Great Adventures
Trek & Bike Northern Tanzania
12 DAYS
WHY THIS ADVENTURE?
For many riders being on a bike in this area is enough! For anyone looking for an adventure and a way to spend more time exploring Tanzania, being on a bike is a superb option, but having the flexibility to trek and bike makes this adventure open to mixed ability or interest groups. Why drive or fly when you can bike and trek and safari and have more fun doing so?
HIGHLIGHTS
Mountain biking / trekking / safari in areas you never thought possible! Serendipitous meetings with Maasai in very remote areas far away from the normal tourist circuit. Different riding conditions and options to extend the rides. Cave paintings and fossils and who knows, maybe the migration will turn up too!
DESCRIPTION
This is an open ended itinerary that can be expanded upon to suit needs for longer itineraries. Different lodges can be selected to adjust the comfort levels but in principle it includes Kilimanjaro (not summit, the Shira Plareau), Manyara, Ngorongoro, Serengeti. Each cycling area can be adjusted for hiking and or game drives enabling the group to split activities either at the same time or on arrival at specific spots.
ITINERARY IN SHORT
1: West Kili + Shira
2. Enduimet / West Kili
3. Mt Meru area
4. Mt Meru + ANP walks
5. Arusha + Manyara
6. Serengeti Mobile
7. Serengeti Mobile
8. Serengeti North
9. Serengeti Fly Camp
10. Serengeti Fly Camp
11. Ngorongoro
12. Link to other areas
ITINERARY IN FULL
Day 1
On arrival you are met and transfer to a nearby lodge to change clothes and store away any items that are not needed. We then transfer to West Kilimanjaro (2 hours) by safari landcruiser to the lower slopes of Kilimanjaro, and area called West Kilimanjaro. For those that have seen Kilimanjaro or maybe even hiked her majestic peak, then you will know that it is a massive sentinel on the earth's crust.. And today we tre the Shira plateau! We transfer up to the edge of the Shira plateau and we rise early to ensure the very best views. Once on the edge of the plateau we have a bush breakfast before we trek up to the end road and head to the Shira Cathedral before trekking down to Murram barrier. We then head down to a farm at the base of the forest zone for a scrumptious lunch, and in the afternoon there are options to ride exist before we all meet back at the lodge. Dinner & overnight Simba Farm (full board).
Day 2
After the previous day's adventure we change up the scenery to day and after breakfast we meet our bikes at the edge of a wilderness zone call Enduimet WMA for a day of mixed adventure where you can trek, bike, or just game drive. After some setup adjustments we ride! The first section is mostly downhill all the way to the Amboseli eco system (on the Tanzanian side) and once down on the plains meet our team for a bush lunch under an acacia tree where we can all meet up regardless of activity chosen. The heat of the afternoon passes and we can then ride and game drive on into the plains looking for the last of Africa's great Tuskers (elephants) before then heading back to our lodge. Dinner & overnight Simba Farm Lodge (full board).
Day 3
Today's ride is more about a safari, a journey from one place to another. Droppping down from the slopes of Kilimanjaro we pass ancient cones which were part of the first world war theatre of war, we cycle through Maasai land all the way towards Mt Meru. We aim to reach here for late lunch and then in the afternoon there is time to relax or even ride some more! The support car follows with those that don't want to ride OR you can be selective, only riding the best bits!! This creative lodge is Maasai themed huts that are comfortable and even has an infinity pool and yoga spaces. A great spot to re energise, relax, or for those that need more exercise then the options are there! Dinner and overnight Original Maasai Lodge (fb).
Day 4
Breaking it up today we head into Arusha National park to hike deep into the slopes and heart of Mt Meru. A giant of a volcano that blasted out sideways some 8,000 years ago, these thickly forested slopes are dripping in lichen covered trees with a plethora of widlife and insects. A trek up into this giant is a must and you set out with picnic lunches (you can opt to leave early and return for lunch too) and can spend the best part of the day hiking and even some game drives around the Momella lakes as well. A lovely way to spend an active day. Dinner & overnight Original Maasai Lodge (fb).
Day 5
Leaving this area we return to the bikes to enjoy a mostly downhill ride towards Kilimanjaro airport, a lovely series of rolling hills into single tracks before linking up with the safari vehicle and transferring onto Arusha (for the super active we even have some rigourous routes uphill!). Lunch is taken in town, allowing us to sample true local cuisine a great local spot, before transferring on to Manyara, setting us up for our next adventures - game driving the Serengeti! Dinner & overnight Manyara (full board).
