Crossing the Border to the Serengeti

Another scenic flight over Africa

Our Serengeti Guide: Justice

  We were all very sad to say goodbye to all the people we met in the Masai Mara, but it was time to head across the border to the Serengeti National Park, the crown jewel of Tanzania's wildlife areas. The Serengeti covers different ecosystems over an area of 5,700 sq miles. It was turned into a national park in 1951 and houses the majority of the great migration. It also borders the Masai Mara and Kenya to the north.

   It is funny to think that we were peering into the Serengeti while on a game drive in the Mara yesterday, but now we find ourselves having to take two small plane rides, plus a drive across the border in order to reach our mobile tent camp, called Under Canvas. The beautiful thing about the camp being mobile is that it can follow the migrating hordes of wildebeest, zebras, and other antelopes. Now is the time of year when the migration tends to be focused around the very southern end of the park, so we had to cover some ground. Luckily for us the transfers were smooth, the border crossing was the easiest I had seen (nice job everyone for getting their yellow fever shots!), and the wonderful andBeyond staff from Under Canvas met us right at the Ndutu airstrip with hot tea, cold drinks, and cookies.

Young blonde male lion

  After a brief overview of the area we jumped into the three brand new safari vehicles and headed into the bush for our first game drive. The week-old land cruisers had electrical outlets, beer holders, and an electric cooler onboard. The pop-top design is always a favorite so people can stand in the back and get a 360 degree view of the wildlife. And it didn't take long to find our first wildlife....and it was a big one.

Big Roar or Big Yawn?

   Up till this point we hadn't seen a male lion. That changed very quickly here in the Serengeti. We found two beautiful male lions with blonde manes before stumbling upon two lounging females shortly after. All seemed pretty sleepy, which is very normal for lions, and one announced this with a big yawn. Luckily I was able to snap a picture that you can see to the left. There is always something amazing about watching these massive cats, and we are able to get pretty close here.

Entrance to our living quarters

View from inside our tent

  After leaving the lions we drove past Lake Ndutu to arrive at our new home for the next three nights. I played it up as roughing it a bit, complete with bucket showers. What everyone found was luxurious tents with a connected bathroom and outdoor shower. The bucket showers are a real thing but what I didn't tell anyone is that their personal butler will fill the hanging bucket with hot water just in time for you to use it. The view from the tents reminded us that we were indeed still in the middle of the wild.

But for now the raging fire, cocktails, and promise of another wonderful dinner are all calling. I have no doubt the sounds of the Serengeti will put me right to sleep tonight.