When I saw that the Ngorongoro Crater was on the Safari trip being planned by our daughter-in-law,  I was thrilled.  I have often seen photos of the lake in the middle of the crater, filled with masses of flamingos and have always wanted to go there.  

Unfortunately we weren’t there at the time of the year to see masses of these graceful pink creatures, but we did see the beautiful birds and lots of other wild life as well.

According to the Wikipedia report:  “The Ngorongoro Crater, located in northern Tanzania, is the world’s largest inactive, intact and unfilled volcanic caldera spanning 260  meters wide and plunging 610 meters deep. As a UNESCO World Heritage site and one of Africa’s Seven Natural Wonders, it boasts a massive concentration of wildlife, including the “Big Five” (lions, elephants, rhinos, leopards, buffalo).  

It is truly naturally formed zoo

We were there on the only really gray rainy drizzly day of our trip so shots of the graceful pink or white birds reflected in the water  weren’t all that great but this is what I got.  I loved seeing them. 

Named by the Maasai pastoralists after the sound a cowbell makes, Ngorongoro translates (quite literally) to “big hole” in English. Once I got the hang of it, I loved saying Ngorongoro.

It turns out that the Ngorongoro Crater was the most crowded destination on the safari with sometimes 4 to 5 vehicles parked to look at the wild life. In fact, when many of us stopped to see a lion kill, we had a traffic jam.  There might have been a dozen  jeeps trying to go both ways on a one track road with others watching the lions. 

Safari Traffic Jam

Fortunately a Ranger came along to direct the jeeps and sort out the mess. Part of the issue was that our driver, Godwin, and other drivers weren’t allowed to go off the road.  So, directions and permission were needed.  I found it rather an amusing to think I was in a traffic jam of a dozen vehicles and a couple of lions in the Ngorongoro  Crater in Tanzania on  the East side of Africa.  How often does that happen?

No one was in a hurry. We just wanted good spots to view the wildlife, but nobody rushed, honked a horn or got annoyed. We all quietly watched and waited our turn.

We learned that the area can get much more congested in our summer months when the Safari experiences are in high season. 

Happy to see more zebras

We did see a lot of wildlife—the zebras I so love, wildebeasts and others pictured below.  

This hippo had Godwin, our guide,  a little perplexed.  He seemed to know everything about everything in this part of the world and he said it was unusual for a creature like this to be out by himself.  The white marks are scratches from scuffles with other hippos. 

We also enjoyed the lunch prepared for us and other guests/guides organized by the same company Godwin works for.  We were under tents protected from the rain and happily enjoying our lunch when some birds swooped in thinking they’d like to eat too.  We all found it fun but our little grandson shrieked.  Things like this don’t happen on picnics at his preschool or with Mom and Dad. Fortunately he calmed down and we all enjoyed the experience.

Come back for more

I’m still sorting and culling images from this trip.  Will post as I am able.  Our trip was organized by Brilliant Africa (and my daughter-in-law) and I can’t recommend  them and our fantastic guide, Godwin, enough.  Fantastic.