Day Two: The Secrets of Selous Impala Camp

The Secret of Selous Impala Camp - 

Shy Masai Giraffes, Yellow Baboon Troops, Exotic Birds and Animal Parades to the Watering Hole

September 29-October 2 (days 1-3)

Selous Camp is a magical and unpretentious place consisting of 8 tents on wooden platforms, each with private balconies set in the bush on the side of the Rufiji river, which is East Africa’s largest river.  Each tent is solar powered and is guarded at night by a Maasai warrior.
  



Our first night we experience a symphony of music which will be replayed in various melody iterations at our subsequent two safari camps. I wish I could transport these amazing sounds home. I imagine I am hearing the sounds of grunting hippos, babbling baboons, laughing hyenas and what I think are bird sounds but in truth I am too ignorant to be able to identify whether they could be a jackal or giraffe or waterbuck. Do you know the difference between a hippo and elephant sound? Barbara and Peter see a hippo sauntering in the bushes out front of their tent cabana near the river and this clarifies one of the sounds for them.

We are greeted at 6 am by our Maasai guard dressed in his traditional garb of wooden club, spear and lovely fabric. I wonder if the Maasai really wear this clothing or if this is just for the benefit of tourists?  He welcomes us by saying “karibou” and quickly this becomes one of the Swahili words we learn. Another phrase used by many during our trip is “Hakuna Matata” and I am reminded of Disney’s Lion King. The Maasai for our tent is extremely handsome, smiling with white teeth that look like they have been professionally cleaned and his job is to protect us from animals at night and take us to the thatched lodge in the morning. He has been sitting outside our tent all night!  There are approximately 1.6 million of the Maasai people, with about half being in Tanzania and half in Kenya. They speak the Maa language and have been encouraged by the Kenyan and Tanzanian governments to abandon their traditional semi-nomadic lifestyle, but they have continued their customs.

 From our breakfast table we see a Giant King Fisher and African Golden Weaver. Of course I don’t know these names but our guides Festo and Dennis begin to educate us. We take 2 land cruisers for our game drive down bumpy roads and our guides stop to look at tracks in the dirt and to point out and describe the habits of an animal or bird or insect. 

I am amazed at the guide's ability to see these animals without binoculars or even regular glasses. We see a pregnant warthog that is quite ugly with a long black mane of hair, 2 sets of warts below the eyes, tusks from the mouth and a rather sexy trot gate somewhat like a small pony. 

I wonder if these animals are as smart as a pig but struggle to want to photograph them. I wonder what is considered beautiful in the animal kingdom? The Kudu seems rather elegant with a velvet, bluish-grey, smooth coat and long hair down the center of its back and cut tail.

Greater Kudu

A tower of Maasai giraffes

The world’s tallest animals reaching over 16 feet look at us rather shyly with their gorgeous eyes and eyelashes. They seem to make direct eye contact with us and I wonder what they are thinking. 


The brown blotched coat color of the males tends to darken with age and we are told the head horns are covered with tuffs of hair for females but not for males.  We learn they live 28 years and their pregnancies last 14 months but their next pregnancy will be 5 years later. Their baby is 5 feet tall at birth and must be at least 6.5 feet high to breast feed which is important because they aren’t able to eat leaves for 2-3 weeks. Our guide tells us they are not social animals and that the mothers will abandon their babies when predators are near. Sadly we are told 50% of giraffe babies die at birth or during infancy. The babies are dropped 5 feet on the ground at birth from the mother’s womb as she delivers standing. Festo says they are dropped because they need a “kick start” to live!  They sound like very unloving mothers.. but we later learn from another guide this is not the case. In fact giraffes move away from their babies in order to divert predator’s attention and thereby protect them. Moreover due to their great height and excellent eyesight they have the capacity to keep monitoring their baby’s safety at a distance which is not true for most other animals. Since elephants have poor eyesight they would not use this strategy.  Later I think that giraffe babies high death rate may also be due to water draught as well as predators. So I wonder if dry season has more deaths than wet season... this I must look up when I return.

Giraffes browse the top of tree leaves with their lips and with their very long tongues (18 inches) get some moisture from leaves. Unlike the camel they can’t store water and need to drink 30-40 liters of water a day. I can’t imagine how difficult it must be to get their long necks down to drink water while standing! And how do they manage to have sex when they don't lie down? 






Giraffes are “ruminants” and like antelopes and buffalos have a 4 compartment stomach which is a more efficient digestive system with about 230 ft of intestines; they only have to eat a few hours each day. When they eat the leaves go in the first stomach & later curds are brought back to the mouth for further chewing and then sent to the 2nd stomach to absorb the nutrients more quickly.  This is in contrast to elephants who need to eat 18-19 hours a day because of their simple stomach and poor digestive system. Since elephants need to move 4 hours a day to get food, they are left with 1 hour per day for sleeping. On the other hand giraffes only sleep 20 minutes a day! I wonder if elephants and giraffes ever sit or lie down? Wow they must have good backs.

