- African Safari -
Safari meaning "Travel" or "Journey" in Swahili, is to take a trip to any undeveloped area to see, photograph or hunt wild animals in their own environment. It usually refers to a trip by tourists to Africa, traditionally to view the "Big 5" Lion, Elephant, Rhino, African Buffalo, and Leopards.
On the 2008 Xpedition safari we rode in Toyota Land Cruisers and visited the 3 largest parks in Tanzania Lake Manyara, Ngorongoro Crater and the Serengeti National Park. Each Park was very unique and offered an amazing first look at the "Wild" that is Africa. All Pictures on this page as well as the virtual safari pages were taken by members of the 2008 Xpedition.
( 2008 Xpedition Members on Safari in the Serengeti )
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Virtual Safari |
The Serengeti |
Lake Manyara |
Ngorongoro |
( Click on the links above to start your Safari )
The Serengeti is generally recognized as the major wildlife reserve in the world. It is home to the largest and longest overland migration on earth in which over a million wildebeest and about 200,000 zebras flow south from the northern hills to the southern plains for the short rains every October and November, and then swirl west and north after the long rains in April, May and June.
( Entrance to the Serengeti )
The name Serengeti is derived from the Maasai word "Serengit", meaning "Endless Plains". The ecosystem is one of the oldest on earth. The essential features of climate, vegetation and fauna have barely changed in the past million years. Early man himself made an appearance in the Olduvai Gorge, eastern Serengeti National Park, about two million years ago.
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With over 3 million large animals, involved in seasonal migration the Serengeti has the greatest concentration of wildlife unparalleled in the world.
Ngorongoro Crater is the world's largest volcanic caldera. The Crater, which formed when a giant volcano exploded and collapsed on itself some two to three million years ago, is over 2,000 feet deep and covers close to 100 square miles.
( Entrance to the Ngorongoro Crater )
The crater is thought of as "a natural enclosure" for a very wide variety of wildlife including herds of zebra, gazelle, and wildebeest, the crater is home to the "big five" of rhinoceros, lion, leopard, elephant, and buffalo. The crater plays host to almost every individual species of wildlife in East Africa, with an estimated 25,000 animals within the crater.
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Ngorongoro Crater Virtual Safari
The crater was declared a World Heritage Site in 1978. It is an example of culture and ecotourism smoothly nurtured in the environment, one of the only place on the planet where a human being is living in harmony with wildlife without harming one another.
Lake Manyara is a shallow fresh-water lake in Tanzania. Said by Ernest Hemingway to be the "loveliest lake in Africa," it is also the home of a diverse set of landscapes and wildlife. The name Manyara comes from the Maasai word "emanyara", which is a species of plant that is grown around a family homestead.
( Entrance to Lake Manyara National Park )
Lake Manyara offers varied ecosystems, incredible bird life, and breathtaking views. Highlights include thousands of pink-hued flamingos, and the world's largest bird the ostrich.
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(elephants - Lake Manyara)
The Park also has a large elephant population and is most famous for its tree-climbing lions. It is, however, a myth that this is unique to Manyara, as lions regularly climb trees throughout Africa. It is possibly most notable here as the large concentration of game and density of the vegetation make climbing a tree an opportunity to escape getting in the way of the elephants!
(tree climbing lions - Lake Manyara)
Click on the Images of the Park Entrance Signs below to start your
Virtual Safari or you can simply select one of the animals from
the list at the bottom of the page. All Pictures on this page as well
as
the virtual safari pages were taken by members of the 2008 Xpedition.
( Entrance to the Ngorongoro Crater )
( Entrance to the Serengeti )
( Entrance to Lake Manyara National Park )
Animals to find
Click on Orbie to return
to the Xpedition Home Page