After eating rest on a Maasai Kopjes.

Lioness is full after eating a Wildebeest close to Maasai Kopjes.

Migration at Seronera Valley.

A lion cub shaking the head at Sametu Kopjes.

Cubs rest and get the heat on the rocks at Sametu Kopjes.

Big lioness yawning at Sametu Kopjes.

The cub feed on a prey and a mother and a mother watching.

Cub on a prey. – It was on the way to Barafu Kopjes.

Mother and cubs after feeding – It was on the way to Barafu Kopjes.

Killing made by cheetah and cubs, feeded on the part of wildebeest and it was fresh – It was on the way to Barafu Kopjes.

Black – Mamba, very venom snake in the world at Boma Kopjes.

Migration crossing the road at Seronera valley.

Hole in the middle of the main road ready to play with his brother – From Four Seasons to Seronera.

Get wet from the morning dew, was close to start play with a car – From Four Seasons to Seronera sunrise time.

Hunting movement – Four Seasons to Seronera.

On the way to Seronera from the Four Seasons early in the morning on the sunrise.

The young males elephants trying to fight and to know how how strong they are at Seronera valley.

Resting under the tree and showing the shoulders the way it is strong and big muscles. – Seronera valley.

There are no words to describe this experience; it’s just that, an experience not a trip…..

Try to image sitting in the middle of over 5000 migrating wildebeest, watching a mother cheetah teach her 4 cubs how to hunt, observing the behavior of a pride of lions, the adventure of trying to find lion cubs that are only a few weeks old and being a foot away from a year old cheetah cub playing on your vehicle, “talking” to a Rhino to get him to move closer. If you can imagine this, try experiencing it!

On our first day, we spotted a leopard, much to our surprise we got to watch a chase, not a normal kill chase, but a baboon chasing the leopard away. Seeing the baboon run and jump through the tall grass was a site you just can’t explain. One minute the leopard was trying to hide in a small tree then next the baboon was in that same tree with the leopard nowhere in sight. As we moved on, we came across some black face monkeys that just couldn’t resist stealing a cookie from inside our vehicle. Only took a few seconds, he was in and out, smiling at us holding the cookie.

Watching 250+ hippos in the hippo pool get settled for their day long soak, seeing them yawn, fight and maneuver into a perfect spot for the day, with the added bonus of a few babies keeping close to their mothers. At the end of day 4 we came across a large pride of lions (10), we patiently watched the cubs doing their best to share or steal the meal away from dad, until mom came in and “told” him to share. This is not an experience you will see in a zoo; you really get the true experience of animal behavior and interactions with each other. As the each day happened, we were more amazing with each new encounter. Following a cheetah family, mom with 4 cubs, as they were out hunting and finding the same family the next day to have one of the cubs jump up on our vehicle and having a little fun with the car antenna, along with a quick look in the sun roof before our guide shooed him away.

On our last game drive, we still needed to complete our Big 5, with the Rhino. Early morning we saw 3, but they were pretty far away, as we searched throughout the day, we finally was giving it one last look, we another one was spotted. Once again it was far away, just not as far as the morning ones. With a little patience, and a little “talking” to him, he started to move closer and closer and closer to us, 50-75 feet close. It completed the final game drive in a very special way.

As our experience came to an end, we were asked what our favorite part was, we didn’t have an answer, each day and encounter was very unique and holds a special place in our hearts.

We cannot say enough about our guide Pokea, there was never a question that he wasn’t able to answer, as hard as we tried to stump him. He truly made the trip that much more enjoyable, between all the laughing and knowledge sharing, we were truly with a one of a kind person, who we are happy to call our friend! We miss you!!!

This was truly an experience of a lifetime, even when it happens again, it could never ever be the same, can’t wait for my next experience with ADS. Thanks to Sharon for our wonderful itinerary and the rest of the ADS team that made this a trip we cannot stop talking about.

