After breakfast our group climbed back into our jeep and we set out to see the Lake Manyara National Park. As we first entered the park there were trees filled with storks. Not just one or two storks but a dozen or more storks in each tree. As with the previous day we not only saw the storks and baboons but we also saw two different types of monkeys where were trying to the stork nests for an easy meal of eggs.
The vervet black faced Monkeys are easily recognizable by their bright blue testicles.
We then saw Dik Diks and Impalas.
I was amazed, at how our guide spotted things. 300 yards he could spot a lion head sticking out of the the grass. He didn’t miss a thing. As we turned a corner he spotted a Narina Trogon. He said it was the third time in his fifteen years that he had seen this bird.
There were plenty of Giraffes,
The big find of the day was the elephants. The funny thing about the elephants is that the guide kept saying “the elephants must be hiding”. I could tell we were not going to leave this park until he found elephants. The entire day, we were all looking out the window trying to spot something. It quickly became apparent that the being a guide and spotter is truly a gift. he saw things that I would have never seen. Even when he pointed them out animals it was sometimes difficult to make out.
At any rate, I was proud of myself for spotting the elephants and later, when I was boasting, I heard myself actually saying somewhat proudly, “I was the one who spotted the elephants!” In my mind I said to myself, “Ever hear of the elephant in the room? Not exactly the toughest animal to spot!”
I will say, what amazed me about seeing them was how close they came to our jeep and how they make no noise. As they walk you don’t hear a thing and you almost expect for the earth to shake. The trample trees and you might hear branches snapping and trees falling down but otherwise, dead silence.
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