Ngorongoro Crater

Welcome back!  We’re still running on this amazing Tanzania experience so today I’m going to share with you my experience in and around the Ngorongoro Crater!  This was perhaps my favorite part of Tanzania, even more so than the Serengeti National Park!  Let’s get into it.

We left the Maasai Village and shortly after arrived at the Ngorongoro Farm House, by far my favorite accommodation of the entire trip.  The Ngorongoro Farm House a hotel made up of a small collection of private bungalows sprinkled throughout a 500 acre coffee plantation.  Each of our rooms had a small balcony, many with gorgeous views.  They offer daily tours of the grounds where you can learn all about how coffee is grown and how much of the food served at the daily morning breakfast and nightly buffet dinner is grown on the premises.  Seriously, the food here was incredible.  And honestly, I got the best night’s sleep in their beds.  All around, the Farm House experience was incredible and I highly recommend them to anyone looking for accommodations near the Crater.

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The next day we were off the enjoy a full dame game drive in the Ngorongoro Crater part of the Ngorongoro Conversation Area.  The Ngorongoro Crater the largest, inactive, intact, and unfilled volcanic caldera.  The crater was formed more than 3 million years ago after a volcano erupted and collapsed onto itself and it one of the 7 Natural Wonders of Africa.  The Ngorongoro Crater is almost like a small ecosystem within itself.  There’s wooded areas, open plains, and streams and watering holes throughout.  There are over 25,000 large animals living in the crater including 26 critically endangered black rhinos!  After seeing all the amazing animals in Lake Manyara and the Seregenti National Park, our ultimate goal of the game drive in the crater was to spot a black rhino. 

The black rhino species overall is currently critically endangered, with three of the subspecies being declared extinct. The Ngorongoro Crater is the only place in Tanzania where you can find the black rhino. Even within the Crater, only 26 black rhinos remain. Spotting one was something our driver, Johnson, said he would try his absolute best to do, but unfortunately, he couldn’t guarantee a sighting.

Heading down into the crater is incredible. It feels like an exotic jungle with deep green vegetation and unpaved, copper brown dirt roads. Then, in just a few minutes drive, the jungle opens up to a vast plain. Throughout our journey in the Crater, we came upon small forests, lakes and ponds, and endless plains all at the lowest level of towering walls covered in fog. It’s truly an incredible sight and my top recommendation for anyone traveling in Tanzania.

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We came upon many animals throughout the first part of our day. Here are a few of my favorite images I was able to capture.

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As we headed towards the only restroom area in the Crater, we came upon an ostrich and our group wanted to stop to take some pictures. Almost immediately, we were jerked back down into our seats by Johnson (our driver), speeding away. At first we were confused, “Johnson, what the hell? Where are we going? We wanted to take pictures of the ostrich!” Johnson was silent, very typical. A few minutes later we pulled up against a few other vehicles. Someone asked him what was happening. Johnson simply looked at us, put his finger to his lips and went, “Shhhhhh.” We started to look around. “Holy shit, look” someone whispered.

I immediately turn to my right and notice a huge group of zebras and wildebeests moving away and a pack of elephants hurrying (or, well, the equivalent of hurrying for elephants) to the left.

Almost immediately I notice something incredible happening: the zebras and wildebeests start forming a U shape formation around the lion, as if to say: “not today; if you come at one of us, you’ll have to fight all of us.”

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The lion was obviously completely un-phased by the entire standoff. He was simply walking towards his destination. I was in awe. I felt like I was in a scene from The Lion King. Mufasa could not have cared less about the zebras and wildebeests and yet they were so concerned about him. Within about 10 minutes, the lion had disappeared into the brush and we were left sitting our vehicle, stunned. But not for too long. Johnson received a radio transmission and just as fast as we had arrived, we were once again being whisked off to another location.

A few minutes later, we were on the other side of the crater, again pulled up against multiple safari vehicles. Johnson then announced we had pulled up to a black rhino spotting. He pointed in the direction of the spotting and said, “he’s out there!” These were the images I was able to capture of our very rare friend.

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Look, are these the best images I’ve ever captured? No, of course not. But for a 1 in 26 chance in a huge crater, I feel so extremely lucky to have been able to witness a black rhino in person. It was a humbling moment that reminded me both of how small I am in this world and at the same time, how big of an impact I can have.

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I loved our day in the Ngorongoro Crater. It was one of my favorite experiences in all of Tanzania. Camping the Serengeti was easily my #1 but the Crater was my top animal viewing experience. For such a small area (relatively speaking), it provided the most diverse experience. It was as if every type of typography was available in one quick shot. I have visited a lot of places in my life and I have loved them all. But this is one of those experiences that I hope I can return to at some point in the future.

Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end. And after the Ngorongoro Crater, we were finished with our time on mainland Tanzania. We spent one more night at the Ngorongoro Farm House before heading to the local airport to catch our flight to Zanzibar.

Driving into the airport was a very different experience than what I am used to. Johnson drove the vehicle into a tiny little unpaved parking area. But first we were stopped by security who used giant mirrors (think dentist mirrors but giant size) to check under our vehicle to make sure there were no bombs or other devices. I know I say this a lot, but it was a moment that instantly reminds you how different the world is from your home (*googles synonyms for humbling).

We gathered our bags and said goodbye to our drivers. It was a bittersweet moment for our vehicle. Johnson was a gift to all of us and I can’t imagine my time in Tanzania without him. He was incredible and I am forever grateful for his guidance and discerning eye in those vast lands. He had an unmatched sense of humor combined with a genuine compassion and caring for the people who were in his care. I could write an entire post about Johnson but I’ll leave it at this: if you ever get the chance to experience Tanzania, please reach out to me and I’ll make sure to connect you with his company. It’ll be the best decision of your life. I promise.

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After we said our (very sad) goodbyes to our drivers, we headed into the local airport to get ready for our flight to Zanzibar. And that’s where I’ll leave you in this post. I’ll see you in the next post for all things Zanzibar adventure. Get ready! There’s turtles, prisons, turquoise waters, injuries, panic attacks, and tattoos (maybe)!

Weekend Warriors: Los Angeles

I have been to Los Angeles quite a bit over the last few years, mostly for work but sometimes for fun.  My first trip to the west coast was back in June of 2015 where I spent a week hitting all the major tourist attractions.  Since then, it’s been a collection of work trips where I manage to fit in a day or two of fun.  Long story short: I’ve been to Los Angeles and done the tourist stuff.  So, this trip was purely all about spending time and catching up with good friends.

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