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It was early June in the Serengeti. My partner and I had come Tanzania to see the migration, one of most sublime spectacles in Africa.
We’d chosen a camp close to the Grumeti River for our luxury Tanzanian safari, ideal for watching the migrating animals. Its rustic yet elegant safari tents were tucked into the shade of an evergreen forest on the banks of a tributary of the river. Black and white colobus monkey chattered in the foliage and chased each other over the thatched roofs of our tented suite. A resident pod of hippo grunted and grumbled in the tranquil pool in front of us. It was simply idyllic.
On our first night, I woke in the early hours and heard the wildebeest approaching, a loud ‘gnu-ing’ sound, like a hive of bees. Now it was time to see them. We set off from camp after breakfast, heading straight for the Grumeti River. Both of us were thrilled at the prospect of witnessing a crossing.
'The wildebeest are definitely massing!’ said Roger, our ranger, as we drove along the riverbank. I looked across the muddy water to where animals were starting to gather. It was a sea of dark hides, curved horns and shaggy beards. The air was filled with their loud honking. In the distance, from every direction and stretching to the horizon, I saw lines of wildebeest, many in single file, heading towards the river.
Each year, more than two million animals, mostly wildebeest, trek from Tanzania to Kenya and back again on a never-ending cycle to find water and grass,’ said Roger as we drew to a halt. ‘The climax of Africa’s greatest theatre piece is the fording of rivers like the Grumeti.’ Roger explained that the wildebeest have no natural leader and consequently the herds split up and head off in different directions. They meander all over the place and often choose a completely different direction to the day before. Therefore it’s best to imagine the Great Wildebeest Migration as one mega herd, surrounded by a number of smaller splinter herds.
We trained our binoculars and long lenses on the opposite bank. The animals were bunching along the edge, waiting for one of their number to take the plunge. It was a classic, National Geographic moment. Quivering bodies, indecision, terror. One brave animal stepped closer, sniffing the water. It looked right and left.
PHOTOGRAPHY: ISTOCK
The Great Wildebeest Migration is one of the natural world’s most astonishing phenomena. Each year, more than a million wildebeest
do a loop of the Serengeti and Masai Mara in search of fresh grazing.
Their crossing of the Grumeti River is one of the climaxes of this odyssey.
the gruelling
grumeti
by Justin Fox