Tanzania Safari

August/SEPTEMBER, 2013

Mahale Mountain National Park

About an hour. That’s all it took to make the hop from Katavi over to Mahale in our trusty bush plane. After waiting our turn to fill in our names and passport numbers in the log at the airstrip (we were entering another national park), we made our way by foot down the runway to the boat dock located at its end. Why they built the dock where they did, instead of off to one side, seemed a bit strange. After all, if an aircraft made a bad landing, and slid off the end of the runway, it would take out the dock and cause substantially more damage to the aircraft than if it just slid into the water, unobstructed.

On the way down to the dock, we passed a sign that had been erected alongside the runway. It described an organization that had funded a shop where the local residents could sell their crafts and other goods to visitors in a hope that it would improve their income and spur some more interest in the tourist trade. Unfortunately, there was no effort at all by our hosts to point this store out to us so we could have a look. If the tourism operators don’t support the concept, it kind of defeats the whole reason for having the store. This was particularly disappointing to us since the camps had nothing worth buying in the way of keepsakes for the trip.

The ride to our camp in the classic Lake Tanganyika boat took about an hour and a half. The hand built wooden vessel, powered by a large outboard motor, pitched and yawed a bit despite the relatively calm waters, but it was in no way an unpleasant trip. A few villages revealed themselves as we motored by, and it was quite obvious from the beach scenes that the major activity here on the lake was fishing for herring. Decades ago the United Nations, and a consortium of aid organizations, paid to have the lake stocked with several million tonnes of herring in the hopes that it would provide both a stable food source for the inhabitants, as well as a commercial fishery that they could earn a living from. It appears to have been a success.

GREYSTOKE (Zoe’s Camp)

It was apparent from some distance away, that we were approaching our camp. The unique design of the camp’s common structure looked like something you would see in the polynesian islands of the South Paciic, rather than on a lake in Africa. Situated on a white sand beach with huge sprays of palm trees as a backdrop, it really did look out of place for our image of Africa. Most of the individual bungalows were hidden from view by the dense foliage of this jungle environment, and we could tell from way out on the water that we wouldn’t have to worry about hearing our neighbours when we wanted to rest.

Each guest hut was large enough to house several African families, yet it was entirely for the use of one couple. The structures were made entirely of reclaimed wood from boats that were past their primary use, and whomever designed the structures was quite clever regarding how the building materials were used. Each hut had a main level where the king size bed and dressing area were located. Above it was a lounging area with a second floor view out to the lake. Behind this main structure was a second, smaller building which was accessed by a set of stairs and a hallway, and is where the bathroom facilities were located. A kerosene boiler behind each hut was lit on request, and would supply running hot water to the sink and shower. We were advised, however, that the supply of hot water would only last about fifteen minutes for each lighting of the boiler.

The walls that made up the perimeter of each accommodation were not entirely solid. In some cases, a makeshift fence is all that stood between the occupants and the outside world. As we walked up the stairs to the bathroom area, there were several small landings from which you could enter, or exit the structure, and it was by this exit that we accessed the upstairs lounge area. The doors that serviced these entry points were made of, well... nothing. That is to say, there were no solid doors. The only thing that separated the occupants from the wild animals outside, were some fabric curtains that were drawn by the staff when they turned down the room at night. Management said we could leave them open, or closed, based on our wishes. Considering there were warthog, baboon and leopard that freely roamed through the camp, we elected to have ours closed at night.

The Common Buildings

The main building housed the dining area on the ground floor, and a library of sorts on the second floor. There was a large single dining table in the center of the building, with a lounge area on either end of the structure. Kitchen and preparation areas were at the back of the same structure, a change from what we were used to seeing in the camps that came before Greystoke.

Aside from the individual huts and common buildings, the camp also had a bar area located on a small bluff overlooking the lake. It was very well done, with a standard bar, central cofee table with sofas around it, and two more private seating areas that were each accessed by a small stairway. They were by far our favourite places to sit, for the pre-dinner cocktails. That changed, however, when the sushi appetizers that were made from Ed and Lori’s fishing catch, were completely devoured by guests from the U.K. who were up by the bar. They showed no consideration whatsoever, to those who provided the fish.

The staff were very friendly, and the service very good. It’s surprising that it was, however, considering the present manager of the camp was actually an emergency fill in. The husband/wife team that had been hired to manage the camp a few months earlier worked at the camp for about a month, and then one day, without any notice to staff or owners, got on the boat for the trip to the airstrip, hopped the plane, and were never heard from again. I guess the romance of running an African guest camp turned out to be something quite diferent from what they envisioned.

