August 23-25: The Serengeti Western Corridor

My final destination in Tanzania is Serengeti National Park, located in the far northwestern corner of the country on the border with Kenya. Note, I showed the map above in my last post, but I am repeating it here so that you can reacquaint yourself with the Park’s location and shape. Serengeti NP (5,700 sq. mi.), first established as a park in 1940, almost needs no introduction as it is one of the world’s most famous parks – featured in numerous nature programs and documentaries. The Park was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1984. The Park is actually just the central part of the much Greater Serengeti Ecosystem which includes several surrounding game reserves and conservation areas (e.g., Ngorongoro Conservation Area) and extends into the Maasai Mara of Kenya (more on that later).

The Serengeti (which means “endless plains” in the native language) is most famous because it hosts the world’s largest and longest overland migration of large mammals – primarily common wildebeest, plains zebra and Thompson’s gazelle (a.k.a. “Tommies”). As many as 2 million of these animals, and at times even more, undergo a 500-mile annual migration, moving in clockwise fashion around the Serengeti to capitalize on shifting forage resources over the course of the year. During the wet season of December-February the herds are in the southern part of the Serengeti giving birth and feasting on the fresh growth of grasses stimulated by the rains. At the beginning of the dry season in March-April, with their young in tow, the herds start moving into the western part of the Serengeti (i.e., the Western Corridor where I am now) and then start moving north following the moisture as the dry season progresses. During the peak of the dry season between July-October, the migrating herds make their way farther north across the great Mara River, where huge Nile crocodiles lie in wait to take individuals in dramatic fashion and many more drown while trying to make the crossing, to get to the Maasai Mara in Kenya where the grasslands offer an abundance of dry-season forage. As the rains return in late October, the herds begin their southward journey back to the birthing grounds, and the cycle repeats. It’s important to realize that not all the wildebeest, zebra and Tommies in the Serengeti ecosystem take part in this annual mass migration. Significant numbers of all 3 species remain in smaller resident herds cattered throughout the Serengeti. Why and how individuals choose between these two dramatically differnt life histories is a mystery, but the vast majority have chosen the migratory lifestyle.

Last year on our Tanzania journey (Nancy, Phil, Mary, Bill, Rick and I) in July we were fortunate to time it perfectly to see the mass migration at its greatest concentration – the crossing of the Mara River. It was a wildlife spectacle that can’t be adequately described in words and was reminiscent of what it must have been like to witness the great bison herds on the plains of North America before they were just about exterminated by commercial game hunters during the late 1800s.

My visit to the Serengeti this year comes in late August when the herds have already crossed into the Maasai Mara of Kenya – so no mass Mara River crossing for me this year. Although, I should note that sometimes smaller herds will move back and forth across the Mara River during this time of year, depending on the rains and the forage quality. The forage opportunities must be really rewarding to risk multiple crossings of the Mara River. So, when I am in the northern Serengeti before crossing into Kenya, I may yet witness some river crossings on a modest scale. In the meantime, there is much to see and enjoy in the beautiful Serengeti savannah.

It behooves me to point out that the awesomeness of Serengeti NP does come at the cost of disrupting and displacing the native Maasai people. Much of the area now protected within Serengeti NP was formerly populated by the Maasai, who grazed their cattle on the eastern plains, but had a more sporadic presence in the west because of the seasonal profusion of tsetse flies, which carry a parasite responsible for a disease that can be fatal to cows. The Maasai are relatively recent arrivals to the region, having migrated there from the north in the 17th century, when they forcefully displaced their native Datoga predecessors. Nevertheless, the creation of the Park has not been without contention among the locals. It is understandably hard, as a government, to weigh the costs and benefits of creating a park such as this.

