Trip to Uganda

I think I've been spotted, by a chimpanzee.

This past week I mixed business and pleasure and spent a week in Uganda. I returned the the hospital that Ana and I worked at for six months (Uganda blog here). We were originally connected with the hospital because Ana's late uncle was a doctor there for 30 years and is buried there with a statue of him and everything. His impact was a huge and a foundation was created in his name. We sit on the board of the foundation and each year either myself or Ana goes to check in with the hospital.

I will blog more about the trips specifics in my Uganda blog but I'll leave some pictures here and say that it was really a great experience to travel a different part of east Africa. There were some small things that made me say, "Oh wow, we don't do that in Tanzania", yet there was a common and familiar way of doing things that made me feel like I hadn't strayed too far. There rainy season was a few months earlier than ours; they had phone network throughout the 8 hour ride to Kitgum; traffic police also had radar guns; they sold different food at the bus rest stops, wait, same ingredients, different preparation. It was really nice to get out of my Tanzania bubble and even though I had been to Uganda before, I had been coming from Spain so likely had a different perspective than coming from Tanzania now.

The main ward at the hospital which we are helping to refurbish.

Tea fields give way to the natural forest.

It was the rainy season and heavy rains made some places a bit tricky to cross.

Chimps nest.

Watching the chimps mate, build nests, and call with their loud bellows was a really a treat.

Scoping out Queen Elizabeth National Park on our way down from the escarpment.

The smallest baby hippo I've ever seen is next to the mom.

Great lunch spot. And sunset spot. And sunrise. What can I say, I milked a good view.

Great guests to wake up to in the morning.

Checking the crater lake.

Walking in the highlands.

Ngorongoro Farmhouse

Unfortunately we could not enter the beautiful forest that we saw!

This weekend was quite an interesting one as we mixed it up by joining a group from Moshi on a long excursion. The Kilimanjaro Mountain Club is a group of people in Moshi that basically focuses on outdoor activities and ecology. We first knew of them because they hold talks with guest speakers monthly and we've heard talks regarding elephant movement in the area, a climber that had climbed Mt. Everest, and a natural history of the west side of Mt. Kilimanjaro. They go on several trips each year and I've always had my eye on the trips since the members have an extensive network and they access private areas that are located in or around interesting places.

Most of the members are long term expats, though there are a handful of Tanzanians that are in the club. I was hesitant to go on a long trip because we aren't very social when we are out. However, we got an email a few months ago that outlined the upcoming trips, one of which was to a farm adjacent to Ngorongoro Conservation Area, a massive conservation area bordering the Serengeti.

We went to the briefing meeting and we were not surprised at the demographic, but it was still not the usual mix of people we usually see! We were by far the youngest (and probably by all appearances poorest) but we both felt that the group was very welcoming and nice.

The drive to the farm was about five to six hours, so it was quite the trek for a one day trip. We left early on Saturday in a loose caravan and the drive was relatively straightforward. When we arrived we set up camp and got to know all the people there. 

The leader of the group also sits on the board of the organization Ana works for so we were happy that we kind of knew someone since it was obvious they all knew each other. We had two Dutch people in their 70s who had been here for 30 years (Ana's connection) and the dude was a retired engineer. There was another 70 year old Danish couple, former teachers that retired in Tanzania for the last 15 years. There was a 70ish year old Syrian guy (by way of Denmark apparently) with a very young partner who did not speak any English, and his three or four year old son. Next up was a middle age couple from Mauritius. The guy worked at the sugar plantation south of Moshi and apparently only gets five Saturdays off a year. There was then a Dutch urologist and his Irish wife, both retired and doing pro-bono work at the biggest hospital here in Moshi. They had been coming and going for the past 10 years spending months long chunks in Moshi. There was a group of younger people that came from Arusha. One was probably 25 and taught French (her native country as wel) at the international school for the past two years. She was with another French woman that was probably 22ish and her Tanzanian boyfriend, also a young guy. Also along for the trip was an American family, the couple probably in their late 40s and two teenage daughters. They worked as missionaries of sorts for an NGO outside of Moshi.There was also an older guy in his 70s from England who was there by himself. I actually flagged him as a character when we first met him at the meeting and he was jesting about someone that was on their way saying, "Oh..they are the people that come here to work for the poor people!" (read "poor" with a strong British accent). He had come 25 years ago to do accounting training and had done a variety of other jobs since. And last was our host, Tanzanian Indians that had owned the plantation for the past 40 years but in the last five years the son (in his 50s?) was trying to take it over and run it more seriously. He was a very gracious friendly guy and was just happy to have so many people out there enjoying themselves.

