This route takes you on a one-day tour along the crest of the Ngorongoro Crater Highlands. It starts inside Ngorongoro Crater, which is the jewel of Ngorongoro Lengai Geopark. The caldera itself is the largest, intact caldera on earth and is home to breath-taking array of animals and plants. The crater also features sites that are sacred to area indigenous tribes. After leaving the caldera, you will pass by Olmoti and Empakaai volcanoes, both of which also have large craters. Along the way, you will witness the beautiful scenery of Irkepus Village, Embulumbulu depression, and the third highest mountain in Tanzania, Mt. Loolmalasin. At the end of the route, you will be rewarded with a view of Oldoinyo Lengai Volcano.
The Datoga peoples lived in Ngorongoro Crater in the early 19th century. However, in the middle of the 19th century, the Datoga were attacked by the Maasai which led to a war between the two tribes.
The Datoga eventually migrated to the south to a region near Lake Eyasi.
An important Datoga spiritual leader named Gitangda was killed with a spear by the Maasai. His grave and those of several others are located at this site. These graves are the most important pilgrimage site for the Datoga Tribe today. Every few years, the Datoga organize a pilgrimage to the graves in order to pray to their deceased chief for relief from whatever crisis they are facing. Some come from as far away as Shinyanga by Lake Victoria.
The pilgrimage is usually conducted by women and elders, who bring milk, a honey-based brew, meat from a ram (killed in a traditional manner) and tobacco with them. The group drinks some of the milk and the honey brew. The remainder is poured on the stones of Gitangda’s grave while the leader speaks their prayers. Afterwards, tobacco and loghamajeg (ram’s skin) are left on the grave. This ritual is performed on all of the graves, as well as at a large fig tree located nearby (Stop 21). At the end of the ritual, some soil is collected from the graves and the fig tree to be taken home.
In the same battle where Gitanga was killed, his eldest son Magusachand was wounded by a Maasai spear in the leg. According to the Datoga stories, he crawled back to his boma calling for his wife. When his wife heard him, she came searching for Magusachand with a gourd of milk.
When they met, he drank the milk from the gourd and bid his wife farewell. He was never seen again, nor was his body was ever found. The large fig tree at this location marks the place where Magusachand is believed to have drunk his last sip of milk.
The Old German House is located in the southwestern part of the crater. It was built by two German brothers named Adolph and Friedrich Siedentop. Adolph entered the crater in 1899 and initially lived as a squatter. He eventually leased some land from the administration of German East Africa. His brother Friedrich joined him and they began farming sisal, a plant that is used for the production of fibre. The brothers developed a sizable farm and built a sturdy stone house that exists to this day.
In 1916, two years after the outbreak of World War I, the brothers were deported from the crater. 1n 1920, the house and farm fell under the British mandate. The British later established a veterinary camp nearby in Lerai and John Hamman took over the farm. He was followed by Captain Hurst and later on by Eric Howe. The house is now part of the Lerai Ranger Post.
The magical Lerai Forest covers about 5 km2 and is the most important forest inside the crater. It is home to the Yellow Fever tree (Acacia xanthophloea) and provides a special refuge for many different species of animals, most notably rhinos and elephants. “Lerai” is the Maasai word for the tall yellow-barked acacias.
These beautiful trees are old and gnarled because of bark re-growing where elephants have stripped it off. Yellow Fever trees are actually not related to Yellow Fever other than they tend to grow in swampy areas where mosquitoes (which are the carriers of Yellow Fever) are also commonly found. The forest is also a special bird habitat, providing food and nesting sites for hoopoes, cuckoos and weavers.
Ngoitoktok is another perennial spring inside the crater. It is much larger than Seneto Spring (Stop 19) and emits enough water to create a small lake.
The lake waters spread out into the nearby Gorig-or Swamp. A small rock outcrop with a single fig tree on it adorns the lake’s edge.
Ngoitoktok Spring is one of only two places in the crater where visitors are permitted to get out of their vehicles. It’s a great site for a bush picnic, although visitors should beware of large brown hawks that may swoop down to snatch unattended food. Ngoitoktok is inhabited by an important colony of hippopotamuses. Elephants and lions also frequent the spring.
This large, shallow soda lake is very alkaline, due mainly to deposits of volcanic ash. Its depth varies during the year but never exceeds 3 meters. During the rainy season, Lake Magadi appears light pink in colour from a distance due to a large flock of flamingos that call the lake home.
The birdlife is mainly seasonal, and is also affected by the alkalinity of the water in the lake. The edges of Lake Magadi are favourite stalking grounds for golden jackals, lions and hyenas.
