september-2018

30 / TRAVEL / Tanzania
TRAVEL / 31
Left page: Searching for
the Big Five (top); Cheetah
at Tarangire National
Park (bottom left); Ranger
at Katavi National Park
(bottom right)
Left: Nomad
Tanzania’s Kigelia
Ruaha, Ruaha
National Park
Right: Chada Katavi,
Katavi National Park
Eliza Powell
“The simplicity of the lodge’s unfussy
interior is a comforting reminder of the game-park
destinations of my childhood”
Eliza Powell (top and bottom right), Brenden Simonson (bottom left)
The baobab is mute now, silent roots waving in protest as
elephants rub up against it or rest in its shade. It’s said that a
baobab becomes handsome once it’s 1,000 years old, which
puts the majestic trees of Tarangire at a very grand age.
On day two, I head deeper into the park where the blonde
grasses of the drier northern tip give way to longer, greener
grass. Here, warthogs’ antenna-like tails poke above the grass,
providing the only indication of their position. Later, I head
towards the damp interior, which is dominated by the sprawl
of the Silale, Lormakau and Ngusero Oloirobi swamps. Here
you’ll find Nomad Tanzania’s Kuro Tarangire tucked into acacia
woodland, hidden in a shallow valley on the banks of the
Tarangire River. The camp’s proximity to the Silale means
that game gathers here in the dry season to graze, while
elephants dig for water in the riverbed. The camp is only two
years old, and it has just six tents, but they’re enormous and
have huge decked verandas, internal and external showers, and
acres of bed swathed in snow-white mosquito nets.
ALL RIGHT ON THE NIGHT
Night drives and bush walks offer an extraordinary
opportunity to get up close and personal with the bush. Night
drives give insight into the lives of nocturnal animals that
remain well hidden during the day, such as the small genet
and serval cats. Bush walks immerse you in the wilderness,
literally. Before coming here, I was advised to use well-reputed,
responsible organisations where I’d be accompanied by
the best guides, making my experience spectacular and safe.
I follow that advice and take a night drive with guide Rajabu
and spotter Maripe, who has the keenest eyes in the country,
according to Rajabu. Even though it’s dark and we’re in a
moving vehicle, Maripet soon spots a chameleon. Night drives
lend a quite different safari experience, accompanied by an
orchestra of distinctive sounds: the hiss of daytime cicadas
and chattering vervets is replaced with the clicks and calls of
nightjars and bush babies. The whoop-whoop of a hyena fills
the air when Rajabu turns the car’s ignition off in order for us
to watch that chameleon move in slow motion along a branch.
Night drives remain mercifully exclusive in Tanzania because
the Tanzania National Parks Authority has only issued
permission to a few select operators. Long may it stay that
way. A night drive in Zambia’s South Luangwa National Park
used to be a miserable procession of brake lights as cars
moved slowly, nose-to-tail, while dozens of spotlights swept
the bush scaring away game. >
Other National Parks
with Big Game
Katavi National Park lies in the west of Tanzania. At
almost 4,500 sq km it’s the country’s third-largest
National Park, after the Serengeti and Ruaha. The
Katisunga Plains, a vast 400 sq km, account for 10
percent of the park, and are captured by the Ufipa
escarpment part of the Great Rift Valley. In dry west
Tanzania, Katavi offers fabulous wild game viewing
opportunities and the greatest concentration of
hippos in Africa.
Ruaha National Park is Tanzania’s second-largest
national park. Named Saba Game Reserve in 1910,
the park became the Rungwa in 1946, and 30 years
later, it was renamed the Ruaha, after the Great
Ruaha River, which forms its eastern boundary. Other
arteries that sustain the park and its wildlife are the
Jongomero, the Mdonya and the Mwagusi. The park
is over 20,000 sq km: a vast sprawling space with big
game and long views.
Where to Stay
Ikuka Safari Camp
Providing amazing views over Ruaha National Park
and its mighty baobab tree, hills and wildlife, this
camp has six tents equipped with all-day electricity,
hot water and super-king beds. ikukasafaricamp.com
Kigelia Ruaha
A simple tented bushcamp located in the Kigelia
(sausage tree) grove, which offers all the comforts you
need for a memorable safari.
nomad-tanzania.com/south/kigelia-ruaha
Ruaha River Lodge
Set on one of the most beautiful stretches of the
Great Ruaha River, you can see game throughout
the day from the comfort of your veranda.
ruahariverlodge.com