Now, I thought it was a really good microcosm of the variety that you can get here. Some pretty interesting conversations were had and peoples views on Tanzania and their reasons for being there. What's weird is that a group like that is actually not weird here, you're always guaranteed an interesting make up of people.

What kind of sucks is the trip, nature wise, was a total letdown. The plantation was mono-culture coffee and we hiked right up to the boundary of the reserve and all we could see was an amazing forest that we were not in. We did see elephant and buffalo shit and then at night we were warned not to leave the area we were camping because there was a leopard attack the night before. And actually, we were planning on going on a night walk so luckily someone told us before.

I was happy to have done the trip and I am now open to more trips with them. I think I was worried that the class and generation gap would be too much but everyone was very friendly and we found common ground and interesting discussion. Hopefully next time the nature bit will be more interesting!

View from the farm towards the conservation area.

Walking along the border.

Very distinct boundary with the conservation area.

In the morning we hiked to a lookout point but unfortunately we could not see the lake we were supposed to find.

Arusha National Park Trip VII

Mother with her two babies. Great mom

Although we've been to Arusha National Park several times before(Trip I, Trip II, Trip III, Trip IV, Trip V, Trip VI), our trip this past weekend was actually the first non-birding centered trip. While we've always enjoyed all the flora and fauna, we've often wondered how tourists felt about the park as it's small size, proximity to human settlements, and lack of big animals (lions, elephants, rhinos, etc). We are a bit partial to the park since it is so close (one hour drive from our house) and the lack of crowds appeals to us as well. And of course, the bird life is spectacular and keeps us busy for the entire day.

The trip was different as we had agreed to bring a visitor from the UK along for the trip. It was his first time in Tanzania and he didn't have the time for a proper safari. Both Ana and I felt it would be a bit boring for him alone so we offered to take him (of course he was good company as well). It then dawned on us that we actually did have a pretty good feel for the park and the wildlife and we laughed at the idea of our first safari guiding experience.

We arrived at the park around 9AM and were shocked that there were probably five to seven other safari vehicles. We usually arrive at 8AM and we've never seen more than one other vehicle at that time. We checked in and since the weather was clear we decided to climb up to the top of Ngurdoto Crater to enjoy the beautiful vista. On the way up we saw our first ever traffic jam in Arusha National Park as four safari vehicles jockeyed for position to view some Black and White Colobus high in the trees. They were a bit far but we still got a nice view and then we lucked out as an even bigger group were up the road about five minutes.We got out of the car and enjoyed watching them hop from tree to tree and stare at us with watchful eyes.

We continued up to the top of the crater and felt the cold air as we gained altitude. We were happy to see that the view was excellent from the crater and we even saw a big group of buffalo grazing below. There were scattered clouds so we enjoyed a snack at the recently installed tables at the top.

Love the crater view! 

After the crater we zipped down to the Momella Lakes. Our guest, Ian, had previously shared that he loved flamingos and since we had been there a few weeks prior and saw thousands of flamingos, we hoped that our luck would repeat itself. And sure enough, there were thousands! There is a bit of a secret lake off the well trodden circuit which allows you to get as close as possible to the flamingos. We set up there and enjoyed the views and sounds before heading to the Momella Lakes picnic area for lunch.

On the way to the last part of the trip we drove through "Little Serengeti" and were treated to a very close view of a mother giraffe with her two young. One was feeding while the larger one was attempting to feed though it appeared it was past weaning age. The sun and clouds over Mt. Meru is always beautiful from that vantage point and we enjoyed seeing other ungulates like giraffes and warthog.

The last part of our trip was a drive up Mt. Meru to see the fig tree arch and waterfall picnic spot. The forest in that area is particularly beautiful and perhaps the bird highlight of the day came when we snuck up on some Silvery-Cheeked Hornbills dust bathing. Hornbills make a spectacular helicopter like sound when they fly and seeing Ian's amazement at their behavior was a lot of fun. It's always nice to share your interests with someone and even better when they get into it!

