Safari Updates

  (click on image to view bigger) Our recent ODP Safari to Ngorongoro, Ndutu and Serengeti in Tanzania was one of my personal highlights of my photographic career.East Africa just kept on delivering one unbelievable scene after another. The almost unbelievable migration story unfolds before our eyes as we watch these animals struggle with life on a daily basis.A simple task such drinking water becomes a potential life threatening act for these animals.Here this Wildebeest together with thousands of other animals in the background are in the mix of a stampede as they escape the perceived dangers of a waterhole.Photography at its best..!...

Today the group decided to split up, with two vehicles going to Serengeti and two to Ndutu. The Serengeti group were delighted with the antics of two honey badgers, while the Ndutu group caught up with the cheetah mother and her four cubs. The cheetah hunted, going right up to Thomsons Gazelles, but not taking any. After spending a few hours with her and her photographic family, the group decided to take a break for tea. Of course, while they were away, the long awaited action occurred and as they returned from their swift break it was to find that the mother cheetah had killed a scrub hare, and was carrying it to her cubs. She carried the hare right under the shade of one of the ODP Safari vehicles, providing an excellent opportunity for the photographers to capture the family interactions really close up. They were as close to the...

Everyone was up and raring to get to Serengeti. The vehicles left the lodge promptly at 0600 and off to the Serengeti. (Oh, Serengeti means  'endless plains' or 'vast vista') The ODP Safari group caught up with the migratory animals at the Serenera River in central Serengeti. Thousands of zebra and wildebeest, in an out of the water. Imagine hundreds of animals drinking thirstily. All is peaceful, with animals aj19rtling for a drink. Then suddenly one is spooked - by what? Who can tell? Whatever the reason, the result is chaos. Hundreds of animals storm away in panic, leaving devastation in their wake ... small calves are injured as the herd stampedes blindly, trampling whatever is in their way. This scene repeats itself time and again. Calves are separated from their mothers and bleat pitifully to find them. And the dust! The stampedes raise so much dust that the scene becomes...

Excitement reigned as the ODP Safari group left early this morning  for Ndutu and Serengeti. Now, this sounds quite straightforward - a four hour drive is a cinch, or it should be. Not so much this time. A challenging road (well road is a polite word for the track) and a world covered in dust. Powdery, soft, clingy dust. But this is what photographers love and the conditions provided excellent photo opps. The tented camp at Ndutu is in a beautiful setting under acacia trees, and everyone checked in and unpacked speedily. After lunch everyone was keen to see what the area has to offer. The first highlight was a pride of seven lions, dozing peacefully. Not for long, though. They soon stretched, stood up, and started to stroll down a dry river bed toward Ndutu Lake. They ambled on for about 500 meters, giving ample time for very satisfying photos....