THE WILDEBEESTE ARE ON THEIR WAY BACK FROM the Masai Mara in Kenya, perhaps 1.5 million of them. It appears they are bringing another million or so zebras with them but we've been told the wildebeeste actually follow the zebras. Here in Serengeti National Park we have already seen thousands, maybe ten times that many — and we didn’t arrive until 5PM!
A Minor Inconvenience
We got stuck only once and when I got out to help two Good Samaritan safari guides push, the talc-like sand was over my ankles. Anyway, we arrived at camp in the dark around eight. Wildebeeste were everywhere, sometimes streaming wraithlike through our headlight beams. We also saw black-backed jackal, three spotted hyenas and a lone cheetah. Lions were mysteriously absent. Or well hidden.
Work, Work, Work!
It took us ten hours to drive from Manyara to the North Gate of the park, 400 dusty, bumpy kilometers. Andrea rode up front with Omari while Candace and Becky gabbed behind them. Connie, not a time-waster, continued downloading and editing photos, thanks to the thoughtfully placed electrical outlets in the Land Cruiser.
Not at all M*A*S*H
Mara Mara Tent Camp is a mobile complex, moving every couple of months. But don’t think of it like a set from M*A*S*H. There are 8 safari tents with king beds, solar electricity, en-suite toilets and hot showers on demand — you ask and they bring hot water! The dining tent isn’t up to Hemingway’s standards but it is better than we deserve.
Powering up in the Serengeti
