As an adventure travel company, one of the things I have always said is “we only run active tours”. No bus tours for me, thank you. However, I must admit our two African safaris stretch that a bit.
In Africa, we run a “hike, wine, and safari” tour that is absolutely incredible. And just last month in Tanzania we added a five-day safari to the back end of our Mount Kilimanjaro trek.
Now, safaris themselves are amazing. I am a pretty jaded traveler, having seen many places and sights around the world, but I can truly say a safari is a top-five experience of a lifetime. The thrill of seeing animals in action, the beauty of being in the great African outdoors, and the joy of discussing each day’s sightings with your fellow safari participants is something everyone should experience once.
Plus, we do two things to enhance the experience for active travelers. First, we schedule the safari as part of a tour, specifically by adding in hiking (South Africa) and the Kili climb (Tanzania). Second, we get out of the vehicle to do short walking safaris twice on each trip, which both gets us a little exercise and gives us a distinctly unique viewpoint.
My experiences in Tanzania and South Africa have been entirely different. In Tanzania 
we visited the southern Serengeti region during the Great Migration and so saw tens of thousands of wildebeests and zebras plus half a dozen separate prides of lions who were feasting on them. We also visited Ngorongoro Crater, a picturesque setting with almost theme park-like perfection – and yet entirely natural. In Tanzania, the vistas were vast and it was easy to feel you were on the set of the Lion King.
In South Africa, our safari experience is very different, in part because it takes place in a private reserve. While the area seems huge, the expanses are nowhere near as large as in Tanzania. On the plus side, the guides and trackers pretty much know which animals are in the area and it is simply a matter of finding them. Even better, because we were allowed to drive at night (unlike in the Tanzanian national parks), we were able to be out when the animals, especially the predators, were most active. The whole experience was like a search for National Geographic-style action sequences, keeping us all on the edge of our seats for the drives.
Both safari experiences have a few things in common. The local staff are exceptional. The lodges and tented safari camps are luxurious. The food is excellent and the service impeccable. You really feel as if you are an English baron or baroness out on an Africa safari in the late 1800s!
We are just now setting our schedule for 2011 and our two African trips are planned for February (Tanzania) and October (South Africa). Leave a comment on this blog post if you are interested to join us!
Ten hardy Zephyr alumni joined our first-ever trip to Tanzania to climb Mount Kilimanjaro. We all met in Moshi, Tanzania after a very long flight via Amsterdam on KLM. Tanzania was hot but the Kilimanjaro-brand beers were cold and the view of the mountain from our hotel windows was outstanding.
In fact, I was shocked at how nice the trekking actually was. My most recent mountain climbing experience was on Aconcagua, where I spent 13 days on the mountain with two friends and found most of it a chore. This was different. For one thing, the scenery was very pretty and we all enjoyed our climb through a tropical forest, rugged open moorlands, and finally an alpine desert environment.
This might seem excessive but pretty much everyone on the mountain is traveling in a similar style. Our group had a cooking tent and eating tent, tables and chairs, and food for 50 people for a week. Our guides were excellent and the porters, who are heroic, carried 20-kilo (44 pound) packs, often times on their heads!
Group B, which I joined, woke at midnight and started at 1:00 AM. To get an idea of how fast we hiked up the mountain, walk across the room at home or at work. Now, do it again at half pace. One more time, cutting your speed in half again. Because of the high altitude and lack of oxygen reaching our systems, that is the pace we moved. Even then, the summit hike was difficult. The strong wind made things miserable, some in the group felt nauseous, and all of us just wanted to get to the top. Still, there were no technical parts at all and so willpower was really the name of the game.
Finally: success at 19,340 feet above sea level! Of course, like most mountains it was freezing on top and most of the group suffered through a quick group photo before heading down. I did stay on top for 15-20 minutes, taking photos of others and making sure our group was okay. In all, 10 of 11 of our group made it to the top, with only one person having to turn around early on the summit climb. (I am convinced this was due to a bout of traveler’s disease earlier in the week, which can sap one’s energy.)
Roberta Perry is a four-time Zephyr alumnus from New York. From my experience traveling with her, I would say she is a good athlete with a strong constitution who, like many people, tries hard to stay in shape as she cruises through her 40s. In short, I think she is a pretty typical Zephyr traveler.