TAN: Private Car to Ruaha
Today we are scheduled to leave for Ruaha. Between the start and finish of breakfast, the departure time has changed twice. Chantal and I get some more footage of the camp while Gabriel works on the Mikumi sequence and Julie works on Lazy Lagoon. We gather ourselves up for a 10:00 a.m. departure.
A 5" long millipede that weathered the night in a drinking glass to have it’s close-up taken in the morning. Chantal shooting the accommodations.
Some of our gear is lashed to the roof to leave us more room inside the Land Crusier. Several stalls on the way to the main road slow our departure. They are attributed to a dirty fuel line and finally cleared up by our driver, Corado. Incidentally, Corado remembers Chantal and I from our trip in July. In the foothills just beyond Mikumi Town there is a spectacular fire on hill opposite the road.
A dirty fuel line delays our start. What appears to be an out of control brush fire.
A couple of minutes after we finish filming the fire, it starts to rain. It is hard enough to warrant bringing the gear on the roof inside. We continue on through to Iringa without further incident. I alternate between enjoying the scenery and working on my laptop.
Gabriel trying to get some editing done in our mobile office.
A shopping stop is scheduled at Iringa. We pull up to the central market to get provisions. Corado gives a long list to one of the grocers. Gabriel and I head into the stall to look around. We end up getting some avocados, ginger, garlic, resinous incense and a bag of what we hope is Soy Chai.
Views of the market loading dock, a spice stall, the streets around the produce market and our shipping lashed to the roof.
We rendezvous with the others at the car just before it starts to rain again. We sit tight for a good ten minutes before the deluge lets up. The rest of the produce is gathered and stowed on the roof. Our exit from Iringa is thwarted by construction on the road. We get directions to an alternative route which takes us through a much more interesting part of town. The rains have thankfully cut down the dust on the dirt roads. About two thirds of the way out to the park, we stop to let some cattle herders pass around us. They notice smoke coming off of one of the front tires. It appears as if the brakes are hot. Corado pours some water on them in hopes of cooling them off.
Some cattle herders and their rather emaciated looking herd.
We finally get to the park entrance just before 6 p.m. In addition to the per person entrance fee, we also have to pay a fee for the vehicle we arrived in. We grudgingly pay and make it into camp just before sunset. Our bandas are two of the nicer ones on the river edge. After settling in, we head over to the main dining banda where Peter Fox and his wife Sarah greet us. Arrangements are made for us to have a game drive in the morning.