Some of our readers may be aware that Julie’s not-so-secret superpower is attracting cats.  It seems to work on all cats.  Domestic cats at home, village cats all over Europe, and big cats in Africa.

Her superpower worked a treat in the Serengeti.

Less than an hour inside the national park gate, we found lions sleeping in a tree.  We are heading in a couple of weeks to Ishasha in Uganda which is famous for its tree sleeping lions, but it was a nice surprise to find some in the Serengeti as well.  It’s a ‘where’s Wally’ moment.  Look closely.  There’s four.

A bit further in, one of the most elusive of cats, a cheetah slinking stealthily through the grass.

Over the next few days we saw more lions lounging around.

Still on a high coming back from our wildebeest crossing, Bakari’s hawk eyes spotted something.  We stopped.  There in the grass, about 5 metres away, was a huge leopard sleeping.  As we watched, a tiny bird landed on him, disturbing his slumber.  He jumped up, then saw the truck.  Startled, he looked directly at us, let out a full throated, blood curdling snarl, turned and ran.  So close to the driver’s open window, Bakari recoiled in shock.  We almost filled our underpants.

It happened so fast, all Julie caught with her camera was a blur of fur as he jumped up.  It was disappointing not to get a decent photo but that snarl will stay with us for a long time.

We headed out just after dawn one morning to catch the early animals.  Just up the road, two juvenile male lions were relaxing after a night’s prowl.  Here’s a photo taken from the open top of our vehicle to show just how close to the road they were.

 

We rolled forward until we were right beside them.  They didn’t seem to mind.

Bakari was determined to find us another leopard, so one afternoon we headed to an area of rocks where they sometimes hang out.  Here we found a lioness who looked like she was dreaming of the day they make a feminist version of The Lion King with herself in the lead role.

But we were on a mission to find a leopard.  We cruised around more rocky sites.  Once again, Bakari delivered.  Is there a more beautiful creature than this?

We were happy with our cat count but Bakari set himself the challenge of finding us another cheetah.  The next afternoon we bumped slowly through the grassland which is their favourite hunting ground.  No cheetah.

Bakari got a phone call, talked rapidly in Swahili, then we continued.  We crossed paths with another safari vehicle.  Bakari and the other guide had a conversation in Swahili.  Again we continued.

Bakari only told us later that the phone call was another guide telling him he had found a leopard, but it was far away and Bakari decided to keep looking rather than head over there only to find it had already gone.  Then, when we met the vehicle coming from the direction we were headed, the other driver had said he’d been roaming around for a while and “there’s nothing but grass”.  But Bakari wasn’t conceding defeat and went on.

About 10 minutes later, we struck gold.   A cheetah, loping down the road in plain sight.

The cheetah obliged us with a good viewing.

Then he veered off into the longer grass, giving us a little goodbye wink.

Where was he going?  To join the rest of his family!

We sat back and watched.  Bakari smiled.  “I prefer to give a personal experience”, he said.  And only then did he phone around to alert other guides.

We thought that was a perfect end to the Serengeti, but there was more to come.

You know that song lyric “In the jungle, the mighty jungle, the lion sleeps tonight”.  

Wrong on both counts.  Generally speaking, lions do not sleep in the jungle and they do not sleep at night.  They usually sleep in the grasslands, and if they sleep in trees, it’s in a single or a clump of trees on the plains, not in the jungle.  And the night is for hunting.  They sleep in the day.

Here’s proof.  Next morning as we left our digs to head out of the park, the boys were back.  On the opposite side of the road, sound asleep.  So like domestic cats.

And then when we had almost reached the park boundary, a lion popped up like a sentry at a watch post.

On her signal – it seemed – two more lifted their heads to say hello.

So then there were three.

But wait, here’s another one.

The sentry joined her on the mound.

So then there were four.

And then yet another, so there were five.

The three on the mound settled into formation, between them having a 360 degree view.

They’re surveying their territory, and getting ready to spend the day sleeping in the warm sun, but we like to think they came to bid us farewell!  A perfect finish to this leg of our Tanzanian travels.  Hakuna matata.  That’s Swahili for ‘no worries’.