It was a really interesting experience bringing someone along for the ride and it was quite enjoyable to just enjoy all the flora and fauna without focusing exclusively on bird life. We were also pleased to see that someone could enjoy Arusha National Park even without all the big animals!

Ana checking out some birds as I take a picture from the top of the waterfall. 

Salt from the alkaline lakes with flamingos in the background. 

Group photo at the picturesque waterfall. 

Driving through the fig tree. Well, parking in the middle of the fig tree. 

Can you spot the dik-dik?

Lake Nanja: Trip II

Scoping out some birds on the lake.

We had visited Lake Nanja once before but we were interested in visiting when the dry season was at its peak. We were curious on how high the water levels would be and if there was any difference in the bird life at the lake. One of our good birding friends from Arusha was very keen on the trip and we happened to be meeting some other friends in Arusha that weekend, so a Saturday trip to Lake Nanja worked out perfectly.

On the way to the lake I noticed how dry the landscape was. In that area I was told the rains begin in October so now the ground was dry and cracked or covered with harsh dry grasses.When we arrived we took a slightly different route down to the lake and parked the car along the shore. The landscape was extremely sparse with only a few isolated acacia trees. A few Masaai and their dozens of cattle and goats periodically passed us grazing or going to the lake for water. We walked down one side of the lake and then returned to the car to slowly drive around the other side.

It was overcast in the morning which is likely the only reason that we could stay out all day. The bird life was excellent and we even saw a few aardvark burrows! The entire time I really appreciated having the place to "ourselves" and the freedom to slowly spend the whole day walking and bird watching. The local Masaai herders were friendly and our friend had gone the week before so he greeted everyone like an old pal.

We finished up around 4pm, which meant we made it back to Moshi by the time it was dark. The trip is a little far for a day trip but any time we have to be in Arusha, you better believe we'll go visit Lake Nanja!

Checking out an aardvark burrow. 

More views. 

Very dry on the western side of the lake. 

Kifaru River

The dry side of Kifaru. Massive baobab tree!

An add on to our trips to the Pare Mountains is a stopover at Kifaru, a small village on the road to Lake Jipe. If we have the energy on our way back, it's about half way between the Pares and Moshi and only a 10 minute detour off the highway. There is a cool little patch to go birding in a small wetlands surrounded by extremely dry acacia scrub. It creates a very unique vibe and one of the few places around Moshi to view waterbirds. 

We have only stopped at Kifaru a few times and it can have varying water levels. When the water is low there is nearly nothing going on there. This weekend the water was as high as we've ever seen int and we saw plenty of fishing nets, people collecting water, and birds. There was a small path along the river that wove through very lush riverside areas with short grasses and tall reeds on the opposite shore. 

Over the course of several trips we hope to get a pulse on the seasonality of the pools. It is always a nice pit stop from the mountains, especially when the water is high and the riverside lush!

Collecting some water. 

Very lush spot. 

A small boat for fishing. 

Checking out the river. 

Nice background with the Pare Mountains. 

Minja Forest: Trip III

Lake Jipe in the background. 

It's been a very long time since we have taken a trip to Minja Forest (Trip I, Trip II), most likely because we enjoy our trips to Kindoroko Forest so much. Still, Minja Forest is equally as amazing of a forest and pretty much the same distance, if not shorter. It had been long enough so we finally decided this weekend to revisit the forest.

One of the many reasons that we love visiting the North Pares is that we can leave after work on Friday and spend the night thus allowing us to have a full day Saturday and enough time to return early on Sunday. There is a very adequate guesthouse in a small village on the way to the forest and we were quite pleased that the owner remembered us from over a year ago. It was SO cold up in the mountains and although we had packed all of our cold weather gear, the motorcycle ride up had left us chilly to the core. Luckily a hot chai is always nearby in Tanzania!

The next morning it was very overcast and slightly drizzly. We were not discouraged and headed off the half hour or so to the forest. The landscape is not as steep as the area around Kindoroko and we enjoyed seeing small scattered villages and farmland. We finally made it to the forest reserve around 11AM, parked our bike at the closest house, and headed inside.