Troop of Yellow Baboons

 There can be 20 to 70 baboons in one troop with a large dominant male. We see them busy playing and foraging on the ground picking out seeds and nutrients from elephant dung which is largely undigested due to their inefficient digestive system. We continue to learn that what is difficult for one animal can be beneficial for another. Indeed these animals are interdependent and assist each other in the survival process. I am fascinated by the baboons mutual grooming efforts which seem obsessive, and I wonder if it has a purpose other than relationship building. 





Often we see the baboons playing alongside the impalas in a symbiotic relationship. Baboons help protect impalas because from their tree heights they can warn impalas of approaching predators such as lions or jackals or hyenas. On the other hand, baboons eat baby Impalas. Either the impalas have a bad memory, or feel this sacrifice is worth the price they pay for the safety the baboons offer.

Incredible Birds

As we travel our guide pauses to point out the many species of birds and I try to capture them on my camera finding it difficult to keep the lens stable when zooming in or to get the right depth of field or lighting.  We even stop to watch matebele ants carry termites across the road. 

John and Peter begin checking off bird sightings in their bird books. The spectacular lilac breasted roller happily models for me and waits so I can capture the lilac breast streaked with white and turquoise blue underparts.

Lilac-Breasted Roller

 This is East Africa’s commonest roller & continually sparks the savannah trees at all our safari camps. Later I find I have more than 50 shots of this bird & obsess over which will be the best one. We also see Little Bee-eaters with their metallic ultramarine blue eyebrows and red eyes. A Lessor Striped Swallow perches on a Cassia tree with a yellow flower in bloom. I wonder if I was able to get a focused shot. 

Acacia Tree 

No time to check or compose a picture as there is a smorgasbord of potential pictures. I spot a rather dull colored black striped kingfisher with grey-blue rump. I relate to this muted color - and the fact this kingfisher eats insects not fish, is not flashy but is buff.

Safari Schedule

At all three of our safari camp sites our schedule is similar. We awake at 5:45 in the morning and meet at the main lodge at 6:15 for coffee and a granola-like biscuit. We must start when the weather is still cool.  We drive searching for animals realizing that every drive offers unexpected findings and a new adventure. Around 9:30 we stop at some amazing view spot for breakfast usually consisting of fruit, cereal, eggs and often bacon. It is an English breakfast and I wonder what the Tanzanian people would normally eat? 

Amazing Breakfast View 

After breakfast we continue driving until 12:30 to 1 pm. By then the heat is stupefying. I am sure it must be over 100 degrees. We are dripping wet, zombie like and go back to our rooms for cold showers before lunch. After lunch, naps are in order---there is little energy for anything else. Electricity to all our safari camp sites is solar powered & the shower and tap water are collected rain water or pumped from a nearby river. We drink bottled water. This is the “yellow or dry season” that is approximately July to December. As it is October we are at the end of the dry season and river beds are dry and animals are searching for water river sites. There is 3 months of rainy or green season from February to April. None of our camps are air conditioned, 2 of them have small pools and only 2 of them have fans!  (Our 2nd Mwagusi safari camp has neither fans nor a swimming pool). 

Our tent cabana at Selous

View from deck of tent

At 4pm we reassemble at the lodge for our evening safari either by vehicle or boat. We stop around 6:30 for a sundowner drink by some amazing sunset spot, snapping pictures, sharing and returning to the camp site around 7:30 for a delicious evening meal. I find that being forced to be “off the internet grid” fosters more self-reflection and being "in the moment" in regard to what we are seeing, feeling and learning.

Parade to the Animal Watering Lake ~ A Staged Production

Our first morning stopping to have breakfast was jaw dropping. We arrived at a table set up near a lake which is chocked full with a deck of hippos, their babies and crocodiles.  I wonder if the crocs attack the baby hippos?  What is their relationship like? At the end of the lake we see a single file of scores of impalas coming to drink from the lake-- eventually, more than a hundred of them congregate. 

Impalas

The impalas leave when a herd of blue wildebeests, which are the most abundant big game species in East Africa,  congregate to drink. 







In turn the wildebeests leave in file when a dassel of zebras takes over the area. The zebras are smart letting the impalas and wildebeests to go first to assess potential danger from predators such as lions or leopards. 

A dazzle of zebras

Baby zebras

Wildebeests and Zebras coexist 

It is hard to know what to watch or take pictures of first.. the posing lilac-breasted roller, the yellow billed stork in front of the hippos, the sparrow weaver in front of our table, or the next set of newly arriving Kudos showing off their amazing curved horns at the water hole. 

