Yellow Fever Tree forest near the park exit. The high water table provides enough water to support the lush vegetation, providing a great habitat for many animals.

Every kid suffers through bath time!

Thank you, Rashid!!

It was interesting to see how diverse the landscape could be in such a small area. Not only did we see the vast grassland plains, but there were meandering streams, ponds and lakes, marshes, and even a forest. It was an incredibly array of wildlife, yet there's no way we would have seen as much without someone pointing it all out. It was an unbelievable day, and I'm so incredibly grateful to Rashid for making it all happen!

MONDAY, July 29

Visiting Ngorongoro and seeing the great biodiversity found within the crater was absolutely thrilling – getting to photograph some of these animals was a dream come true.  I love nature and the outdoors, so seeing a place as remarkable as Ngorongoro seemed to confirm the importance of conservation. But after returning to Arusha, we met with a local advocacy group to learn about displaced pastoralist and indigenous communities that once lived within the conservation area.

The Maasai people are a pastoral ethnic group who seasonally migrate to find pastureland to graze the cattle upon which they rely. They have always lived sustainably, rotating their grazing areas so as to allow the land to recover, and have traditionally used the Ngorongoro region as part of their grazing land. In 1959 when the Ngorongoro Conservation Area was created, the Maasai were allowed to continue their use, but restrictions have gradually increased as the push for wildlife conservation has gained momentum. While indigenous communities can still live in Conservation Areas, their rights to farming are severely restricted, and people are generally not permitted to live within National Parks. This way, wildlife can have undisturbed habitats and it boosts tourism.

It really made me stop and reevaluate all the preconceived notions I had about wildlife protection areas and the ways we tackle environmental conservation. The formation of national parks and wildlife conservation areas have displaced the pastoralist communities, driving them out of their traditional grazing lands and forcing them into villages and places that are not as desirable. They have been pressured to relocate, which may mean a loss of their ancestral lands, sacred sites, and a way of life.

It’s a side to conservation that is not often discussed, and it made me think long and hard about the previous day’s euphoria. Looking back on my time visiting Ngorongoro Crater, I feel a sense of unease that so many tourists come in to enjoy this park without thinking about the sacrifices that entire communities are forced to make for it to thrive. My lifestyle affords me the privilege of thinking that we need to protect parks and wilderness areas at all costs – I don’t grow my own crops or tend to any livestock that I need to rely on for food or security. I've learned that conservation is not a black and white issue and being an environmental steward isn’t just about taking photos in a national park. It is hard to argue that the Maasai aren't stewards of the land - they rely on its health as much as the wildlife does. It was a difficult conversation, but I appreciated getting this perspective and learning how sacred this land is - not just from an environmental viewpoint but as the means of livelihood for many pastoralist communities.