Birding: Lark Plain Trip III

It's not called the lark PLAIN for nothing, there is a lot of plain. 

We finally got an opportunity to return to the Lark Plain, a unique habitat north of Arusha which is home to an endemic and rare species of lark, the Beesley's Lark. We have come twice before (Trip I, Trip II) and had never seen the lark, though we were told that it is only found in a very specific area and that we'd have to go with someone that knew exactly where to find it.

Well, we organized with one of our old friends who happens to be likely the best birder we know in Tanzania. It had been a long time since we'd gone out together so we were happy to see him. He also brought one of his friends as well, who was a welcome addition. Both had been to the Lark Plains several times so I felt confident we'd have a successful trip!

We left Arusha early at 7AM, which is critical since the Lark Plains can get very toasty. The plains are located on the north side of Mt. Meru so we were in luck as the clouds created by Mt. Meru provided some shade during the morning.  It was an overcast day with some brief rays of sun which was the perfect kind of weather.

Sure enough, we found the Beasely's Lark and a bunch of other nice birds. Some wild Thompson's Gazelle and Hartebeest ran through the area contrasting with the domesticated cows led by Masaai and the plains seemed to stretch on endlessly. Mt. Meru didn't show its face but the clouds constantly rolled off the mountain. We also learned that the road we took can lead us all the way to west Kilimanjaro so if we ever fancy taking the "long way" to Arusha, we now know the way!

Larks are found on the ground, so I think we were looking at something else here.

A nice cloudy day on the plains.

Lake Jipe

I'm always happy to go on a day trip and these days it feels like we've exhausted our options. But there is ALWAYS more to see and this weekend we decided to try to go to the infrequently visited Lake Jipe. Shallow, narrow and enclosed by dense beds of tall papyrus, Lake Jipe runs for 10km along a natural swamp, nowhere more than 3m deep, on the Kenya border between Kilimanjaro, the main source of its water, and Mkomazi National Park.

It’s an atmospheric body of water, with an awesome setting: the Pare Mountains to the south, Chala crater rising from the flat plain to the east, and, when the clouds clear, Kilimanjaro hulking over the northeast skyline. Lake Jipe is seldom visited, and almost never from the Tanzania side, but it is reasonably accessible, and there’s quite a bit of wildlife around, since part of the northern shore is protected within Kenya’s unfenced Tsavo National Park. The lake itself extends over 28 square km and is teeming with hippopotami and crocodiles, while the papyrus beds harbor several localized  birds,

Due to the infrequency of visitors, information is not very clear on how to reach it but we figured we could do an exploratory trip and see how far we got. After all, the area around the lake was sparsely populated so we figured we wouldn't have any problem asking around.

Overall we were successful in finding the lake though we realized we hadn't left enough time to actually get on the lake. We also underestimed just how thick the reed cover was as we couldn't even see the lake when we were on the supposed shore. We did manage to find some guys that would take us out on a very basic canoe but we didn't have enough time to make it out. Apparently navigating through the reeds takes some time and I certainly don't want to rush the boatmen considering the hippos and crocs!

I think we will return and camp, then head out on the lake in the early morning. It'd probably be wise to bring some umbrellas for the sun, which might appear a bit bourgeois for the locals but I think it might get a bit hot on the lake. Can't wait for the return trip!

Local bee-hives on the way.

Early in the morning on our way there we stopped along a river that drains to the lake.

On the lake shore. Can't see anything over the reeds.

North Pare mountains in the background.

The lake shore, with reeds.

The plains in the east on the road to Jipe.

North Pare Mountains on the way back.

Nyumba ya Mungu: Trip VII

Young Masaai crosses the frame.

Nyumba ya Mungu is one of our favorite places to go (Trip I, II, III, IV, V & VI) and I continue to enter these trips mainly for the sake of posterity. I've already taken loads of pictures and written much about it but I consider it a real special place and loads of fun to drive the rough road to reach.

This trip we took a fellow birder named Pete out to the lake. We spent a long time on the road there as it's full of birds. When we reached the lake around noon there were a ton of people fishing, washing their clothes, and selling fish onward to the markets. As usual it was very hot and we could only be out for about an hour before we retired to the car for lunch. The lake was as low as we've ever seen it which was great for watching birds as you could get close to reed beds packed with birds.

Overall we had a great day though the heat remains the biggest challenge of Nyumba ya Mungu. However, there is no way around it so we just make sure to drink lots of water and stay covered!

Ana looking across the plains.

Checking out some birds!

Cows grazing in the shallows.

