RTG Southern Cross Daily Dispatch low-res - Flipbook - Page 32
15 February to 5 March 2020
Day 16
Serengeti to Ngorongoro (166 km)
2 March 2020
The East African deluge continued today and we pretty much splashed our way through from one
Tanzanian National Park to the next. There was only 166 km in the book but, make no mistake, this was
a full day of endurance rallying.
Unfortunately, there had been a lot of rain overnight
as well, so this morning it meant a wet and bumpy ride
through the Serengeti to the first Passage Control and
fuel pump set alongside the airstrip at Seronera. Here the
cars were supposed to fill their tanks but, thanks to the
adverse weather, the delivery tanker hadn’t been able to
get through. So, the cars were allowed only 20 litres of fuel
each to get them to the end of the day, some 131 km away.
There was no timing today though, so most crews set
their engine management systems to eco mode and made
their way carefully along the rutted roads, keeping one eye
on the scenery and another - more nervous one - on the
fuel gauge.
The second Passage Control was at the Naabi Hill Gate
which took us out of the Serengeti and straight into the
Ngorongoro Conservation area. There was some queueing
here, but at least there was a coffee shop with decent
chocolate and a working espresso machine.
The Ngorongoro National Park is home to some fantastic
wildlife as well as the local, and colourfully dressed, Maasai
herders, who tend their cattle alongside “the big five”, much
as they have done for centuries. The huge herds of zebra,
wildebeest, gazelle and giraffe went about their business
almost oblivious to our passing. Although the scenery was
impressive and the animals were plentiful, some of the
crews had problems to deal with.
Keith and Norah Ashworth’s Bentley lost its battery box
almost within sight of the park entrance and needed a
ratchet strap and some help with the jack from David and Jo
Roberts. Dieter and Hildegard Baumhäeckel’s Volvo suffered
a little more; at the Naabi Hill Passage Control Andy Inskip
and Jamie Turner sorted out some problems with its rear
suspension, only to have the front suspension arm to snap
a few kilometres down the road. Andy and Jamie set to it
once again lashing the old Swede back together with a fix
sufficiently robust to get them into the night halt.
Keith Graham and Susan Hoffmann’s Mercedes’ cooling
system sprang a leak which was skilfully plugged by one of
the organisers, under the watchful eye of several curious
and camera shy Maasai. At least there was plenty of water
lying around to refill the radiator once the job was done.
Michael and Eunice McInerney ran out of fuel about 12
km from the end, the Mustang spluttered to a halt but
was rescued by Bernd and Christiane Dannenmaier who
generously donated one of their signature red jerry cans to
the stricken soft top so it could make it up and over the lip
of the caldera and into the sanctuary of the Serena Crater
Lodge. The Dannenmaier’s own little blue FJ Landcruiser,
Photos: gerardbrown.co.uk
www.rallytheglobe.com