Day 6
The next 5 nights are dedication to the greater Serengeti eco system. Both game drives and mountain biking are incorporated into this journey, and in passing through all main areas of this vast 25,000 km sqaured eco system, you will really have a better sense of the facts surrounding issues such as conservation, the history of the game parks in Tanzania, the tribes and peoples of the area, and even paleoanthropology too! Our drive today takes us deep into the Serengeti, game driving on route before arriving in our camp for the evening. Serengeti mobile camp (full board).
Day 7
With a full day at our disposal to focus on game driving, and with information from our camp hosts and driver guides, we can plan accordingly. Depending on game location that could entail a super early start and departing with picnic breakfasts and back for lunch in camp before a late afternoon drive, or alternatively a longer more focused day away from camp returning for sundowners around the campfire in the evening. As always your guiding team is on hand to make this day as engaging as possible. DInner & overnight Serengeti mobile camp (full board).
Day 8
After breakfast it is time to move onto a different part of the larger eco system and we head out to a lodge in time for lunch. Here we meet our bikes again and have an afternoon ride to see the local area and start to understand the interaction of the local communities and the land they live in. For those that want a break this afternoon could also be an oppotunity to have some downtime around the pool before our next ride across the plains. Dinner & overnight Ololosokwan Lodge (full board).
Day 9
Riding the Serengeti eco system outside of the park is a great way to really have a larger understanding of what parks are, how communities interact in the buffer zones, and of course some great riding! There is a mix of single track and dirt tracks (all vehicle supported) as we eave our way down the eastern part of the Serengeti's eastern side. In the afernoon we head to our lofty camp set high up in huge kopjes with stunning views. For the next two nights fees are paid to local communities providing direct income opportunities from camping fees and employment. Dinner & overnight Kopje Camp (full board).
Day 10
Waking early coffee is served around the campfire before we head on riding south. We tend to allow different start and end points today (vehicle support) but medium to strong riders will finish the ride to our next camp set in ancient rock formations that hold evidence of millenia of movements of people and wildlife. These areas fringing what is now the Serengeti national park have always been home and havens to our species, as well as those that came before us (both man and beast!). A stunning place to reflect on our last few days. Dinner & overnight Piyaya Camp (full board).
Day 11
Ngorongoro is around 3 hours away, and so an early start is a good plan. We are able to head via Olduvai gorge, which is a great finale to the story of the Serengeti and really puts everything we have seen in the context of millions of years of pre history. These landscapes are ancient, dynamic and stunning. Our completion of the circumnavigation of this eco system leads us to the fabled Ngorongoro crater. Here we descend in the afternoon with picnic lunches. It is not a huge place and so a couple of hours in the mid afternoon will afford us some lovely light, dramatic hues of colour of the backdrop of the crater walls, and then we head on to our final night at a comfy lodge. Dinner & overnight Kirurumu Tented Lodge (full board).
Day 12
Our final day has no particular fixed commitments other than arriving in Arusha for lunch and transferring to meet international connections. Most people like to do some last minute retail therapy in town or connect from Lake Manyara or Arusha airstrip to further afield places such as Zanzibar or southern Tanzania.
SUGGESTIONS: link to Pangani by visiting the Usambara, fly to Zanzibar, fly to Ruaha + Nyerere, connect to Rwanda or Kenya or Uganda
PRICE GUIDELINE $5,500 per person
INCLUDES
Support vehicle with fridge (water + some soft drinks)
Picnic hamper with teas / coffee
Meals as noted in itinerary
Mountain bike with front suspension (send size info in advance, failure to do so may result in a smaller or larger bike than you are used to) - current stock is Titan Racing Drone ELITE model. Full suspension and electric on request (additional payment).
WFR certified bike guide
Wild camp “fly camp” fully serviced and independently moving
Simple bar in camp (red wine, beers, sodas, gin)
For a full list of includes and excludes please refer to your tour operator as itineraries in this region can be complicated and require many moving parts.
WHAT TO WEAR/ BRING
Sun hat
sunglasses
head torch
buff or lightweight neck gaiter (for keeping out dust)
rain shell
light fleece
long sleeve t shirt x 2
hiking trousers (zip off style are recommended so you have shorts too)
Mountain biking shorts (padded a good idea)
Your own peddles if clips are to be used (you can request in advance for our double sided ones too)
waterproof trousers
socks x 3 pairs
hiking shoes preferably with some decent ankle support
teva or flip flops for in camp
walking poles
gaiters for those that have low cut hiking shoes
water bottles x 3 enough to hold 3 Liters