The other thing about this camp, which appears to be a Nomad consistency, is the decidedly poor offering of food. Once again, just like Nomad’s Chada Camp in Katavi, the supply of fare from the kitchen was less than adequate. Slim pickings to be sure, particularly when it had to be supplemented with whatever it’s own guests brought back from any fishing excursions they went on when not cavorting with chimpanzees. When you take into account that these two camps were the most expensive camps of our safari by almost double, it certainly doesn’t say much about the company that owns them.

The camp had other activities for the guests besides chimp watching and ishing. They also had snorkeling gear and small kayaks. You could go swimming if you liked, but not from the beach. Hippos and crocs in the water made it too dangerous. If you wanted to swim, the staff would take you out in the boat to deep water, and you could jump in and go swimming from there. Just what they expected you to see with the snorkeling gear in deep water is quite the mystery. After all, Lake Tanganyika is the second deepest freshwater lake in the world. Unless you’ve got really good lungs, it’s not likely you’d make it to the bottom to see anything. Oh yes, and then there were the long liability wavers you had to sign before entering the water for any activity. Needless to say, we’ve didn’t partake.

THE MAHALE CHIMPANZEES: Part One

Extra-curricular activities aside, the sole purpose of our visit to Greystoke was to see the chimpanzees that lived on the mountainside behind the camp. It would require some mild hiking each day to get to where the chimps were located, but that was kept to a minimum by some early morning legwork by the camp’s trackers.

Each day before dawn, these hardy fellows would interface with the park rangers, and go out looking to determine where the chimps had settled for the night. They would then determine where the chimps were likely to go over the ensuing few hours, and then radio this information to our guides back at camp. If necessary, and it was for us, they would load the guests into the boat and motor the distance down the lake, to bring us closer to the chimp’s location. We’d jump off on the beach, and then using the network of trails that had been cut over the years, hike up the mountain to intersect that location. It worked extremely well.

Each guest is allowed precisely one hour per day to watch the chimpanzees, and only in groups of six or less. Our camp had eleven guests, so we had to break up into two groups. Each camp had a park ranger assigned to it, and it was he that timed the viewing window. It was very fairly done. If the chimps moved away in a manner such that the guests could no longer see them well, then he would stop the clock, and only restart it once decent viewing commenced, once again.

Our first encounter, we were told, was a very rare one. We witnessed an actual hunt where the chimps worked in unison to isolate a monkey up in the trees, capture it, kill it and then eat it. Yes, chimpanzees are omnivorous. Like many of us, they eat meat.

What determined whether or not a hunt would take place was largely opportunity. In this case there were a number of Red Colobus monkeys in the tree canopy, and a number of them were offspring. Panic is usually the downfall of any prey species, and the younger the animal, the less experience it has, so panic is likely to develop more rapidly. The Colobus monkeys are smaller and much more agile up in the canopy than the chimps, but the chimps use a coordinated plan for isolating the intended prey, and then they close in.

From what we could see, and it was pretty chaotic, with the alpha males and younger chimps doing the hunting. A number of chimps stayed on the ground, especially those with young, and offered their support by means of loud vocal calls. It was almost like a sporting event, where the fans cheered for their team. The hunt took about twenty minutes, and culminated in the capture of a juvenile monkey.

Mahale Chimpanzees: Part Two

The second day of our chimp experience started much the same as the irst. We were just inishing breakfast when the guide came over to the table and said that the trackers were still trying to pinpoint where the chimps were. He suggested we go back to our huts and get ready to depart, and hopefully by the time we returned, the trackers would have been successful in locating our distant cousins.

The timing was pretty much spot on. No sooner had we returned to the main building, when the radio call came in that the chimps had been spotted. Once again, we all boarded the boat and set of northbound like the day before, but this time to a diferent spot. The chimps were further up the hillside today, so a longer hike would be necessary for us to reach them. But the hike today was on well maintained trails that made the trek a lot less diicult than the bushwhacking we had to do the day before.

In keeping with the requirement of groups no greater than six, we split up once again and each went separate ways with our particular guide. Today it was the other group that would have first crack at the chimps, so we had to amuse ourselves as best we could while they used up their allotted hour.

Fortunately for us, however, fate presented us with the lucky happenstance of a few chimps that were split off from the main group. As we were walking around, we came upon them while they were lazing about on their own. So while the other group from our camp was with the main body, we got to relax and watch what these few were doing. This was a bonus for us. Since this wasn’t the main group, our ranger friend didn’t charge any of the time we spent here, against our hour of chimp viewing. It’s always refreshing when you come across an individual that works for a big organization like the government, but will still think, and make decisions on their own.

