The Circle of Life

At the Ngorogoro Crater, a World Heritage site, the number of cars allowed into the Crater is restricted to protect the environment and each car is only allowed to stay for 24 hours (including over night in a lodge or at a campsite). It is a remarkable thing to observe a cheetah, just the top of its head and ears visible in the tall grass, watch a group of impalas...and not move. In the distance are five lions, two males lying down and three females walking near them. If the cheetah attacks one of the impalas, it won't get to enjoy the kill; the lions will. Even though they didn't do the work, they will enjoy the dinner. I don't know what the rules are, but the animals seem to understand. For hours, we watched animals move together; walking , eating, resting, drinking ....if hungry (or perhaps frightened or injured), they will attack one another. But in the meantime, enemies coexist near one another. Just a part of the circle of life.

Many hours later, when we completed the loop of the floor of the crater, before we began to drive up the ascent road, the cheetah was still in the tall grass. Watching.

The road was beyond description: minimal maintenance means the drive is an adventure in itself. The descent/ascent takes more than an hour on a road that is barely wider than the vehicle we are in, with curves so tight that the term "hairpin turns" was redefined for me. (Made our trip up Mt. Washington almost look like a piece of cake!) But on the floor of the crater, the road is wide enough for two vehicles to pass and often, as the drivers pass one another, they share two bits of information: what animals they have observed and road conditions. In the quest to have a rare view of a black rhino (sometimes people will be there a week and not see one), Gerard n(our driver/guide) faced a deep mud hole and a decision. Go forward or go back. He brought our vehicle to a stop and contemplated the tire tracks, the water, the mud and I am not sure what else .... then he decided to go for it. We made it through, but not until the muddy water reached the top of the tires and the car pitched sharply right. I thought the car was going to land on its right side, but it didn't. A bit later, we saw the black rhino. Paying no attention to us, it crossed the road within 10 feet of our car. It was worth the mud!

It is difficult to post pictures (it takes a long time) but I am going to try to add a few. Someone asked what animals I saw and I will post the list next,