The Great Crater

We reached the halfway point of the safari, and are ready to descend into this special caldera that brims with many great animals.  

Boy that was a great lunch!

Sunrise was perfect, with the sun slowly cresting over the high point of the crater rim and bringing some warmth to our tents.  The sky was nearly cloudless and the morning sun on the area of Lake Eyasi and the surrounding plains was a treat.

Cape Buffalo enjoying the sun. 

It was a cool start, high up on the crater rim.  The ride down into the crater was a nail-bitter for some us, with the steep road offering stunning uninterrupted views straight down, particularly on the tight curves.  Overcoming that minor challenge brought the reward of the crater floor and game viewing and there was plenty to see.

The ever friendly (NOT!) spotted hyena

Almost immediately we found many ostriches, gazelles and hyenas.  Finding lions was not a great challenge; you look for a cluster of vehicles with people using cameras and binoculars looking towards a focal point.  We had a great view of our first lion sighting.  There were some six to eight lions mostly doing what lions do best, lying around sleeping, including their belly-up most relaxed pose.

The magical moment of the day came with the sighting of the rhinos.  By late morning we found a pair of rhinos, but we could not get any closer than about 300 yards. 

White Rhinos in Ngorongoro Crater

Fortunately, after lunch Patrick asked if we could circle back around and find the rhinos again.  The second trip was successful beyond expectations.  We ended up seeing five rhinos, including a mother and young rhino pair.  All the rhino were much closer, being only about 50 yards away and were fairly active.  There were many photos taken and lots of happy viewing time.