The Serengeti Migration

The Wildebeest Migration is a dramatic story. It takes place within Kenya and Tanzania and is the greatest wildlife show on earth. Between the open plains of the Serengeti and the Masai Mara, thousands of wildebeest and zebras migrate to greener pastures as the seasons change and the circle of life and death continues. Predators follow the Wildebeest Migration closely, waiting for an opportunity to strike weak prey as they make their way into different territories.

The Serengeti hosts the largest and longest overland migration in the world, one of the ten natural travel wonders of the world. Nearly 2 million herbivores travel the 'Circular Migration' every year, and 250,000 wildebeest alone will die during the journey from Tanzania to Masai Mara. Most are familiar with the pictures showing thousands of wildebeest crashing down to cross a river, filled with crocodiles waiting for a feast. For the animals involved, its life is an endless pilgrimage, a constant search for food and water.

The wildebeest spent the rainy season from December to June in the volcanic open plains below the Ngorongoro Crater where the grass growth is most productive and nutrient contents high. It is here that the calves are born. Calving season is short and the predators cannot make a dent in the new-borns with such a sudden surge of food. When the monsoon rains stop in June, the plains dry out and the wildebeest move west towards Lake Victoria in search of pasture and rains. The plains become a harsh and dry semi-desert in which no wildebeest could survive. Only through migration can the wildebeest and zebra use the widespread resources of the ecosystem and build up such large numbers. Following the rainfalls the migration moves on to the north, into the Masai Mara, where the rift wall catches the last rains even in the middle of the dry season. With the onset of the monsoon rains in December the wildebeest move back into the lush Serengeti plains.

The Cradle of Mankind

Olduvai Gorge is a ravine in the eastern part of the Serengeti plains. What makes it so special though, is its rich yield of fossil remains from some of the earliest signs of mankind.

Some 30,000 years ago, splitting of the earth’s surface by violent geological activity and millennial of erosion by seasonally flowing streams incised the nearly 250 foot (90m) canyon known as Olduvai Gorge. This has led to nearly a century of finds that have, in part, led scientists to believe that from Africa, humans spread out to populate the rest of earth.

The finds include footprints of three hominins (early human ancestors), miraculously preserved in muddy ash deposited by volcanic eruptions and hardened by the sun some 3.6 million years ago. The first skull of Zinjanthropus, commonly known as ‘Nutcracker Man’ who lived about 1.75 millions years ago, was found here as well as early stone tools found in 1.6-1.8 million year old deposits.

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Prelude to a Journey

As many of you know, I'll be off to Tanzania in June of this year for what really may be the trip of a lifetime. Over the following months, I'll be using this site to provide a window into the preparation required, the people of Africa & Tanzania, and what it all means to me. Following the trip I will have photos to post, stories of my experiences and the people involved. There may even be some updates while I'm away.

The original idea behind this trip was a climb of Mt Kilimanjaro (5895m (19340ft), the tallest mountain in Africa. Obviously though, you need to make the most of your time 1/2 way across the world, so we've also planned a climb of nearby Mt. Meru (4566m / 14980ft), and to finish it all off, some time in the Serengeti & Ngorongoro National Parks. I'll be filling in some information about these places over the next few months as well.

In the meantime, I've been preparing my gear, working on getting my conditioning in order, and in what has been the toughest for many to swallow... working VERY hard to gain some weight.

Stay tuned, I'll be popping up new info often.

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