Tarangire National Park - Day 2

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One thing in common at all of the camps that I stayed at in Tanzania --- no fences.  So wild animals can (and do) wander freely through camp -- especially at night.  I wasn't allowed to wander around by myself at night at any of the camps (not that I was really tempted) -- and a guard always walked me back to my tent at night (at Swala -- it was a local Maasai dude with a flashlight & a spear).

At Swala, we were also instructed on what to do if we encountered elephants during the day (walk backwards from wherever you came).  Hippos are the most dangerous thing to encounter (that would only have happened at Selous) -- with the next dangerous animal being the cape buffalo.

On my second day at Swala we did have a small herd of elephants come through camp (fortunately I was sitting outside on the deck in front of my tent).  At dinner -- we had a visit from a genet (see photo -- looks a bit like a cat).  We also had two leopards walk through the camp in the middle of the night (I didn't see them -- was just shown their tracks).  At most of the camps, I could hear wildebeest (super noisy if they are close by) and hyenas (they make a distinctive whooping sound).  At Selous, my cottage was located on the river -- so I could hear the hippos in the early evening / early morning (they come on land at night to eat).  And at Ruaha, I had the closest encounters -- a waterbuck and elephant right in front of my tent during the day --- and a lion right behind my tent one morning. 

I never felt nervous inside my tent.  And fortunately I never had to leave my tent in the middle of the night (some of the camps provided walkie-talkies; at others, you would shine a flashlight up in the trees).  I am also glad I didn't read this or this before my trip ☺

And click here to read about the most dangerous animals in Africa.

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We spent most of today driving around the Silale Swamp.  The swamp covers an area of some 70 square kilometers and it acts like a sponge.  During the rainy season water is stored here, and in the dry season the swamp slowly releases water into the Tarangire River.  The swamp is green for the majority of the year and it makes for an incredibly beautify backdrop to the dry land surrounding it.

Video alerts:  none! 
Location: Tarangire National Park, Tanzania

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