Yellow billed stork watches hippos ~ will he go in the water to get fish?

Yellow billed Stork 

And then the hippos decide to move and show us their stuff!  Are they loving? cute? will she or he step on the egret? I am not sure how to determine gender of these animals?

And then there are the two African Fish Eagles atop a tree watching all this choreography. It feels like we are the audience to a wonderful staged production, with different animals coming on and off the stage which is only 150 ft away. Sadly no leap of leopards, or pride of lions, or cheeky cheetahs, or any parade of elephants are in this play. All seems calm and serene and I think perhaps I am dreaming. And this is only the first morning! Yikes a lot to take in.

Day One: Away to Magical Tanzania and Off the Internet

Away to Magical Tanzania and Off the Internet 

What does this giraffe think about us? 

1988 by Baobab Tree in Chobe 

As we are flying for a safari in Southern Tanzania I am thinking of our last safari trip with our children to Botswana and Victoria Falls 20 years ago.  This time we go with 2 other couples who we have traveled with before and we know they are smitten with the same curiosity travel bug as we are. The couples Marie and Steve (former high school teachers and Steve a former Peace Corps volunteer), Barbara and Peter (an anthropologist and a cardiologist) don’t know each other but we are sure they will quickly become good friends.

Peter 

Barbara 

For the last few weeks we have been discussing this trip but mostly talking about the practicalities of getting our Tanzania Visa, taking the typhoid and malaria pills and deciding what the essential items are to bring. We are confined to a small duffle bag, not a suitcase, which must be no more than 13 inches high and 30 inches long and weigh no more than 33 pounds due to the many small airplane flights we will be taking. When I weigh 
my camera, lenses and
portable computer in my small back pack I am already at 18 pounds! John feels it is essential to bring good binoculars, a head lamp plus a flashlight, I-pad and I-phone which are also heavy and insists I don’t need my big Nikon camera.

Marie

I am determined to bring my camera and want to buy a new zoom lens.  Marie says she will bring her I-pad and elects to use her I-phone to take pictures because she has purchased a special zoom lens attachment.

Steve

 Steve the group historian says he will only need an I-phone and 4 shirts. And then the question is what clothing--we are told it can be cool at night so we must bring clothing for hot and cooler weather. This is even more difficult for Barbara and Peter because they are going to Ireland after Tanzania and must pack for possible wet weather as well.  It will be a challenge to get everything in one small bag. As for the color of the clothing... it must not be white, or colorful or even beige or blue for these colors will attract animals. Hmmm I wonder, don’t we want to attract animals?  So it will be the safari colors of green, brown, grey and black. These colors are not a problem for me since I am usually in muted colors but for Marie who loves peacock colors this is a problem. She tries to dye a white shirt with coffee grounds to get the muted look. 

Safari Gear.. all that's needed

John orders from Amazon different types of shirts, pants and shorts of various fabrics looking for the perfect color and relaxed fit. Marie and I realize that for the Zanzibar part of the trip, which is Muslim, we must be fully clothed with shoulders and knees covered.

I obsess the most on whether to bring my computer. I have never taken a trip in the past 20 years without a computer and because I love to blog and work on pictures on the plane and I can’t imagine going without. However, my camera has to take precedence so I reluctantly opt for leaving the computer, taking my I-pad and of course my brush and decaf coffee. I wonder if my brain will work without a computer and my friend Jamila gives me a small tutorial on how to use the I-pad which I rarely use.

We fly to Dubai and are required to stay overnight there so take advantage of a hotel giving us a view of the water fountain dance to music with the Burj Khalifa, still the tallest building, in the background. Next morning we fly to Dar es Salaam and board an 8 seater Cessna for Selous Game Reserve to our first safari camp called Selous Impala camp.

Where is Tanzania?

I confess I have not done my research on Tanzania and as usual John has been the travel organizer. Tanzania is in Eastern Africa and borders Kenya and Uganda to the north; Rwanda, Burundi and Congo Republic on the west; Zambia, Malawi and Mozambique to the south; and the Indian Ocean to the east.  

The capital is the purpose built Dodoma, but Dar es Salaam is the largest city. The country has a population of 49,253,126 with the official language being Swahili. There are around 121 tribes each with their own tribal language but we are told the philosophy is to say you are Tanzanian first and your tribal name is secondary. We are told 1/3 of mainland Tanzania is Christian, 1/3 Muslim and 1/3 traditional. Zanzibar is 90% Muslim. We are going to southern Tanzania where the Rufiji and Ruaha River run through the reserve west to east and 90% of Selous Reserve is south of the river.

