Today of Safari we made the 2.5 hour trip west from Lake Manyara to the Ngorongoro Crater. One of the most beautiful places on Earth! The ride to the crater we passed the Masaai villages and so much of what the Masaai do is major pastoral work. The day we went there was a major market auction happening in the center of a nearby town so there were literally HUNDREDS of cows and goats being herded from the far out villages towards the auction. That combined with the winding roads leaving Manyara and finally into the crater was an incredible day. First, we stopped at the top of the crater to get a shot down. From the top one cannot tell there are so many animals and happenings down in the crater. When we got to the bottom (After a steeeeep ride), I was totally shocked by how many wildebeest and zebras we saw. Lots of cranes, buffalo, and antelopes as well. After many pit stops to listen to the sounds and watch the wildebeests attempt to mate with the female wildebeest we reached a small lake in the crater with hippos! We couldn’t see many of them as they were hidden but when they poked their heads up we got a quick peek. A nice picnic lunch provided by our former night’s lodging and a view of the lake and we headed back to our incredible hotel Sopa Lodge. The Sopa Lodge provided incredible views down into the crater. Watching the sunset into the cloudly crater with my favorite Tanzanian beer (Castle Lager) ended this amazingly perfect day for me.
Crater fun with my roomie Jillian
AMAZING!
Wildebeests!
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