Kenya & Tanzania by Nancy Bagnall

Forget luxurious lodges and luxury tented camps, the trip notes mentioned long drop toilets, basic washing facilities and 2-man tents! Nakuru National Park in Kenya offered fantastic game drives where we saw white rhino, giraffe, zebra, wildebeest, buffalo, hyenas and jackals (with kill), hippopotamus and many gazelles and antelope as well as amazing birdlife – and sharing our camp with a troop of baboons who had designs on our food supplies!
Continuing to Tanzania, driving through stunning scenery, we spent the night at Lake Victoria (warm showers and flush loos!). On then to the Serengeti with its vast open plains and stunning mountains in the distance. On this campsite a buffalo had taken up residence overnight very close to the toilet block. Two eyes in the light of head torches at 5am then a large dark shape appearing in the dawn light! We did not linger. Home to an amazing variety of animals, here we had our first sight of elephants, lots of them, very close! I was not alone in finding the experience quite moving. We also saw 6 young lions – apprentices all! - moving in on a large herd of buffalo. Too ambitious I fear, as the buffalo herd stood no nonsense, and the lions’ chances of singling one out were nil.
The Ngorongoro crater, camping on the rim, we explored in 4x4s – an amazing experience; the crater is quite spectacular, as is the wildlife. Southwest to Arusha and a campsite with a restaurant and bar run by “Ma” – what luxury! On to Moshi at the foot of Kilimanjaro with spectacular views of the mountain where we had an option to base camp or a stroll to Mongyoni Falls with a visit to a local school and several villages included. Skirting the Usumbara Mountains and passing many Masai settlements we arrived at Dar es Salaam for the ferry crossing to Zanzibar.
At Nungwi on the north coast, we had two days to relax on the white sandy beaches and sample the excellent seafood, before returning home. This was a memorable trip, although very basic and not for those looking for any measure of luxury, but an excellent way to feel close to the culture and the wildlife of the area.

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