DAY BY DAY ITINERARY explorer safari info@deeperafrica Backcountry Adventure... · DAY BY DAY ITINERARY 888.658.7102 ... remarkable landscape of extinct volcanoes, ... Maasai Mara

explorer safari

Tanzania Backcountry Adventure DAY BY DAY ITINERARY

888.658.7102 [email protected] www.deeperafrica.com

Explorer Safaris with Deeper Africa

Explorer safaris are for curious, energetic safari travelers open to discovery. They are an adventure in contrast; one night finds you dining by candlelight in an exquisite lodge; on another evening, dinner is served by the campfire of a well-staffed bush camp. One day you explore by Land Cruiser for thrilling, whisker-close encounters with the “Big Five.” Another day finds you hiking with local guides who explain the subtle meanings of tracks, bird songs, and the infinite other discoveries only an explorer can uncover.

TANZANIA BACKCOUNTRY ADVENTURE SAFARI 888.658.7102

OVERVIEW: TANZANIA BACKCOUNTRY ADVENTURE

Some people want to experience Africa differently. They want to feel the ground beneath their feet, walk the land with traditional people, and sit amazingly close to a cheetah, sharing the same space. If you’re interested, we’d like to show you an Africa not seen by most travelers. Our Tanzania Backcountry Adventure gives you unparalleled access to the Maasai in the Ngorongoro Highlands, as Chief Ole Dorop acts as your cultural guide and interpreter. You’ll learn about village life, the ways of the warriors, and be welcomed into the community.

We’ll have you out on the Serengeti plains to watch the wealth of species that live within drinking distance of the Seronera River. There’s a rhino there that has recently staked out his territory, a new addition to this wildlife rich valley. Once you feel that you have had your fill of these close up wildlife encounters, we’ll take you off road into the wilderness zone of the Serengeti, closed for over 50 years, except for the occasional ranger patrol. We are privileged to be one of the few companies allowed by the Tanzanian park service in this remote area.

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©Robert Wheeler


INCLUDED

Swimming Pool

Wifi

Upon your arrival at Kilimanjaro International Airport, a Deeper Africa driver will be waiting for you. After you clear customs, look for him holding a sign with your name on it. He’ll transport you to Moivaro Coffee Plantation Lodge in Arusha for an overnight stay. Get plenty of rest. Your adventures in the Tanzanian wilderness begin tomorrow.

DAY 1 MOIVARO COFFEE PLANTATION LODGE | ARUSHA

©Moivaro


INCLUDED

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Alcohol & Beverages

After breakfast, you’ll begin the drive into the Ngorongoro Highlands, arriving by lunch time at Mysigio Camp in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. Once there, you’ll meet up with Sanguyan Kimani Ole Dorop (“Ole Dorop”), a regional Maasai clan leader.

For the next two days you will be hiking and visiting with the Maasai in this remarkable landscape of extinct volcanoes, mist shrouded forests, and wildlife filled grasslands. During your time in these highlands, you’ll have the unique opportunity to visit and understand the Maasai through Ole Dorop, his family, and village. Ole Dorop has spent his whole life here on Mount Lemagrut, where the Maasai and wildlife share its gentle slopes covered with a mixture of grassland and mountain forest vegetation. The Maasai water their herds at Lemagrut’s hidden springs and the view from its summit over the Serengeti is breathtaking.

After you get settled in camp, Ole Dorop will walk with you to show you his homestead, which is nearby. He will bring you inside the family dwellings so that you can learn how daily life unfolds for a Maasai. The Maasai are the only people allowed to live in the Conservation Area.

DAY 2 MYSIGIO CAMP | NGORONGORO CONSERVATION AREA

©Alan Schoolcraft


The vast Ngorongoro Crater is an expansive environment located inside an extinct volcano. Between 20,000 and 30,000 animals wander the floor of the Crater. The Crater ecosystem is an astonishing microcosm of East African wildlife environments containing grasslands, wetlands, acacia forest, and soda lake environments with beautiful flocks of flamingos visible at the right time of day. Zebra, wildebeest, and gazelle mingle together, while herds of buffalo graze in the long grass areas. Bull elephants and rhino are often seen feeding in green marshes, and there are plenty of hyenas. The lakes and marshes are also home to exotic water fowl and hippos. It is not uncommon to see lions patrolling.

