We get up before dawn in order to leave by 6:30am. A day permit to Ngorongoro Crater is limited to one entrance and exit and our driver tells us that animals are most active early in the morning. As we drive down, the view is magnificent; the caldera is much larger than I had imagined, covering 100 square miles. The original volcano was taller than Mt. Kilimanjaro. The entire Ngorongoro Conservation area consists of 9 craters but the main feature is the Ngorongoro Crater, the world’s largest inactive, intact and unfilled volcanic caldera. The crater, which formed when a large volcano exploded and collapsed on itself two to three million years ago, is 610 metres (2,000 feet) deep and its floor covers 260 square kilometres (100 square miles). It reminds me of coming into the Death Valley area.
Animals are able to move freely in and out and migrate to and from the Serengeti. During the rainy season, the grass is tender and water is plentiful. The main lake is alkaline and there are several fresh water ponds and small streams where most of the animaks like to congregate.
As the fog lifts, we enter the crater floor. Herds if zebras cross the dirt road. Gazing across the dry grass, we spot a total of 8 lionesses, two of which gracefully slink across us. We gasp as a male lion saunters toward our car, its main heavy, handsome and splendid.
Throughout the morning, we find two black rhinos rising out of the grass. A gazelle gives birth and her baby on thin legs learns to run and wslk within an hour. We see enormous hippos, both walking in the road and wallowing together in the mud. What a special place.
The crater roads fill with safari vehicles later in the morning and at lunchtime, I count over 70 in the picnic area. Communicating via radio, many congregate at major sughtings. Our driver prefers to drive and search independentlt, providing fir a better experience. By afternoon, the winds build up to gusts and clouds of dust are everywhere. We call it a day, a splendid day!