An Injured Chimpanzee

One of the chimps in this first group was named Bonobo. Up until about a month prior to our visit, he was one of the ranking alpha males. He then broke his right arm somehow, and because of this, he lost his status and was now just one of the lesser chimps. According to our guide, his arm would eventually heal, but with what degree of handicap, no one yet knew. He was a rather sedate individual at this point, and we were able to get quite close to him, spending considerable time photographing and videoing him as he sat on the forest floor.

Most of his time was spent grooming himself, and he seemed to have a fascination with his left foot. He took great pains to inspect it from just about every diferent angle possible, even rolling on to his back at one point for a better look. Although he could still climb trees with just one arm, his abilities were very diminished. So we expect he spent most of his time foraging on the ground for his food.

One Stoned Chimp

At the suggestion of our guide, we started to move closer to where the main body of chimps were, so we would be ready to take over once the others from our camp were done. It was at this point when Robert noticed a bad boy chimp named Orion, coming up the trail towards us. He instructed us to move to the uphill side of the trail to give Orion lots of room to go by us. Robert didn’t want an incident. One thing Orion tries to do is grab a hanging vine as he gets close, and then hit someone with it as he goes by. But Robert grabbed the vine and took it away. Upset at this, Orion left the trail and went up the bank behind us, and hit Warren on the back as he went by. It wasn’t hard enough to be a problem, but you could see he was pissed.

According to Robert, Orion was this way because he was a “druggie”. At some point during his youth, he discovered that the nut from a particular tree had hallucinogenic properties, and he started eating them on a regular basis. The result of this activity was to make him quite unpredictable, and although he was large enough to become one of the three ranking males, he wasn’t able to ascend to this position because he was stoned all the time. Any of the other males could easily overpower him when he was doped out. He now resorts to enforcing his dominance over the smaller males and females whenever the alphas aren’t around. He actually tried to grab one of the babies when we were there, and was instantly set upon by the alpha when he did.

Engaging the main group

When we eventually got to the main body of chimps, they were all pretty much just lazing about. Some were engrossed in grooming either themselves, or other chimps, and ignored us completely. One of the funnier grooming events was when one of them had an issue with his back end. He practically stood on his head so that two of his comrades could perform a detailed inspection of his butt.

Sitting mostly apart from the rest of the chimps, in a beam of sunshine coming through the trees, was the head alpha male. He was a very impressive animal of larger stature, with a much thicker coat than the others. Something one would expect if he always got first dibs on any food that came into the group. Sitting not too far away was one of his groupies. You know the type. Those of subordinate rank or ability, that usually ride along on the coattails of the others. I suppose it’s the same in the chimp world as it is in ours.

At one point while watching the alpha, another chimp came over to him. When he got within about two meters, he crouched right down on his belly, and shuffled up to the alpha in a prostrate position. He was showing subservience to the head of the clan. He stayed in that position for some time, and only started to relax when the alpha began grooming him. Yup, just like us humans. It’s always best to suck up to the boss!

A mother made her way into the center of the clearing with her offspring. The little one climbed off her, and began to climb around in the trees just a short way off the ground. We don’t know if it was the same one we saw the previous day, or a different one, although it appeared to be about the same size. It was this one that Orion tried to grab. Once Orion was chased off, the baby climbed back onto its mother’s back and rode off up the trail giving our guide and park ranger a sideways glance as it went by.

The Clan Elder

A treat that we didn’t expect to see, was the appearance of the clan elder. No longer an alpha because of his age, he was nevertheless an impressive individual to behold. Covered completely with a thick black coat, only the grayness of his head gave away his age. At 54 years old, he was the oldest chimp on record in this part of Tanzania, and even at this age, he was well respected by all.

He sat himself down on one of the trails, and presently the mother and offspring came along. He started grooming her and the baby came out from between them to play, not two meters from us. At one point, the child started wandering up the trail in our direction, looked up, saw us, and whirled around and scampered back between the adults. It was really quite funny just how oblivious he was to us standing there. It’s a good thing, though, that the little one did run back, as the mother was keeping an eye on him. I wouldn’t care to experience what would happen if the little one got too close to us for the adults liking. Chimps are five times stronger than humans, so it’s always good to give them their space. The mother and child moved off leaving the old guy to himself, and his grooming.

Barring injury or illness, this elder could live for many more years, and despite no longer being an alpha, his wisdom was apparently used quite often by the ranking alphas for the betterment of the entire group.

Our last night in Mahale Mountain National Park

With the chimpanzee experience completed, our last night at the camp saw us dining on the beach under the stars. The next morning we boarded the boat for the trip back up the lake to the airstrip. From there we made the return trip, first up to Kogatende to drop off some people and pick up others. Then we flew back to Arusha to catch our flight back to the Netherlands, and then home to Vancouver.