MDONYA OLD RIVER CAMP

We left lake manze in the morning for the flight to Ruaha which was a little late. No problems with the pick up by the Mdonya Old River Camp representatives and we headed to the camp for lunch. Unfortunately our jeep broke down about 7km from the camp! The driver couldn't fix it and the radio wasn't working - the battery was dead - but they managed to call the camp on their mobile phone (better reception than I get in suffolk!!). So after a bit of a wait the mechanics arrived and another jeep to ferry us back to camp. We were ravenous by the time we got there but there was plenty of lunch! We then set off for an evening game drive and had fabulous views of the sunset. The landscape was very different to the selous and we enjoyed seeing the same animals with a different backdrop. The following 2 days were full game drives - sometimes you would go for quite a long time without seeing anything but then there would be loads! we saw Lesser Kudu, Grants Gazelle, Ostriches, Hyraxes and Dikdiks that we had not seen before. On both days we had lunch in designated picnic sites. These have toilets - not particularly pleasant but set away from the food areas. We got through quite a lot of anti bacterial hand gel! We saw a lion stalking some zebra. On the day we left, on the way to the airport we finally saw a Leopard! Even the guides were impressed with the view and took photos. In both camps we were able to recharge our camera batteries with no issues (although we did take spare batteries for both cameras).
A Glarvey 2011

Mdonya river camp is superb value for money .Our love for wildlife was recognised from the outset , and we enjoyed a vehicle to ourselves for the 4 nights we were there.The food was great although to be fair we did not always know exactly what we were eating ,and the camp ambience fantastic.
T Platt 2011



After four nights at Lake Manze, we took the short flight to Mdonya Camp in the Ruaha area.  A similar camp, but perhaps even more basic as even the main areas for eating were just tented canopies.  Each night we would all sit round a big camp fire, enjoying our drinks and swapping stories of the day with the other guests before gathering round a big table underneath the stars, to eat the delicious food that was provided.  

There had hardly been any mosquitos or flies at Lake Manze, although there were tiny little midges which had a vicious bite, to which Laura can attest. Although there were no mosquitos  at Mdonya either, there were many flies, including the notorious tse-tse fly.  All these flies could bite.  To try and keep them away from the truck when we were out in the bush, the guides had an old tin can on the back of the truck, in which they burnt elephant dung.  I have to say it was a most aromatic smell, which the guides said was because the elephant eat acacia trees and other trees used for medicinal purposes by the Africans, and as the elephants only digest 44% of the food they eat, the end result was far more pleasant than we would have imagined.

The Ruaha region was much more arid than the Selous, but that meant that all the game collected round the waterholes.  We were able each evening, at sunset, to watch baboons, impala and  elephants enjoying themselves in the water, except for the one night when three thirsty lionesses gathered to drink, and all the other animals were extremely wary.  Sitting there with our ‘sundowner’ drinks, and nibbling at the popcorn which appeared as if by magic, somebody remarked that it was just like being at the movies!!

We had the excitement of being shown a python which had swallowed an impala three months ago, and had been sleeping up a tree ever since to digest the enormous meal.

We saw many lion, mostly asleep under the trees in the middle of the day, but on one occasion when the evening was approaching, there were four lionesses prowling about, with a prey obviously in mind, but after spending a little while somewhat desultorily wandering around, they gave it up and turned in the opposite direction.

Among the many giraffe we saw, once there was a mother giraffe suckling a very young foal, and also a zebra which was really close to giving birth - we stayed a while but nothing happened.

One day just as the light was getting stronger, we saw five
carmine bee-eaters sitting on a branch, taking turns to fly off to catch insects.  The low sunlight caught the reddish-bronze of their plumage.  The guide said it was unusual to see these birds in the dry season.

There were so many birds we saw, some exceptionally beautiful.  My own favourite was the lilac crested roller, which when flying was a flash of bright turquoise.  We saw it fairly often but not so much that it ever failed to be an excitement.  I also liked the starlings, so much more attractive than the British variety.  These were also bright blue and were especially attractive in flight.

On one of our long days out we had just seen a pride of lion asleep, and then another single lion watching the world from a rock, when our truck developed a puncture, which was slightly alarming.  Our driver limped down the road until we were out of sight, and we three in the back of the truck had to get out while they jacked the truck up.  Fortunately there was another truck from our camp fairly near, and they came to help and we watched from the safety of the other truck while the wheel was changed in double quick time, and we were off again.

Naturally we were particularly keen to see leopard and cheetah, which are much more difficult to find, but we were lucky enough to see both:  a leopard sleeping up a tree, and another one just disappearing into the bush, and the cheetah we came across was walking across a clearing and we got a very good and close view of that.

When our magical time came to an end we flew off to Zanzibar, where we stayed in a comfortable but laid-back hotel right on the beach.  The safari viewing is exciting, and we made the very most of our time, but we were tired after seven very full days, and were glad to relax on the beach before the long flight home.

Ed and the team at Tanzanian Odyssey created a wonderful trip for us that lived up to all the expectations, and we can’t thank them enough for their attention to detail and for their friendly and knowledgeable help which was so invaluable at the planning stage.

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