Mark, Priscilla and Brandy “buibui” W.
Round Lake, Illinois
Safari Dates: April 25, 2013 to May 1, 2013

Once again, we would like to thank everyone at Africa Dream Safaris for making our safari such a wonderful experience. This was our third safari with ADS in three years. The questions that we are always asked are “Are you going someplace new?” “Are you going with a different company?” “Why would you go again?” The answers come down mostly to the fact that ADS and all of its employees are so exceptional that we couldn’t consider going with anyone else. Petro was our guide on our first safari and on the most recent safari. His knowledge of the animals and their behavior and his ability to spot animals still amazes us. It was like going back and seeing an old friend.

As far as returning to Tanzania for three consecutive years (first at the end of January/ beginning of February and the next two times in early April), there is always something new, different, and exciting to see. This year, one of the highlights included seeing several leopards, including a leopard close-up and making not one, but two kills. Unfortunately, her choice of prey was a bit disturbing as it was two feral kittens, but seeing a leopard close-up for about three and a half hours was exciting. Also, we finally got pictures of lovebirds!

Other highlights included seeing the Great Migration, seeing lion almost every day, seeing the most amazing number of zebra that we have ever seen, seeing many new (to us) types of birds, watching a monitor lizard, watching a mother lion and her two cubs playfully slipping and sliding in the mud during a brief downpour, watching the hippo at the Hippo Pool, and yes, watching the interaction of dozens of vultures on a kill.

To sum it up, in our opinion, going to Tanzania with ADS three consecutive years was just as exciting from the first safari to the third. Who knows? Maybe there’s a fourth safari in our future…

Jim and Sandra M.
Safari Dates: April 1 – 10, 2013
Torrance, California

Our thanks go out to Africa Dream Safaris and their marvelous staff! We were greeted in Kilimanjaro by the ADS staff and they never left us during our eight day safari through the Serengeti. Before leaving, Lynn took good care of us by answering all our questions and preparing us with material. A big part of the fun of every holiday is planning and anticipating. Our trip to Tanzania was my mom’s dream for at least 13 years. I was lucky to get to go along with her on this adventure. My mother and I called Lynn multiple times, asking questions and analyzing the data that was returned to us. We really appreciated all her hard work and efforts to insure we had a great trip. We chose the right company to host us…definitely!

Tent Camps/Hotels – Every accommodation was great and the staff aimed to please every need. It was fun being in an international atmosphere, with different languages being spoken at every table at breakfast and dinner. The beds were comfortable and wifi was available at most places so we could check email, text home or send video clips to our family and friends during the trip! We would use “Face-Time” on our cell phones to get free video service to the USA. The staff at the camps got a real kick out of this technology and all got in on the video streaming to home, so our family at home could see the people and the accommodations, etc.

Food – we dined both breakfast and dinner at the hotel or tent lodge wherever we were staying. They all had European standard cuisine that was delicious and a good variety of choices. The fruit selection in Tanzania was amazing – the most wonderful tasting pineapple, mango and passion fruit were my favorites – I ate them at every breakfast opportunity. We had a packed lunch for every day on the trip, which was helpful so we didn’t have to return to the camp in order to eat lunch – we could just keep on our adventure.

Guide – Our trip WAS our guide. Thomson Malekia knew so much about all the sites and animals. He and his colleague, Francis (another ADS driver), walkie-talkie’d each other to help their respective guest see the best sightings of the Serengeti. Thomson was very friendly with all the SUV drivers – everyone loved Thomson! We are so grateful to have such a professional, experienced and friendly driver – he was just amazing! He’d stop anytime we wanted to take pictures. He would jump out of the SUV when it started to rain, to close the sunroof panels so we wouldn’t get too wet. He’d go to bed after we were taken care of for the evening and be ready to drive again as early as we wanted to start.