This evening there will be Maasai warriors and village women in camp for traditional singing and dancing.

INCLUDED

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Alcohol & Beverages

DAY 3 MYSIGIO CAMP | NGORONGORO CONSERVATION AREA

African Bush Camps Foundation

©Wendy Stone


INCLUDED

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Alcohol & Beverages

Morning drive into the Serengeti. Once you enter Serengeti National Park, you’ll begin wildlife viewing as you travel the distance to Pembezoni Camp.

Serengeti means endless plain. This vast savanna grassland extend northward into the Maasai Mara in Kenya for over five thousand square miles of land, forming one of the world’s largest wildlife refuges. This is land as it was in the beginning – no fences, no settlements – just a perennial migration of wildlife. In a journey that reaches back through time, these herds of animals follow the seasonal rains, traveling from the Serengeti into the Mara instinctively. Wildlife is allowed to roam freely across the Kenyan and Tanzanian borders, uniting the two parks into a single ecological unit that supports the largest concentration of large mammals on the planet.

DAY 4 PEMBEZONI SERENGETI CAMP | SERENGETI NATIONAL PARK

©Robert Wheeler


The annual migration is what makes the Serengeti famous. The herds gather on the Tanzanian side of the ecosystem from November/December through early July. The migration includes vast herds of wildebeest, but also zebra and Thomson’s gazelle. The herds steadily move southward through April or May when the seasonal rains cause them to turn and begin the journey back northward toward the Maasai Mara.

In addition to the migration herds, there are large numbers of resident game in several different areas of the Serengeti including predators who remain all year round. Different lion prides hold territory throughout the Serengeti. The Serengeti savannas, with their open country and grasslands, also support a healthy cheetah population. Cheetahs face increasing pressure from humans and land encroachment – with between 9,000 to 12,000 left in the wild. Look carefully around the termite mounds as they are popular perches for the Mara cheetah.

Wildlife populations double during the migration season, but resident wildlife populations are still some of the most dense on the African continent year round. They include substantial populations of plains game, including buffalo, giraffe, and warthog, as well as a wide range of antelope species, including dik dik, bushbuck, waterbuck, eland, impala, and topi.

INCLUDED

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Alcohol & Beverages

DAY 5 PEMBEZONI SERENGETI CAMP | SERENGETI NATIONAL PARK

©Robert Wheeler


Leaving roads and tracks behind, you will head off-road into the Serengeti wilderness walking zone. This area has only recently been opened by the Tanzanian government, and it has not been visited for nearly 50 years, except for the occasional ranger patrol. We are privileged to be one of the few companies allowed by the park service to have access to this remote area.

The Serengeti wilderness zone offers a unique view of the Serengeti as it was – unmarred by game viewing tracks, lodges, or minibuses. You’ll drive through the bush for several hours with lunch in camp upon arrival. This afternoon is an orientation walking safari. In this area of the Serengeti, we humans are the intruders. You must learn to blend in to get the best experience during your visit. Your Deeper Africa walking guide has years of experience and professional training. He’ll have a firearm and you will be accompanied by an armed park service ranger hiking with you to provide you with ultimate safety. The orientation safari is important to ensure that you become aware of the procedures you and your guides must use to keep safe in the bush.

INCLUDED

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Alcohol & Beverages

DAY 6 WILDERNESS WALKING CAMP | SERENGETI NATIONAL PARK

©Lynne Anderson


Today is a full day of walking and exploring. You’ll set off early in the cool of the morning in search of wildlife. During the peak heat of the day, we’ll stop for lunch under a shady tree or a cool rocky outcrop.

