Entranced in Serengeti

Bijo Mathew Philip

Kirimu camp in Serengeti is remote. It lies 350 km northwest of Mount Kilimanjaro. We flew on a 15-seater Cessna from Arusha, 82 km from Mt Kilimanjaro, to arrive at Seronera airstrip early in December last. Nixon, our guide for the next five days, was waiting. The camp was a further 40 km north by a dirt road. As we drove along, golden sunshine alternated with giant shadows cast by rain clouds. Plains of elephant grass spread till horizons in all directions with acacias standing sentinels of this magical world. As we passed a river swollen by showers, we found a giant Nile crocodile with a full-grown impala between its jaws, resting on a sand bank. Another one lay nearby, partially submerged and hidden in the choppy waters. Jambo (hello) Serengeti… We were entranced!

Fact file

• Tanzania offers visa on arrival facility for Indians. You can also apply online for e-visa, which costs $50.
• You can visit throughout the year.
• Travellers to Serengeti should choose between Arusha Airport and Kilimanjaro International Airport. Small flights to nature reserve airstrips are operated from both airports.
• Credit cards can be used to pay for accommodation and safari. US dollar is accepted everywhere.
• A trip of six days, including safari, internal small flights, driver, camp or hotel stay, with three meals per day, can cost between $2,500 and $3,300.
• To optimise cost, ideally travel in a group of four to seven persons.
• A wind cheater and a few thermals, apart from casual wear and sneakers, would see you through.
• Take along your sunglasses, a wide hat and some sun-protection cream.
• Carry with you a basic first-aid kit and some essential medicines.

Serengeti National Park in Tanzania and Masai Mara, just north in Kenya, are parts of the same east African savannah. At an average elevation of 1500 m, the landscape straddling the equator is blessed with exceptionally pleasant climate. We chose rainy December expecting relatively lower tourist traffic. There were four of us office colleagues who share a love for the wild. We reached the camp late afternoon. It was a camp site with 10 tents for guests and a central one for reception and dining. We were the only visitors. There were five young camp staff, including caretakers, cook and a manager. The tents were made of canvas, with an inner insect net, and featured hotel-style beds, flush toilets and hot shower. Each tent was out of earshot from the next.

We were strictly instructed not to wander out of the tents, unless accompanied by a caretaker, for obvious reasons. Night fell, and it was time for dinner. Each of us had to be personally escorted back to the central tent in pitched darkness by a caretaker with a flashlight. In the dark, one of us came across a hyena, less than a few metres in front. Blinded by flashlight, it just ran away. Alarmed, we asked the caretakers if it was common to see hyenas around. They confirmed there was no fence protecting our dwelling and animals, big and small, were all around. A large herd of giraffes had taken residence in the vicinity recently and we would see them soon. But gentle gregarious giraffes or elephants were the least of our concerns. “Hyenas will not turn on adult humans,” Watson, our camp boss, tried reassuring us. As we sat worried, a lion roared, seemingly from a distance.

We retired to our tents after dinner for our first night in the bush. Its sturdy canvas walls with zippers now appeared too flimsy. Lions kept roaring every now and then. That night was the most unnerving for all of us. Daybreak brought relief. Fortified with a grand breakfast, we were once again transformed into daring adventurers!

Wild game was all around us, with impalas, giraffes, elephants, baboons, warthogs and topi seen in plenty. Twice we saw large herds of elands. These vulnerable giants, thoroughly shy, stayed away. However, the teeming herds of wildebeests, zebras, Grant’s and Thomson’s gazelles were found missing here in central Serengeti.

Being a national park, the Serengeti administration restricts safari vehicles from straying off the beaten path. Heeding Nixon’s advice, we pursued longer distance to southeast in the next two days to follow the annual migration. We were soon amidst herds of wildebeests, hartebeests, gazelles and zebras. Lions too were in plenty. Dominant males in full regalia of luxuriant mane lorded over the kingdom. A typical lion pride has 10-15 individuals, mostly adult and juvenile females. Juvenile males are generally expelled from the pack when they reach adulthood. These gay bachelors roam around in smaller groups of two or three. We saw a few. Leopards were relatively difficult to spot but we could see one on a treetop, with its kill. Termite mounds in thousands abound the dry southern grassland. Nixon drove scanning them in search of cheetahs, who can be seen resting on these mounds. We spotted a pair at some distance and stopped to take some pictures. To our surprise, they stood up and, in a slow gait, started walking towards our car. We kept clicking without second thoughts till they came too close and one of them sprang on to our car. For a moment, we stood face to face with the cheetah a meter away on the roof. We froze and ducked on an instinct but the cheetah had other ideas. It sprang out in a split second and was soon gone with his less adventurous friend while we stood gasping. Nixon was unmoved. Cheetahs are accustomed to tourists and can come too close.

On the second night, emboldened by these wild encounters, I thought it will be a good idea to roll up the canvas flap of my tent. The nylon insect net was now the only barrier between me and dark wilderness. Peering out from my bed, I could see what was going on outside in the moonlight. It did not take much time to feel fear creeping back to my bones. With utmost caution, I unzipped the insect net to roll down and fasten the canvas flap. A hyena shrieked hysterically from the thicket in front.

On the morning of our last day, I had a special visitor: a grazing baby giraffe. He saw me only when I stepped out from my tent. He took fright and fled. He was in a group of around a dozen giraffes. A giant-sized giraffe walked up, stopped the scared baby and the two stood there for some time with their necks entwined. Perhaps, the giant was the matriarch, consoling her boy.

Tanzania prides itself as home to half the world population of wild lions. It is home to the Masai giraffe, largest of the species. It runs a relatively successful regeneration programme for the critically endangered white rhino. Politically stable, the country has well-managed nature reserves and game parks. Poaching is on the decline. However, as the country prospers, an increase in population is bound to cause human-wildlife conflict. This was my third trip to east Africa. Tourists burn tonnes of jet fuel to reach there. Conversely, Tanzania needs the money spent by the tourists to usher in welfare and stay stable. I thought hard trying to justify my visit.