Ngorongoro (Day 1)

     Today was mostly a travel day.  We had an early breakfast and headed out.  We left the woodland area of the Serengeti for its infinite plain/plane.  Nothing but flat grassland as far as you can see.  There are some minor interruptions by kopjes (magma/volcanoes that did not reach the surface hardened, and erosion has exposed these granite oases; some animals love these - they have trees, they stay cooler during the day and warmer at night).  We stopped at one of these and hiked to the top for some photographs - lots of Agama lizards and hyraxes, and 'evidence' of giraffes and elephants having been recently present.

     From here we continued SE and drove around the Southern tip of Olduvai Gorge - there is no driving across.  We took a detour from the main dirt road onto a minor dirt road into nowhere.  After a few miles, we were at the Olduvai Museum.  The museum and interpretive center was of surprisingly high quality (I got the impression that the 'new' museum had just been completed), with both real and replica fossils and tools, and very good explanations.  It also included the history of the research into the gorge and into paleontology in Africa.  And it corrected some of my misconceptions.  I had thought Lucy was found here, but she was not.  However, Mary Leakey did find what at the time had been the oldest hominid in Olduvai Gorge (Australopithicus boisei [Zinjanthropus]).  Lucy was found later (also by Mary Leakey), in Ethiopia.  And Lucy really was named after the Beatles' song.
     The view into the gorge was especially nice, as was visiting a couple of the abandoned rooms in the 'old' museum.  I think we spent at least twice the time there than either our guide or driver anticipated.  We saw maybe 30 other people the whole time we were there, and most of them arrived/departed together after a very brief run through the museum and short lecture on an overlook amphitheater into the gorge.  If you ever find yourself in the region, I highly recommend a visit.

     Afterward, we got back into the van to complete our journey up the side of the Ngorongoro Crater, cresting at a bit over 8000 feet (the plain inside is at about 5500 feet).  It is a caldera (collapsed volcano) 20km by 13km, and over 2000 feet deep (we will confirm numbers with our altimeter tomorrow).  After driving halfway around the crater near the rim, we arrived at our lodge, where we will stay for the next three nights.  It has an unbelievable view, with an outward facing indoor balcony.  We are looking forward to viewing the sunset.
     This environmental sanctuary is home to resident populations of everything (lions, leopards, cheetah, zebra, wildebeest, giraffe, buffalo, warthog, rhino, impala, hartebeest.....).  Tomorrow, we go to the crater floor (a grassy plain ) and drive around the lake to see it all.  At our elevation on the rim of the crater, it is a dense wetland forest.  Spotting animals here would be nearly impossible.  So far, at the lodge, it's been monkeys.  Eating pineapple rinds from the dumpster.  But we are told that after dark we need escorts because cape buffalo and elephants do frequent the grounds.  And they are territorial.

Pictures of the day:

Our last giraffe photo in the Serengeti

Photo at the top of a kopje in the Serengeti plain.

The unending plain of the Serengeti, from the top of the  kopje.

 

A particularly colorful Agama Lizard at the top of the kopje.

A visit to the Olduvai Gorge Museum.  Highly recommended.

Reproduction of original fossils of Australopithecus skull and foot bones.  It is difficult to see in the photo, but it differentiates which parts were from the original fossil, and which parts were extrapolated.

Location where Mary Leakey found the skull

Panorama view of the gorge - you may need to zoom.  It is an impressive sight/site.

A column rising from the middle of the gorge, showing the layers of strata where fossils are found/dated.

View down the gorge.

A lot of footprints of hominids and animals have been found here.  If you zoom, you can read the full text.  I particularly like this analogy.  Poetic.

Starting up the outside of the crater, and entering the woodland, we saw these giraffe lying down.  We hadn't seen this behavior before.

Panorama view of the crater from a lookout point on the way to our lodge. Amazing.  You may need to zoom.

 Panorama view of the crater from our lodge.  You may need to zoom.  It is an incredible view.  We are waiting for sunset.

We have monkeys.  I believe they are blue monkeys.