Father/Son Safari Part 2: Entering the Crater

After a good night sleep in the most comfortable bed I have experienced in nearly six months, a hot shower with good pressure, and a delicious breakfast that included bacon and fresh passion fruit juice, we loaded into our safari vehicle and were on the road descending into the crater by a little after 8 AM. This garden of eden was the closest picture of paradise that i think i have witnessed in my life. It was incredible to see sooo many animals peacefully living along side one another in such a pristine, green, beautiful place. Let the pictures speak for themselves.


This is the steep road that we took to go down into the crater. The Ngorongoro Crater is a sunken extinct volcano. It is just over 600 meters deep and has an area of 260 square meters. That is a lot of area for the wildlife to roam! It makes the perfect natural zoo.


Below is a picture of one of the delicious breakfasts I enjoyed with my dad on our trip through Arusha. Delicious!
Again, let the pictures speak for themselves. But let me remind you, all of these pictures were taken by either my dad or me! These are not stock photos from brochures for the National Conservation Area!
Yes, these predators were sitting right on the side of the road, just relaxing as the cars passed. Pretty beautiful.


We heard different estimates of how many black rhinos there are left in the crater, but what was certain was that this is the only place that they are still living in Tanzania. We were lucky enough to watch this one move across the road we were driving on! like a tank. I wouldn't want to mess with this animal.


Here is the line of safari vehicles that grouped up to catch a glimpse of the rhino as it was up and moving.

Just before it was time for lunch, the clouds opened and it began to rain so we had to close the roof and just watch the animals through our closed windows. It was neat to watch all the zebras and wildebeests standing still like statues in the rain. I guess it is too hard to graze when the grass is so wet? anyway, this cape buffalo didn't seem to mind. He did look up with a pretty confused look on his face when we stopped to watch him, though.

What an amazing safari adventure! We exited the crater in the middle of the afternoon and made our way back to Arusha. We stayed in a nice bed and breakfast place that even had a small pool that i swam in after dinner. Oh, the luxury of a swimming pool.

We also had the chance to realize once again what a small world we live in! Before my dad left home we found out that some friends or ours in Winona had family living in Arusha! So, when we got back to town after the safari, we called John and he came and met us at our hotel for a drink. It was great to find another connection with home all the way across the world here in Tanzania.
Thank you Serengeti Select Safaris for making our safari so enjoyable. Truly an experience of a lifetime.

All for now. Check back again soon for pictures from our day in Dar as well as our travels to Hanga as Father/Son Safari continues!