Moving: New House IV

Front of the house. Ignore the chair on the railing, it was cleaning day!

Well, we recently moved to our fifth place in Tanzania (1,2,3,4). Although it's a lot of moves in just over two years, I think we've finally found a place we really like.

We moved about five minutes from our previous house which was ideal since we love our neighborhood. We love it for a few reasons, namely that it is out of town a bit (but not too far), has reliable water and electricity, and is quiet and small with a friendly vibe where you know the shopkeepers and neighbors.

The size of the house and arrangement is also near perfect. There is another house with a Tanzanian family that live in our compound and we share the backyard space. The mother does tailoring on her porch, chickens run around, kids play, and it generally feels relaxed and homey. It also helps to have people around since we are frequently out of town.

The house itself is a two bedroom (one en suite), with a storage room, split bathroom and sitting room. We also have covered parking and a covered porch. We joke because I call the extra room the studio since it's got a drum kit and Ana calls it the gymnasium since she does exercise there. Maybe it's a multi-purpose room?

Unlike our last place, which was massive, this place is easy to maintain and comfortable. We also have slowly acquired most all the furnishings of a house. We only need to buy a kitchen table and then we'll be good to go! For now, we take our meals on the porch!

Sitting room.

Sitting room from another angle.

Split bathroom.

Main bedroom.

Ensuite bahtroom with a western toilet and shower.

Studio/gymnasium room.

Kitchen and backdoor with entry to store room.

Store room. Could be a third bedroom.

Kitchen from the store room angle.

Marangu: Marangu Hotel and Ndoro Waterfall

Ndoro Falls.

We have been talking about making more of an effort to explore all the spots located on the foothills of Mt. Kilimanjaro. To actually enter the park requires payment of national park fees, which in the end would end up to be about $100 USD per day to go on a hike. Unfortunately, the vast majority of the areas on the mountain have been cultivated right up to the border of the park, making it more of a hike through farmland than through the montane rainforest that exists in the park. We previously visited a place on the northeast side of Kilimanjaro as well as a place on the west side, so we decided to check out Marangu, which is only about 45 minutes from us on the south east side of the mountain.

There is a nice hotel located in the area with very nice camping facilities and reasonably priced food. The hotel specializes in group climbs and we found the facilities to be quite nice, similar to many of the accommodation options on Kili in that it was obviously an old plantation converted into a hotel. The hotel is located outside of the main town with spacious grounds and some nice views of Mt. Kilimanjaro.

We reluctantly took a guide in hopes that he would know some nice birding spots and trails, but he was a bit drunk and although he wasn't bad, he certainly wasn't a positive addition to the hike. It would have been challenging to independently navigate the village trails, and he did show us where the waterfall was which was a pretty substantial walk from the hotel.

As residents of the area we always find it difficult to go with guides as they are somewhat pre-programmed to give a certain "experience". Most have been trained in a very specific way and since we already know much about the local culture and flora/fauna, most of the facts they give can be redundant. Even speaking Swahili and them knowing we have lived here for some years, they still deliver the same program. I'm sure that the vast majority of people enjoy these tours and there may be a tactful way to tell them we just want to walk but usually we feel bad and feign polite interest in their facts.

The Ndoro Waterfall was pretty cool and somewhat well organized with an office and small building where people signed the visitors book and paid the fee. It was a bit odd as a young guy was stationed on the road about a hundred meters before the entrance and he quickly latched onto us and explained we had to go to the office to pay the fee. However, since we were already with our guide we were allowed to go down the falls with him.

The walk down was steep but short. There was a group of young Tanzanians swimming and we joined them in the VERY cold water. We enjoyed the environment as the river was surrounded with lush vegetation and the sound of the falls was calming. A large group of tourists came just as we were ready to leave, which is good because the area wasn't really too large and could easily feel crowded.

We enjoyed our time in Marangu but I'm not sure if we'll be rushing back anytime soon. We did like that it was very close, we could camp, food was good and fairly priced, and it did have the "mountain" feel (cold night, nice views). However, the main activity, which would be hiking, was somewhat limited, but perhaps if we just needed a place to chill out, it would be perfect.

On a walk through typical villages on the mountain.

Hiking down to the waterfall.

Ana and I at the waterfall...it was VERY cold!

Hiking up the trail from the waterfall.

Lots of irrigation in the area with loads of water flowing off the mountain.

Looking over into the ravine.

Mt. Kilimanjaro visible from the pool in the morning.

View of Mt. Kilimanjaro in the morning.

A nice flower at the hotel.