The Ngorongoro Crater is the biggest intact volcano caldera on earth. We learned that it is called a crater but technically speaking it can only be called a crater if it is an active volcano and this hasn’t been active in 2 million years. It is one of the seven Natural Wonders of the World. It supports 25 million animals and is home to the densest population of Maasai lions in the world.

The crater is about 3200 square miles and is 2000 feet deep so basically the animals have no where to hide,

Basically the Great Migration starts in the Ngorongoro Crater because this is the place where all the wildebeests give birth to their babies in the spring. The vegetation can’t sustain so many animals so the wildebeests begin the annual trek from Maasai Mara to the Serengeti and back again.

An interesting fact about the Ngorongoro Crater is there are no giraffes or impala. It is also the home to the elusive black rhino so you can see the Big 5 here. We did see the black rhino but only through binoculars. Although rhinos have very poor eyesight, they make up for it with a keen sense of smell. That is why humans almost never get to see a rhino up close.

We had our lunch by a lake very close to these lions who were taking an afternoon siesta. We were warned after lunch not to get to close to the shoreline so we didn’t become lunch for the hippos.

What happened on our way out of the Ngorongoro Crater was one of the funniest things that happened on the entire trip. I hope no one takes any offense. It was nature at it’s best.

Next up is the most fascinating day of the trip and it did not involve a game drive.