Animals – we saw so many animals – Right off the bat we saw two Leopards in a tree and we saw two lions mating. Then we saw a hippo pool with a giant crocodile lingering at the edge. We saw a kill – infanticide killing of a baby hippo by one of the adult hippos. – this was all during day one! We also saw cheetah, elephant, giraffe, striped mongoose, fox, hyena, vultures and cheetah. The Thomson Gazelle, Grunt Gazelle and Impala were so graceful and quick. The wildebeest and zebras everywhere – we got to see them migrate, which was so interesting. The baboons and their babies were so fun to watch. We watched all week with our check list of animals we wanted to see. We even got to see two Black Rhinoceros on the last day. Thompson knew of my passion for Flamingos and made sure we saw plenty of them. The Ostrich, Crane, and many bird varieties were with us at every stop.

People – Everyone spoke English, which was very helpful to us. We visited a Maasai Village, where we were introduced to some native tribal people, their homes, their traditions, lifestyle, and interaction with each other and the world outside. We saw the children in their schoolhouse and the people tending to their cows, goats, sheep and donkeys. We jumped off the ground with the tribesmen to their rhythmic beats. I’m really glad we opted for this excursion – it was one of the highlights of the entire trip!

Time of Year – We originally were going to start our trip in January, because that’s when the babies are born, but Lynn suggested a “hidden secret” – going in March or April. At this time the babies are big enough to run with the rest of the pack. It’s the rainy season, so the cloud patterns in the background added to each picture we took. It rained but not too much…just enough to keep it cool. I’m so glad we listened to Lynn with this suggestion!

Thanks to ADS for our trip – it was everything we wanted and more. I’ll definitely suggest ADS to people wanting to take a safari in Tanzania!

Karen D. (mom) and Brad D. (son)
Long Beach, California
March 18, 2013 to March 25, 2013

As for the great migration, there are currently large herds of wildebeest and zebra on the Southern Serengeti Plains in the Triangle Area between Naabi Hill and Ndutu. There are smaller herds further south and west through Hidden Valley and Matiti Plains. We also saw a few scattered herds just beginning to arrive at Simba and Moru Kopjes. It looks like the northward migration is now starting. I believe that soon there should be more wildebeest beginning to migrate north through the Central Serengeti and West Serengeti.

Bat eared fox posing – Ndutu woodlands in the Southern Serengeti.

Curious little cub.

Scanning for prey at sunset.

Giraffe at sunset – Ndutu woodlands.

Male lion enjoying a meal – Seronera Valley.

A mother velvet monkey with her lovely baby – Seronera Valley.

Thank You!

Claude

A young male cheetah sitting on my vehicle bonnet in the Kusini plains, South Serengeti.

A female cheetah with four cubs on top of a dead acacia tree around the Ndutu woodlands, South Serengeti.

A pride of lions feeding on a wildebeest around Lake Ndutu, South Serengeti.

Two young male lions drinking at the water hole around Sametu Kopjes, Central Serengeti.

Two baby baboons on the bonnet – Central Serengeti.

Baby baboon playing with antenna on the bonnet – Central Serengeti.

Thank You,

Pokea Nko
ADS Driver Guide
May 2, 2013

We talk about going places all the time, especially after hearing recollections of some of our friends’ amazing adventures, but those special trips are always what we will do some day. So, when I found myself sitting in our Land Rover in the Serengeti surrounded by wildebeests, zebras, and gazelles, I almost had to pinch myself to realize we really were on the Safari of our dreams!

We were talking with friends of ours and we all wanted to do something big to celebrate turning 50. Going on a safari was on the top of the wish list. We said that we have friends who had spoken highly of their multiple safari experiences with ADS, so we decided this was the time to go and we contacted Sharon through the ADS website.

ADS gave us everything we needed to plan and pack for the trip. She helped us through the booking process, giving us updated detailed itineraries as we adjusted our dates. We packed our cameras, clothes, our ADS guidebook and boarded the plane. From the time we arrived in Kilimanjaro and were met at the airport to the time we said our final good byes to our guide, Francis, at the airport twelve days later, ADS staff was always prompt, professional, and handled every aspect of our trip smoothly.

