Tanzania Day 5 Part 1: Cruisin' in the Crater

Morning came and it was very cold and very windy. We were up early for breakfast because Maningo was picking us up at 6:30 so we could get down into the crater before it got too crowded with other vehicles. Plus, we had a long drive to our camp in the Serengeti afterwards. The Sopa Lodge had a large breakfast buffet set up with everything imaginable including my favorite, the omelet station. What it did not have, however, is the most important breakfast treat of all - my Coke. Apparently the Coke was all in the bar and the barman was not on duty at 6:00 in the morning. Not good! Maningo arrived right on time as usual. The poor guy was so cold that he had two blankets wrapped around him when he picked us up.

The Ngorongoro Crater is a volcanic caldera that was formed two to three million years ago. It's about 2,000 feet deep and covers around 100 square miles. It sits at 5,900 feet above sea level (thus the reason it is much colder here). The Sopa Lodge where we spent the night sits on the rim of the crater and is conveniently located by the descent road into the crater.

Right away there were three black-backed jackals on the side of the road. Two of them scattered immediately but one stuck around, continuing to chew on a small snake of some kind.

As we descended, the scenery inside the crater was simply beautiful.

A hyena family was squabbling over a wildebeest skull.

Some cape buffalo and zebra were also hanging around nearby.

A couple of vultures were roosting up high

A Kori bustard, the heaviest bird capable of flight

We drove to the top of a large hill to get a nice view and check the lay of the land.

Specifically, we were looking for rhino as this would be the only chance we would have of seeing rhino in Tanzania. There are very few left in the crater and the few that are there make a rare appearance. They did not appear for us. Instead, we saw some Grant's gazelles, hartebeest, flamingoes, and cape buffalo.

A flock of grey-crowned cranes flew overhead.

They landed next to a golden jackal who was finishing off his flamingo lunch.

Nearby, a couple of grey-crowned cranes and a chick were pecking around some kind of animal dung.

We watched a long line of wildebeest and zebra walking along the lakeshore.

A lone elephant bull came wandering through.

We drove on and found some lions lazing around on a slight hill overlooking some hippos and zebra in the distance.

By now it was around noon and about time to head out of the crater. On the way out, some olive baboons were crossing the hillside.

After we ascended, Maningo stopped so I could take a picture from the crater rim.

Just outside of the gate we stopped and ate our lunchboxes in the truck. The Sopa Lodge lunchbox was pretty good--a beef pattie sandwich, Lay's Thai Chili chips, apple, banana, and juice box. We then drove through the Ngorongoro Conservation Area where a lot of Maasai tribesmen still live. This is also the area where a lot of trip operators take tourists to visit Maasai villages.

A typical Maasai village

Maasai herding their cattle and donkeys

From here, we drove to the Serengeti National Park.