My visit to the Serengeti this year began in the Western Corridor (the rectangular appendage of the Park extending west almost to Lake Victoria), as I approached the Park from Lake Victoria to the west. The Western Corridor is centered on the Grumeti and Mbalageti Rivers which drain most of the central and southern portions of the Park and empty into Lake Victoria. The Grumeti is the second largest river in the Serengeti (after the Mara), but even so, it runs dry during this time of year, sustaining only scattered pools along its course. Besides the narrow strip of dense riparian vegetation along the river course, the bulk of the corridor is comprised of classic Serengeti plains – grassland savannah consisting of extensive open grasslands and varying but low densities of scattered trees (most acacia) – in addition to the hills between the two river drainages. Here are a few photos to put you in the mood:

There are no public campsites in the western corridor so I opted for what they call “special campsites”, rather than pay the exorbitant fees to stay at one of the private camps. Would you be surprised if I told you that none of the Park staff at the entrace gate could tell me which special campsites actually existed (since they change over the years) or where they were located. Indeed, nobody any any helpful information. The staff were just as much “in the dark” as I. Anyways, the computer said there were 3 sites in the western corridor and I could choose whichever one I wanted. So I picked one at random since there was no other information to help guide my decision. It turns out that these “special campsites” are, in fact, truly “special” because they don’t really exist. There is no designated site, just a general area. Apparently you just pick on spot and camp – there are no facilities! For my first night I picked a spot next to one of the scattered pools on the Grumeti River and on the edge of the grassland savannah under a shade tree. Here is a photo of my site and another African sunset from my site:

For my second night in the Western Corridor I decided to move my campsite to a location near where I was spending most of my time observing wildlife. There was a hill in the middle of these vast plains that thankfully had a track up to the top, undoubtedly for “sundowners” for the nearby private camp, with spectacular views over the plains. I was well away from the general area of my “special campsite”, but because there were no signs for the special site and no one I asked knew anything, and I even went by the Ranger post but there was nobody around, I decided to “wild camp” on the hilltop with the classic “out of Africa” scene laid out below. Indeed, this might have been one of my favorite campsites on the entire trip. Here’s a couple of photos:

For my third night I drove through the Western Corridor to the central part of the Park called Seronera and then exited north through the Ikoma Gate and stayed at a private lodge/camp. Nothing noteworthy to report about my campsite. However, in the spirit of full disclosure I will share a very unfortunate accident I had leaving the Park. I missed a turn and was initiating a U-turn when a safari vehicle came screeming up from behind me going like a bat out of hell with dust flying everywhere. Apparently he didn’t see me in time, slammed on his breaks and slid into the back right corner of the Green Dragon, smashing the corner and bending the heavy steel bumper of my vehicle. His front end was significantly damaged. No one was hurt, other than my pride. I was mostly at fault doing a U-turn on this narrow gravel road so I assumed responsibility. Of course, he shouldn’t have been driving so fast but there was no speed limit on this road so technically he wasn’t doing anything illegal. I ended up towing his vehicle the few kilometers to town to the local police station – don’t think real police station like in the state, here it was a one-room concrete block with a chair and desk for the one police officer. Turns out in Africa accidents are generally handled between the two parties without getting the police really involved or insurance companies for that matter. The parties just agree on a settlement, money changes hands and you go your separate ways. The police officer was merely a bystander. I can see how this system might create some real hostile conflicts when the two parties disagree on responsibility, but it worked in our case because I assumed repsponsibility. So, the Green Dragon has her first battle scar and wil require some body work when she gets to Nairobi. Moral of this story is don’t ever do a U-turn without first looking behind to see if it is all clear.

I won’t describe my wildlife observations here since my narration in the composite video will serve that purpose. Suffice it to say that the Serengeti is a wildlife haven so I had lots and lots of cool wildlife observations. I posted my longest video yet for this section on the Serengeti Western Corridor – I am sorry but I just couldn’t bring myself to cutting anything out as it is all so interesting to me.

Serengeti Western Corridor composite video (45 minutes)

OK, I’m off to the northern Serengeti and the Maasai Mara. See you there!

Photo Gallery: