Day 1: Arusha / Moshi
We'll await you in Arusha (for those who arrive by shuttle or bus) or Moshi (for those who arrive by plane) for a city-exploration. We'll spend the night in a comfortable guesthouse in Arusha.
Overnight: Arusha guesthouse - HB (lunch and dinner)
Day 2: Endallah Village Tour
We'll leave Arusha in the morning and head for Endallah, our home during this trip. On our way to Endallah we'll take a short break in Mto-wa-Mbu, a very colourful town at the shores of Lake Manyara. Before arriving in Endallah, we'll offer you a wonderful viewon Lake Manyara national Park from the top of the Great Rift. In Endallah we'll take our time to install and meet our guest family. After lunch we'll explore the village and visit the dispensary, the school and the stone-bakery. After the home cooked dinner you're free to retreat to your room or stay up and sit around the campfire.
Overnight: Endallah guest family - FB
Day 3: Endallah Forrest Walk and Banana Plantation Tour
Today we'll tie on our walking shoes for a challenging forest walk. Although the itinerary will be adapted to the physical condition of your group, we'll use mainly goatpaths and track the Endallah river for a while. During our walk we'll visit a tropical plantation, well covered in the valley and with an abundance of bananas, avocado, sugarcane, oranges, jackfruit etc... From there on we'll follow the irrigation canal and continue through the river and over the rocks. Before climbing out of the valley we'll visit a hyena cave and a 6 m. high waterfall (dried out during the dry season). The time that's left after the walk can be used to rest, stroll around and pack for tomorrow's safari-trip. The day ends with a homecooked meal and a cosy little campfire.
Overnight: Endallah guest family - FB
Day 4: Lambo Hills
Another challenging hike today! We'll walk to Karatu by foot, using the short cut through the hills. Although the walk is pretty exhausting at some stages, the views over the area are stunning. The fittest can make a short diversion to clamber to Ayabut Mountain, the highest point of the region. Once arrived in Karatu, a fresh beer or soda are waiting for you and we'll have lunch in a local 'nyama choma' place (open air barbecue). After lunch there's time for a deserved rest or an exploration of Karatu.
Overnight: Karatu guesthouse - FB
Day 5: Ngorongoro Crater
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After an early rising and breakfast we drive of to Karatu to stock up for the next three days in the bush. We'll continue to the gate of Ngorongoro Conservation Area and get down to the craterfloor for a whole day of game spotting. The garden of Eden hosts a surreal variety and quantity of animals and is considered as one of the best places in the world to spot the endangered black rhino in the wild. Buffaloes, elephants, lions, hyena's and many species of antelopes are common and can be sighted at close range. The more elusive leopard is also present but rather difficult to spot. The two picnic sites, inhabited by steeling monkeys and acrobatic black kites, provide a real spectacle. Take care of your belongings! Around 5 p.m. we'll climb the steep crater rim again and head for a fresh shower. We'll spend the night in the guestrooms of the Endulen Mission, a spectacularly located hospital served by the flying doctors and used for the treatment of the local Masai. Ready for a cool but quiet night.
Overnight: Endulen Mission (Simba campsite if Endulen Mission is fully booked) - FB
Day 6: Empakaai Crater
After breakfast we'll drive along the Ngorongoro crater rim to Empakaai Crater. The road is a bit long and mostly bumpy but the views are great and you'll meet many Masai villages on your way. At Empakaai Crater we'll put up our tents on the crater rim campsite, meet with our Masai guides and the donkeys who will join us the next two days and have lunch. In the afternoon we'll descent to the crater floor, accompanied by a Masai guide and an armed ranger. The crater floor is still inhabited by buffaloes, hyena's and even leopards are not uncommon (though seldom spotted). We climb up the crater wall again in time for dinner and prepare for a quiet but ice cold night.
Overnight: Empakaai Crater Rim campsite - FB
Day 7: Empakaai - Acacia
Those who wake up early today will enjoy great views of Mount Kilimanjaro and Mount Meru (before they're covered by clouds). After breakfast we'll mount our luggage on the donkeys and leave for a 2 days trekking accompanied by Masai guides. Since the 'road' to Lake Natron is no more than a chain of goatpaths, our jeep is leaving us and will meet us again next day in the evening at the lake. We're on our own now, in good hands of the local Masai. Today's hike is exhausting and impressive at the same time. Our Masai will explain us about their way of living and culture and show you all they can. They're 'at home' here and we have the honour to hike through their homeland in their company. Good pictures are guaranteed! We overnight at Acacia campsite, run by ... Masai.
Overnight: Acacia Campsite - FB
Day 8: Acacia - Ol Doinyo Lengai
Today we continue on our way to Lake Natron. The hike is easier since we're descending the escarpment, but the temperatures raise dramatically as we get closer to the semi desert area that surrounds the lake. Again we'll enjoy great views over Lake Natron and Ol Doinyo Lengai. You can't get much closer now. Those who are planning to climb the volcano better take a close look. The road up goes straight and is as steep as you can get it. In the late afternoon we'll arrive at Kamakia Waterfalls campsite, a bright and green oasis with a cool mountain river in the middle of semi-desert. We'll put up our tents and enjoy a good shower and some well deserved drinks.
Overnight: Kamakia Waterfalls Campsite - FB
Day 9: Mosoniki Mountains
After breakfast we'll leave for a day trip to Mosoniki Mountains. Our Masai guide will be with us the whole day and explain us about the medicinal use of plants. We'll also pass the natural breeding ground of vultures, who make their nests high up on the cliffs. The trip takes a whole day and we carry our packed lunch with us. Again great views and narrow tracks on the menu! In the late afternoon we'll return to Kamakia Waterfalls Campsite for dinner.
Overnight: Kamakia Waterfalls Campsite - FB
Day 10: Kapito, The source of the Engare Sero River
This day can be as relaxing as you want it. There's time to visit the flamingos at the lakeshore, undertake a wonderful hike to the waterfalls where we'll have a cool swim and/or visit a real Masai village. Those who are interested can hike to Kapito, the source of the Engare Sero River, well hidden in the escarpment. On their way they'll meet the place where the young Masai worriers hold their Olpuls and barbecue fresh cow meat once a year. The most adventurous and fit better take it easy and prepare for the ascent of Ol Doinyo Lengai at night. Ol Doinyo Lengai, known by the Masai as the Mountain of God, is a still active volcano (the last eruption took place only two years ago) with a beautiful almost perfect cone. The ascent is pretty tough and steep and is done at night to avoid the heat of the day. The ascent takes about 6 hours, descending will take you about 3 hours. Those who reach the top will never forget the experience!
Overnight: Kamakia Waterfalls Campsite - FB
Day 11: Natron - Mto wa Mbu
After breakfast we'll depart for the last stage of our 6 days trip: the road back to Endallah. The drive is very scenic and the landscapes are simply breathtaking. We'll take a short break at 'Shimu la Mungu' (the crater of God) and for lunch in Mto wa Mbu. In the afternoon we'll arrive in Endallah again.
Overnight: Endallah guest family - FB
Day 12: Lake Manyara National Park
Another early wake for a whole day of game driving in Lake Manyara National Park. Lake Manyara is maybe the most beautiful and certainly the most tropical park of the Northern circuit. Vegetation is lush as there's always plenty of water sipping down from the surrounding mountains. Here we'll have a good chance to have a really close encounter with elephants and giraffes as well as spotting many colourful birds and a variety of raptors. Blue monkeys, giant monitor lizards, bushbucks and klipspringers are often spotted as well. Lions, hyena's and leopards are present but generally well covered in the bushes. We'll have our picnic at the beautiful 'Endallah picnicsite' and also visit the beautiful hot water springs ('maji moto'), made famous by Ernest Hemingway who had a tented camp nearby. We stay in Mto wa Mbu for the night.
Overnight: Mto wa Mbu guesthouse - FB
Day 13: Return to Arusha : Moshi
After breakfast we drive to Arusha and drop you of at your place of destination in Arusha or at Kilimanjaro Airport. Before we say goodbye we'll pick a new date for next year because you'll certainly want to come back!
Overnight: / - Breakfast