Safari njema!

This past weekend was our trip to Ruaha National Park and we had an incredible time! Leaving early Saturday morning and reaching the park around noon, we settled into our rooms after lunch. A little pumzika (rest) time and everyone piled into the safari trucks - off to find some animals!

Our trucks had the pop-open roof which allowed for great views and a nice breeze. Giraffes were our first exciting encounter - these calm creatures have a way of captivating you with just how majestic they are - slowly grazing from the tree tops.

The afternoon ride continued with sights of impalas, hippos, vibrant colored birds, zebras, and elephants! McKenzie expressed the thought of appreciating the chance to see these animals with their families - many travel in pairs or groups of different sizes. Did you know that zebras stripes are used to confuse their predators? When they stand together, the lions or other big cats can not recognize how many there are. Also! they often stand facing multiple directions to make sure the coast is clear. We kept moving on - still no lions, which seemed to be high on everyones’ list. Especially Zara E. - a true fan of Big Cat Diaries!

We stayed by a herd of buffalo for a little while thinking there was a lion ‘rawr’ off in the distance. Where are you lions?! We were able to catch the sunset in a beautiful location, it goes down pretty fast here being so close to the equator.

Throughout the night you could hear animals howling to the full moon, we believe they were hyenas and a few other mystery calls. The next morning we hopped right back into the trucks to watch the sunrise which was gorgeous! While the sky painted, elephants ate their breakfast just beside us. Ruaha has witnessed an amazing resurgence with their elephant population over the last few years -  thanks to stronger enforcement against poaching and more education for guards who are employed to protect the animals. This year specifically, you can see many baby elephants roaming the park - a wonderful sign! Did you know an elephant’s gestation period is two years long?!

We continued driving and our guide was giving us all bursts of facts, when he suddenly caught something out of the corner of his eye! LIONS! We managed to get a great view of these powerful beings and watched them for close to an hour!

This marked the end of our time on safari and a perfect way to say kwaheri (goodbye). The bumpy ride back to Iringa made time for many naps, reading, and music.