One particular area was designated by the park officials as the picnic lunch spot. It was a green, grassy area overlooking a small lake with hippos in it. The drivers were very careful to make sure that no litter was left behind, so the area remained clean even though on this day there were 40 "combies" parked in a row with the tourists around them eating. "Combi" is a term Les and Linda used to describe just about any safari vehicle. I assume it is an abbreviation of "combination," since just about all of them had roofs that either popped up or were removable (like our Land Cruiser). This was the only area in the crater where people were allowed to get out of the vehicles. Actually, though, we "cheated" and with Mrosso's permission got out at one other spot he was sure was safe. We have a picture of that here.

Linda and Carol troll for lions, while the men stay safe in the vehicle.

The picture above gives a good idea of what most of the game drive vehicles were like, although some were more open than this.

This is what happens when you troll for lions and DON'T have a lookout!

While we and the others ate, a large flock of black kites circled low overhead and even walked among the picnickers. Mrosso warned us to be VERY careful with our food, because those birds would swoop down and steal it from your hand if you turned your head away. Although it had been prepared at a different lodge, our box lunch this day was almost a duplicate of the one from Day 4: chicken, egg, rolls, cookies, chocolate bar, juice and something indeterminate that looked almost like a square of lasagna. Our rule of thumb pertaining to food was: don't ask any questions, just try it. If it tastes OK, eat it and forget it!

After lunch Mrosso promised us big herds of animals. We looked all around and saw nothing that even looked like a small herd. Again, we were forgetting that the crater is 12 miles across, and we were on the Southern side. We headed North, and after what seemed like a long drive began to see what he was talking about.

At the end of the day Mrosso told us we had driven 106 kilometers (at MAYBE 10 mph!). Les and Linda said that we covered more of the crater that day than they had seen on a previous trip. Here's a list of the animals we recorded as seeing on this day: 8 to 10 hyenas, 6 golden jackals, 8 rhinos (one up close), elephants (one very close), Thompson's and Grant's gazelles, eland (at far distance), hartebeest, cape buffalo, zebras and wildebeest (HERDS, very close), 13 lions, submerged hippos, and warthogs. Wait! That's not including the birds! We saw: kori bustard, crowned cranes (dancing!), flamingos (greater and lesser), spoonbills, yellow- and red-billed ducks, Egyptian geese, sacred and glossy ibis, little grebe, yellow-billed crane, white stork, ostrich, great white pelican, gray heron, little egret, abdim stork, yellow-billed stork, black kite, guinea fowl, black-winged stilt, plover, tern, coucal, and superb starling. (There will be a test at the end of the chapter.) Pictures below!