Baobab Tree 

Please Note: The data that you will read in these blogs is based on what we were told by our 8 guides at three safari camps. Six of these guides were Tanzanian from different tribes, one was a Masaii, one from Ireland and one from the Netherlands.  They were enthusiastic about southern Tanzania and informative about the animals and land they love. I have not fact checked this information with Wikipedia and hope you might be enticed to do so.  John did buy each couple a book called, Wildlife of East Africa by Martin B Withers and David Hosking. We used this to record what we were seeing and for some basic information about the animals and birds.

I am very thankful to these guides, for a good guide makes all the difference in one’s enjoyment of a game trip. 

Selous Game Reserve ~ first incredible day

Selous (pronounced Seloo) is Africa’s single largest game reserve, three times larger than Serengeti which is the most famous park in Tanzania, and twice the size of Kruger National Park. A large part of Selous is untrammeled and uninhabited wilderness. John has chosen to go to the southern part of Tanzania in the hopes of avoiding the crowds that can be found in the north;  my travel book tells me that less than 1% of tourists go to Selous. Our travel books also says there are many elephants and leopards in this area. After our trip to Sri Lanka with Marie and Steve and our failure to find leopards despite a concerted effort in one park, Marie is particularly anxious to find leopards and giraffes. 

Our plane lands on rugged sandy ground and as we are picked up we notice the pilot putting tree branches around the plane’s tires. These are put there to reduce the efforts by hyenas to eat the tire rubber!

We are welcomed by safari guides Festo and Dennis with the words “Karibou” and learn how to say “assente sana” meaning thank you.  We start our 45 minute drive to our first camp site and are so excited to see elegant, graceful impalas in a herd or is it harem? 

Impala herds number  6-20 females who stay together for life with a single dominant male. I am sure the guides are surprised by our delight with seeing the impalas and wouldn’t normally stop because we learn later these are very common and in no danger of extinction. Next we see rathe shy giraffes and a 2-week old baby giraffe and learn there are 3 species of giraffes that don’t interbreed. 

Shy Giraffes 

The heart of a giraffe is about 2 feet long and weighs about 22 pounds. Giraffes are about 5 feet at birth and eventually reach 15-20 feet! I wonder how the mothers deliver these babies and imagine them lying down with their legs in the air!  Already one of Marie’s goals to see a giraffe has been achieved.

Next we suddenly stop on the road in front of 8 brown, black and tan blotched coated pack of wild dogs with amazing rabbit like ears. Even our guide is surprised as no wild dogs have been seen in 4-5 months. They feed on antelope, impalas and even zebras and wander over large territories. These are an endangered species and there is said to be only 5000 such dogs left in Africa.  They are lazily lying on the road and are very different from the wild dogs we were lucky to see 20 years ago in Botswana who were circling in preparation for a hunt. Clearly these dogs already had their bellies full. 

On the rest of the trip to camp we see a banded mongoose run through the bushes, a common waterbuck, wildebeest and kudus. This large antelope with amazing horns has a large round white circle on its rump making one think of sitting on a wet painted toilet seat. Sorry no picture of waterbuck at this time because he quickly runs away but the wildebeest and kudus are less shy.

Wildebeest

Greater Kudu

Like the giraffes antelopes are herbivores feeding mainly on grasses and foliage of trees. They are dependent on water and herds of bachelor males (like impala males) can be found fighting together trying to establish themselves as master bulls. Yellow baboons with close-set eyes and long tails run around the woodlands. I wonder what the hierarchy is

Yellow Monkey

 for baboons but it is clear they are into mutual grooming which is said to be part of relationship building. Already in 45 minutes we have seen so much and I realize how little I know about animals, their mating, eating, and relationship habits. Clearly we have landed in Giraffic Park.

Off the Grid ~ Selous Impala Camp

Dining Lodge

Back Yard View of Rufiji River 

We thought we would have internet but discovered at our first camp that this was not to be the case.  Instead we experience a rather low key, somewhat primal bush experience with eco-friendly tents situated on wooden platforms above the Rufiji river that houses hippos which snort at us, sounding rather like John’s snoring in the middle of the night. 

Front Yard

We are told we cannot go outside our tents unless a Masaai warrior guard guides us armed with a flashlight, a wooden club and a spear.
Will this armor really kill a hippo?  

Masaii

While we worry a bit that if we are attacked by hippos that we won’t be able to contact our children, we quickly adjust to the relaxation of being “off the grid” and especially, away from politics.  We have made a pact not to talk politics or say the name of “he who shall not be named.”  Hmm I wonder if we are capable of that!

Office Building 

Cook and Masaii Warrier

The managers of this camp, Crystal and Nick are delightful and helpful as are all the staff.  Contributing to the magic of this place our first evening ends with a wonderful meal on a deck where there is a camp fire burning. We watch the sun setting behind the palms and baobab trees and we don’t need any alcohol to relax. Already the environment itself is intoxicating. We follow the beautiful Masaii who take us back to our tents in the dark.

Dinner on deck with monkeys jumping on table