Our ADS guide, Francis, never failed to impress us with his amazing ability to spot animals and birds, his knowledge of the wildlife and the parks, and the uncanny ability to predict the weather! As we were starting our safari at the beginning of the wet season, Francis was preparing us for rainy weather, especially during the last week of our trip. This was the only time it turned out he was not correct!

We were lucky that we only encountered rain twice for short periods and we were able to see lions playing in the mud and hyenas enjoying a mud spa. On every other matter, we could count on Francis to be an amazing wealth of knowledge. He could predict what a lion’s next move would be and identify every bird we encountered. Francis also shared aspects of life and the culture of Tanzania and efforts to preserve the parks. At the end of each day, we would agree on a plan for the next day. He made sure each day held new and exciting experiences. He even patiently waited while we lingered at the pungent hippo pool.

We kept track in our ADS guide book and our ADS-recommended wildlife field guide book of all the birds and animals we encountered and it was quite an impressive list! We watched a cheetah being herded away from the wildebeest calves by the adults, baboons playing in the trees, lions lounging on the beach and snacking on a fresh kill, elephants cooling themselves in the water, and so many other amazing encounters. It was great to have just the four of us and Francis to decide how long to stay and observe and take photos at each location.

We traveled to the central Serengeti, southern Serengeti, the Ngorongoro Crater, Lake Manyara and and Tarangire. Even though the last night we stayed at the Kikoti Lodge we were the only guests, we were still treated to a full four-course delicious meal as at every other stop, which we were happy to share with Francis and celebrate an amazing trip.

Africa Dream Safaris is aptly named-they made our Safari dream a reality!

Jeff and Sue B.
West Bloomfield, MI
Safari Dates: March 18, 2013 to March 28, 2013

We have been home from our safari for a few days and are still beaming over the experiences. It was one of the most memorable times in our lives – a privilege to see some of the earth’s most beautiful and unique animals in their native environment. We were a bit concerned that the game drives in the Serengeti during the rainy season would mean we’d forego opportunities to fully experience the area. Not at all true. We saw everything we’d hoped to see….the Big 5, the Ugly 5, some of the Little 5, and the highlight being the assembly of a million wildebeests working their way across the plains at the onset of the Great Migration. There was also the added bonus of so many babies and healthy animals enjoying the abundance of food. It was truly beautiful to see dozens of shades of green foliage across the Seronera plains, around the Gol Kopjes, Naabi Hill, Ndutu Lake, Olduvai Gorge and Ngorongoro Crater.

We have reflected on what made our safari so wonderful, and have to say the most important item was the quality of our guide. Not only did Russell seem to know everything about the animals in the Serengeti, but he also had an energy introducing us to the animal behaviors. He could spot animals and birds from hundreds of yards in the distance before there was anything obvious to see. We were often the first, and only, vehicle at a sighting and Russell attentively positioned and repositioned the vehicle so that we could have the best viewing and picture taking opportunities. And, regarding birds, we had only a slight interest in birding when we started our safari. However, Russell’s knowledge of birds was infectious and by the end of the safari we had recorded sightings of 123 species. We enjoyed laughter and good natured ribbing – especially during our quest for the dung beetle!

Thank you for all of your efforts. We hope you enjoy a few of our favorite photos.

David and Lynette B.
Georgetown, Texas
Safari Dates: April 7, 2013 to April 15, 2013

An answer to 16 years of prayer.  Amen!!!

Not just one cheetah one time, but a total of 4 x’s cheetahs jumped on the car and the 4th time there were 2 cheetahs on the back tires and the one on the front jumped to the top and walked around the open top –

Definitely a highlight of all my safaris!!

I have pictures and video. WOOHOOO!!!! now my “list” is complete…….

Cheetahs on the car: