The Places that You Have to Visit in Africa
June 2, 2010
Africa is the automatic choice for many people when it comes to wildlife safaris. There are hundreds of parks and reserves in the various African countries. Here is my pick of the top 5 wildlife safari destinations in Africa. A safari itinerary to any or some of these parks will certainly yield optimum, value-for-money safaris for those that travel to see wild animals as their main interest.
1.Serengeti National Park, Tanzania: The Serengeti National park is certainly one of the best-known wildlife areas in Africa. The word ‘Serengeti’ means ‘endless plains’ in the local Masai language. Within the borders of this reserve, there are over 3,000,000 large mammals. Put differently, over 35 species of animals, mostly mammals can be found inside this park. These include the so-called Big Five – elephant, lion, leopard, rhino and buffalo.
The cycle of migration occurs between the Serengeti and Masai Mara. From May or early June of every year, huge herds of wildebeest, together with zebra and Thompson gazelle begin the spectacular migration northwards into the Maasai Mara. All sorts of predators follow them.
On the western side of the Serengeti is the Grumeti Reserves – a complete protected and patrolled private wilderness area. Here you can feel that you are truly one-on-one with the limitless African wildlife. Only the wild animals and visitors have free rein here. A maximum of 53 guests in 3 luxurious lodges and camps share over 350,000 acres (140,000 hectares) with an array of wildlife that is unrivaled in its diversity: 30 species of grass and plant eaters, 24 species of large carnivores and 500 species of birds.
Serengeti is accessible by air from Arusha on a 1hour flight. By road it is 6 to 7 hours. There are lodges and camps offering excellent accommodation facilities including open-side game drives.
2.Ngorongoro Crater and Conservation Area, Tanzania: The Ngorongoro crater is the world’s largest intact calderas. It is 12 miles (19kms) wide. About 2 million years ago, before the collapse of its cone, it was probably taller Mt Kilimanjaro which today stands at 5896 metres (19,344 ft) above sea level.
Ngorongoro crater rim today averages 2316 metres in elevation and is cloaked in moist montane forest and grassland, hosing elephants, golden-winged and eastern double-collard sunbirds. The crater floor, at 5600 feet elevation, is primarily grassland, with patches of spring fed marshes, freshwater ponds, a salt lake, and small forests.
Home to over 20,000 large animal, the floor of the crater is a virtual Noah’s Ark. Only the giraffe is not found here. Buffalos, wildebeests, zebra, gazelles, and hartebeest graze the grasslands, while elephants roam the wooded areas and hippos gather in marshes and ponds. Lions, spotted hyenas and golden jackals are easy to find. Serval cats and cheetahs are sighted rarely. From the lodges and campsites located mostly on the rim of the crater, visitors are driven down to the crater floor for game drives.
The Conservation area also includes 2 other voluminous craters, six peaks that top 10,000 feet and the southeastern corner of the vast Serengeti plains.
3.Masai Mara Game Reserve, Kenya:. Masai Mara Game Reserve is the small section of the huge Serengeti ecosystem that stretches vastly from Northern Tanzania. The Mara is the scene of the annual wildebeest migration that begins anytime from late June to end of October. A million-strong herd of wildebeest make their annual journey northwards from the Serengeti into the Mara and head south again.
Besides the migrants herds, the Mara hosts resident populations of elephants, hippos, topis, hartebeests, buffalos giraffes, impalas, dik dik and a few black rhino. Predators are plentiful, notably cheetah leopard, and unusually large pride of lions. The pastoral Masai people lead a semi-nomadic life just outside the Mara reserve.
Reachable by road or air from Nairobi, the Mara is Kenya’s premier place for seeing wildlife. It features many excellent game lodges and camps and a wide network of dirt roads slice its open rolling grassland and wooded savannah. Most camps have open-side vehicles used for game drives and a few (located outside the reserve) will permit and conduct night game drives.
4.Kruger National Park, South Africa: Kruger National Park in South Africa is one of the oldest game parks in the world. It is also one of the largest parks at 217 miles long. It stretches from Zimbabwe south almost to Swaziland, along the Mozambique border.
The park has 9 entrance gates and a vast network of paved and gravel roads. There are also excellent lodges and camps to choose from for accommodation
The northern park of Kruger is mostly woodland. Most of Kruger’s elephants, roan antelope and elands are found in this part. The southern part of the park is drier and has more grassland and acacia. The wildlife found here are mostly giraffe, impala, black rhino and lions. The southwestern part, on the higher elevation is greener and has more white rhinos and sables. Other mammals such as the buffalo, greater kudu, waterbuck, leopard, and warthogs are found widely throughout Kruger.
The private wildlife reserves of Klaseir, Londolozi, Mala Mala, Sabi Sabi, Sabi Sand, and Timbavati lie between Skukuza and Phalaborwa on the Western side of Kruger. The private reserves offer excellent protection to the wildlife, especially the endangered rhinos. Most of the private reserves have airstrips and luxury lodges that provide game drives on open-sided game-viewing vehicles. You can also do a night game drive in most of the reserves.
5.Okavango Delta, Botswana: The Okavango is an inland delta that receives rainwater from the highlands of Angola through the Cubango River. It is the world’s largest inland delta. The floods reach the southeastern delta around June and July, which is the dry season. This influx evaporates and the Okavango’s own rainy season begins by November. So water levels keep fluctuating. From June through August , temperatures can reach near freezing at night. But the days are warm and there are few or no mosquitoes.
Maun is the chief town near Okavango. Its airport is the connection point for a charter aircraft to remote camps and lodges in the Okavango. There are many small camps around Okavanga, including one that specializes in elephant back safaris.
Nighttime game drives are permitted, increasing visitor’s chances of sighting leopards, bush babies, porcupines and springhares. Visitors are taken through the shallow reedy marshes using canoes and local Mokoros – small hand-poled boats. Resident wildlife include the Kudu and waterbuck. Elephants, Zebra and Buffalo are often plenty but will migrate out of the pan to Chobe.
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