There is not a formal trail network system in the forest but we were armed with our GPS and the experience of our two previous trips. I had unfortunately left my machete at home and the first route we took in the "lowlands" area was a bit unsuccessful as we reached an area that had ambiguous trails with dense growth. We went back to the river where remnants of an irrigation system remained and we headed north up along a ridge. The trail led us to an exposed and rather dry part of the forest with stunning views of Lake Jipe. It was a beautiful spot and a perfect place to take lunch.

After the lunch we headed back deep into the forest. We saw a Great Sparrowhawk with a nest high up in a tree and we quietly climbed a hill to get a better look. We were fortunate to get to a vantage point where we were eye level with the nest and we could see a small chick inside! We then continued into the forest walking until we ran out of time and had to turn back. We found a new route through a very beautiful patch of forest and the sun even came out a few times! We now have two new routes that we want to take and we vowed that it would NOT be so long before we returned!

Do not fall into this ant trail. 

They were making a tunnel for more ants to climb through. I risked myself for this picture. 

Getting water at a 

Hiking along the ridge. 

A very cool and unusual fern. 

Scoping some birds. 

Typical trail by the river. 

I LOVE seeing a wall of green!

Some sunshine deep inside. 

Ana taking in the view in the forest. 

Some ants moving some larvae.

An awesome spider in our room. We enjoyed watching it run around the room until it hid in our jackets hanging on the door...then we did not enjoy that so much. 

Arusha National Park: Trip VI

An awesome clearing by a small stream.

Arusha National Park (ANP) remains a real treat for us as the most affordable and nearby national park (Trip I, Trip II, Trip III, Trip IV, Trip V).

The day was overcast and cloudy, we had very little sunshine that was always fleeting. We regretted not bringing more layers since we had counted on the sun coming out to warm us up. Still, we stuck to our typical plan of visiting open spaces in the morning (in this case the lakes) and then covered forest in the afternoon.

On our way to the lakes we saw a new loop that had been opened up. I am never one to decline a new route so we carefully pulled into the Rydon loop. It turned out to be a very recently cut loop through sparse grassland and although it had a few nice vistas, it was close enough to the border that you could hear human activity and the birds were either absent or quiet. Since the road (more like path) was new it was extremely bumpy and I even worried about our car bottoming out.

With the cold, overcast, bumpy road and lack of wildlife, our spirits were about as low as you will ever see for us in a national park. As we both quietly wondered how much longer the loop was, suddenly a large male elephant emerged from the side of the road. I turned off the car and it quietly crossed the road a few meters ahead of us. It was our first time seeing an elephant in ANP and we were ecstatic! Ana chided me for encouraging us to exit the car and investigate a bird we were trying to identify as we had noticed elephant dung on the road earlier. In these types of overgrown grasslands it is amazing that an elephant can sneak up on you, but they can! 

We parked the car to try to climb on the roof and get a better look and then I saw another elephant about to come in the road but he was startled and jumped back into the bushes. These were the first skittish elephants we had seen in Tanzania and since they were both males with full tusks we thought this wasn't the result of poaching. Since we could literally see buildings on the border of the park we figured they are probably aggressively pursued if local residents see them coming for their crops.

I lost track of the first elephant but the second one hid in the bushes only raising his trunk like a periscope to test the air. If I had not been on the roof I would have been unable to detect the elephant at all.

We then moved on to the lakes. The landscape was particularly dry and the lakes were heavily populated by grebes and ducks. There are a network of five or so lakes and we decided to not do the typical circuit around them all but rather visit the big lake and then a smaller one. We could see the distant lakes were full of flamingos and the small lake we visited also had a ton!

After the lakes we went up to the forest where the trail to summit Mt. Meru begins. It is a massive climb on the way up to the forest and the montane forest is always a treat with the dense trees dripping with moss and lichen. The sun even came out for a few moments as we climbed and when we reached the viewpoint we were excited to see Mt. Kilimanjaro faintly visible in the distance.

The day was a success and we even saw some new loops that we didn't have time to take. We look forward to our next trip to the park!

Lunch time!

Inside the forest. 

Ana taking in the view.

Mt. Kilimanjaro in the background.

Clouds hanging over Mt. Meru. 

Beautiful picnic spot.