The Hippo Pool is home to many hippos living in the crater. The common hippopotamus (Hippopotamus amphibius), or hippo, is a large, mostly plant-eating mammal. Its name comes from the ancient Greek word for “river horse.” Adults average 1,500 kg (3,310 lb) and 1,300 kg (2,870 lb) for males and females, respectively, making them the third-largest species of mammal on earth following elephants and rhinoceros.
Despite their physical resemblance to pigs, the closest living relatives of the Hippopotamidae are cetaceans (whales, dolphins).
The earliest known hippopotamus fossils, belonging to the genus Kenyapotamus in Africa, date to around 16 million years ago.
The hippopotamus is semi-aquatic and inhabits swamps, lakes and rivers. In the latter, a territorial bull may preside over a group of females and young that may number from five to thirty individuals. During the day, they remain cool by staying in the water or mud. Reproduction and childbirth both occur in the water. They emerge at dusk to graze on grasses. While hippopotamuses rest near each other in the water, grazing is a solitary activity, even though hippos are not territorial on land.
Round Table Hill is a small volcanic tuff ring that resulted from a minor volcanic eruption long after the collapse of Ngorongoro Crater. Tuff rings are formed by explosive volcanic eruptions that eject pumice and cinder which fall back to earth to create a ring-like hill surrounding the volcanic vent.
Because Round Table Hill has a fairly flat top, it appears to be sedimentary in origin, but it was indeed created by volcanic processes. This area of the crater also features a number of small recently-formed cinder cones.
The Munge River is the largest river in Ngorongoro Crater, but it actually originates from outside of it. The river’s source comes from inside the crater of Olmoti Volcano to the north. The river runs along the southeastern side of Olmoti and eventually drains into the northeastern side of Ngorongoro Crater. The Munge weaves a path on the north side of the crater before finally draining into Lake Magadi.
Located just to the northeast of the Ngorongoro Crater, Irkepus is an important village in the eastern part of the Geopark. It has schools, health centres and multiple Maasai bomas similar to the one seen at Seneto (Northern Route, Stop 8).
Beyond the lush, green plains is a view of Olmoti and Empakaai Volcanoes.
Olmoti Volcano is the next large volcano to the north of Ngorongoro Crater. Olmoti was active from 2.5 to 1.79Ma and is known to be the source of the bulk of interbedded volcanic ash and volcanoclastic deposits exposed in nearby Olduvai Gorge. Olmoti is a Maasai name meaning, “cooking pot.”
Mammals such as the Bohor Reedbuck, Cape Buffalo and Eland inhabit Olmoti crater’s floor. Among the plants found on the Crater’s slopes are Nuxia, Giant St John’s Wort and Hagenia trees. Nectar-feeding birds such as the Golden-Winged and the Eastern Double-Collared Sunbird may be observed as well.
Olmoti Crater is famous for its stunning waterfalls. To reach Olmoti Crater and view the waterfalls, one must first follow a fairly steep, 45-minute path to the crater rim that starts at the Nainokanoka Ranger Station. Visitors must be accompanied by a ranger as the area is frequented by Cape Buffalo.
Atop the rim is a striking view of the crater, where several small streams coalesce into one to form the Munge River. The river flows southwards out of the crater over a series of spectacular water-falls. The waterfalls may be reached by descending the rocky crater rim down to where the river spills out of the crater. This portion of the journey takes another 30 minutes.
Pillar wood (Cassipourea malosana) is a large evergreen tree that can exceed 45 meters (147 feet) in height. It is characterized by a straight trunk and a small, rounded crown. The wood is highly valued and is used for flooring, furniture, cabinetry and multiple other purposes. Its low durability, when exposed to the elements, limits its applicability outdoors.
The acacia trees in this area are Acacia abyssinica, one of the highland varieties of acacia. They are commonly referred to as “umbrella thorns” and are one of the most iconic trees in Africa. Mature trees can reach a height of 16 meters (52 feet) and make a fine shade and ornamental tree. Younger trees are recognized by their pale yellowish-brown bark while the bark on older trees is reddish-brown in colour.
The wood from this variety of acacia is not very durable but it is still used for domestic construction as well as for making utensils.
The Empakaai Crater formed during the same time and same process of Ngorongoro crater. The open caused by the sinking or falling of lavas in the main pipe after eruption creating a now so called Empakaai Crater, which is about 300m deep from its rim. The Crater Lake is nearly 62m deep and its water is highly alkaline and commonly precipitate white-coloured soda ash along its shores.
There are three natural springs located to the West rim of this observation point, which fills the lake with fresh water. The Crater is about six kilometres (6km) cross from one end to another. Small colony of pink flamingos can be observed within and around the lake.
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