One year ago today: Oct 7, 2005 (Lions galore)

[Note: original post from the trip is posted here]

We spent our final day in the Serengeti searching primary for lions, and we found a bunch. We probably saw about 4 or 5 different groups of lions on that day. Lions are really quite lazy, and can sometimes be a bore to watch -- especially when a large number of jeeps congregate on a single pride. Still, they are very impressive and it would be very scary to encounter one without the safety of a jeep around you.

My favorite lion we spotted as a large, skinny male who was sprawled out under a tree. Unlike other lions, this fellow was lying on his back; it was pretty amusing because of his lack of modesty what with his private parts exposed for everyone to see.

We then proceeded south from the Serengeti towards our next stop, Ngorongoro Conservation Area. It was a long drive, so we wouldn't visit Ngorongo until the following day. However, we did make a short stop at Olduvai Gorge, one of the world's most famous and important prehistoric sights. I particularly wanted to see the Laetoli footprints (although I had to settle for a full-sized cast instead). I was astounded by how small the early hominids were (3.7 million years ago). They also had some funny renderings of extinct animals at the museum, based on fossils found in the area, like big hippos with tusks pointing down out of their heads.

We bedded down that night at Ngorongoro Farm House a very luxurious safari lodge that overlooked a patchwork of coffee fields. I was disappointed that our accomodation was about 1.5 hours away from the Crater, but the luxury made up for that.

Here's a FilmLoop (click for full-screen slideshow):

Couple of online videos. First, a large herd of elephants including some little ones on the plains:



This is a bonus video, since it was taken on a previous day. But it's great, since it shows what it's like to be surrounded by zebras: