The animals were amazing and even though people said how
close they would be, it was still awesome to have them so close with them going
about their daily lives like we weren’t even there. While it would have been
nice to see the Big Five (we never saw a rhino) and to see a huge river
crossing, it was trivial compared to all that we saw and experienced. You can
only plan so much and then Mother Nature takes over and the migration happens
when it happens. Wilson said that 2 weeks ago they saw a crossing that lasted more
than an hour. A week or 2 later (or even a day or so) can make a big difference
and there is no way to guarantee a huge river crossing. We saw a mini crossing
and it was awesome!
The Big 5: Lion, Leopard, Cape Buffalo, Elephant, Rhino (we
saw all but the Rhino)
The Ugly 5: Warthog, Hyena, Wildebeest, Vulture, Marabou
Stork. (we saw all of these)
The Shy 5: Meerkat, Aardvark, Porcupine, Aardwolf, Bat-eared
Fox (Meerkats don’t live in East Africa and we only saw the Porcupine and the
Bat-eared Fox of the possible ones we could see)
The Impossible Five: Aardvark, Cape Mountain Leopard,
Pangolin, White Lion, Riverine Rabbit (didn’t see any of these)
The Little 5: Ant Lion, Buffalo Weavers, Elephant Shrew,
Leopard Tortoise, Rhinoceros Beetle (we did see the Tortoise)
Our guide Wilson was really the best. He was so
knowledgeable about the animals and their behavior and it was interesting to
hear his stories of when he worked for National Geographic and the BBC. He was
easy going and very humble as he stated “I am just a Bush Man”
Duma Explorer was a good choice for a safari operator. I
would highly recommend them. I’m sure Stacy would work out a safari to suit
your budget/needs. Everything went off without a hitch.
The Gorilla company was good as well. In hindsight, we could
have booked directly with Sabyinyo Silverback Lodge and they would have sent
someone to pick us up at the airport as well as their people could get the
gorilla permits and provide our transportation to the National Park as well as
the culture show or anything else we wanted to do. Not sure how the price would
have compared, but it was quite doable to schedule it all directly with them.
Not all lodges offer that service so a gorilla company would be essential in
that case.
There wasn’t much I would have changed looking back if I had
it to do over again. If money were no option then I would say go for all luxury
tents for lodging, but the lodges were interesting, so no regrets there. One
extra night in Tarangire Treetops in the treehouse would have been very nice
and we would have enjoyed at least one night at Manyara National Park. But, you
have to draw a line somewhere. For those on a tight budget, I’d say do it
anyway you can it’s an amazing experience. Group tours can save money and
staying at lodges or even pitching your own tent are ways to save. Everyone’s
safari can be very different depending on the type of experience you are
looking for and of course budget. Some people prefer to fly between the camps,
but we actually enjoyed the drives through the countryside.
I think one of the most important things to remember while
on Safari is to actually relax and spend some time just observing the behavior
of the animals. We saw too many people, pull up shoot the photo and then
quickly move on. (tick that box…..Elephant…. check, Lion…. Check etc.)
For those who are curious about my packing list I will
summarize it below:
We each took 3 sets of SPF long sleeve shirts& SPF long
pants. For the cool/cold nights I had lightweight Winter Silk under-layers and
for the colder nights I had Patagonia medium weight under-layers. For the few
places that were warm at night I had a normal night shirt. I took a fleece
“sweater” and had fleece pants that could be taken off as it warmed up worn
over the SPF clothes. I also had jeans that were easy to layer over them as
well. I had 2 short sleeve t-shirts and 2 long sleeve t-shirts. (for wearing to
dinner at night with the jeans) I left the travel hairdryer at home and used
what was provided at each lodge. Laundry could be sent out at each place as
well. So, there really wasn’t a need to bring more clothes. We had sunscreen
and a few toiletries. (no makeup was worn while on safari) We travel with a
mini pharmacy that included things for diarrhea, constipation, motion sickness,
a “just in case” antibiotic, tums, Tylenol, cortisone for anti-itch, cough
drops, lip balm bandaids and antibiotic gel, wet wipes to wipe the dust off our
faces, we had bug wipes but did not need them . (everything removed from their
bulky containers and put in snack-size ziplock bags and labeled with what it is
and how to take it.) I wore sturdy brown tennis shoes and Greg wore his hiking
boots. I also had a pair of Birkenstocks to wear around the lodges and often
wore them to dinner. Of course a few pair of underwear, a few pair of socks and
a couple bras. I had a bit of detergent to wash some things out by hand. What
really took up the weight were the cameras, adapters for power, chargers and
binoculars. We took my iPad mini and my Kindle Reader. Charmin TP to go rolls
came in very handy. We had 2 small flashlights. We took a wildlife guide and
highlighted it as we found new critters. We had no problem meeting the 25 pound
limit for total carryon. Unpacking and packing every couple of days makes you
appreciate packing light.
We saw at least 133 different types of birds in our short
time there besides all of the animals. What a fabulous trip. The warm, friendly
and helpful African people really made the trip extra special. 
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