Walking in the Serengeti is not about covering huge distances, it is about moving slowly so as not to disturb the surrounding wildlife. It is about enjoying the simple treasures, such as learning about traditional medicinal properties of an acacia tree or getting your heart racing as you stalk the larger, more dangerous wildlife such as buffalo or elephant.

Out here, your camp is lighter and a bit more rugged than a traditional safari camp. Despite this walking camp style, it is still comfortable with all the “necessities” including dome tents, warm beds, a dining tent, an outdoor toilet tent, and a shower tent. Your cook will ensure that your meals are hot, tasty, and nutritious.

INCLUDED

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Alcohol & Beverages


©Asilia Africa


INCLUDED

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Alcohol & Beverages

This will be your last full day of walking and exploring the secrets of this magical area. You’ll be following wildlife tracks to discover wonders such as the spring that never dries, even at the hottest time of year, or a cave full of old bones where a porcupine lives. The Serengeti has a number of environments that you may come across. Potential habitats include hills, plains, small acacia forests, and a river environment. Our habitat choices will depend upon local conditions and the discretion of your walking guide and the park ranger.

As you wander among the towering rock kopjes that dot the area, we may find a spot where the elephants dig for water in the river beds, or maybe come upon a lion feeding on a kill. You’ll return to camp for a final night of relaxing around the camp fire under the star studded African sky, and listen to the lions’ territorial roaring across the plains.


©Lynne Anderson


DAY 9 INTERNATIONAL FLIGHT | INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL

INCLUDED

Breakfast

Swimming Pool

Wifi

Enjoy one last breakfast on the endless Serengeti plains before boarding a bush flight back to Arusha. A Deeper Africa driver will be waiting for you at the airstrip to transfer you to Moivaro Lodge. Check in to a day room at Moivaro River Lodge. Relax, swim, shower, and pack for your international flight. Our driver will get you safely back to Kilimanjaro Airport for your international flight home.

Flight #1

• Departs: Kilimanjaro International Airport, Tanzania

• Arrives: TBD

DAY 10 INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL | INTERNATIONAL FLIGHT

Flight #2

• Depart: TBD

• Arrives: TBD

©Alan Schoolcraft

INCLUDED IN YOUR SAFARI

• Full board accommodations in all lodges and tented camps

• All meals

• Game drives in private 4x4 safari Land Cruisers

• All park and entrance fees

• Experienced and professional safari naturalist guides

• Enrollment with emergency evacuation service

• All in-country transportation

• Beverages provided in your 4x4 vehicle

• Bottled water available at all times

• Extensive pre-departure briefing and materials in-cluding health information, reading list, and map

EXCLUDED IN YOUR SAFARI

• Gratuities • Laundry • Premium Alcoholic beverages

We plan your wildlife adventures in areas where wildlife habitats are known to exist for the season and time you are traveling. Still, animals in the areas you are viewing are not in a zoo. They run freely, and we cannot always anticipate their movements.

Also, Deeper Africa uses best efforts to provide the lodging set out in this itinerary, but occasionally there are circumstances that occur in Africa that require lodging substitutions. We reserve the right to make comparable lodging substitutions whenever necessary.

2017 CUSTOM DEPARTURE DATES & PRICING

January - December, 2017 • 6 guests: $6,799 USD per person • 4 guests: $6,999 USD per person • 2 guests: $7,999 USD per person • Single Supplement: $499 USD

Arrivals and departures are through Kilimanjaro International Airport. All pricing is in US dollars. Prices do not include international airfare. All itineraries and prices are subject to change.

5353 Manhattan Circle, Suite 202 Boulder, Colorado 80303

888.658.7102 303.415.2574 720.565.0512 fx

www.deeperafrica.com

explorer safaris

ADDITIONAL SAFARI INFORMATION


2017 pricing $6,799 - $7,999

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DAY BY DAY ITINERARY explorer safari info@deeperafrica Backcountry Adventure... · DAY BY DAY ITINERARY 888.658.7102 ... remarkable landscape of extinct volcanoes, ... Maasai Mara