Selous GR

Rufiji river

Read about our trips here
Dec 2012 - Christmas in Selous

Aug 2013 - A long weekend
Jan 2015 - New Year's in the South

Overview
The Selous Game Reserve is one of the largest faunal reserves of the world, located in the south of Tanzania. It was named after Englishman Sir Frederick Selous, a famous big game hunter and early conservationist. The reserve covers a total area of 54,600 km² (21,100 sq mi) and has additional buffer zones.  90% of the reserve is used for hunting concessions, while the remaining 10% north of the Rufiji river is used for phototourism.

When did we go? 
December 2012, during the short rains.
August 2013, in the dry
January 2015, in the rain again.

The road to Selous

Getting there
Selous is about 230 km from Dar, and the first 130km is on tar.  From there, it's a slow going road that is rough in places, but not a problem for a 4WD.  Although this could change depending on how much rain has fallen; I wouldn't like to do it during the long rains.  The beauty of the trip out and into Dar is that there is virtually no traffic, and the road - although a main one to the South of Tanzania - is pretty deserted.  The trip took us 6 hours and got us to the east gate of Mtemere.  There is another entrance on the north west side which you access from Morogoro/Mikumi, but I don't know anything about it or the driving conditions.

Mtemere gate

Roads in the park
There is a vast network of roads that lead in and out of the main river and lakes, which can become somewhat confusing! Be careful of getting lost ;)   The major issue we had was the road conditions once the roads got a bit of water on them - not ideal when you're visiting in the rainy season ;)  Sections of the main road, and parts of the others are black cotton soil, so as soon as the road gets wet, the mud cakes the tyres of the car, and you lose all traction... not good when you've got a couple of kilometers of driving.  We struggled on the road, it's extremely slippery... you have been warned ;) The roads closer to the river are mainly sand, so with the rain it wasn't too bad, and in the dry not too sandy although there were a few tough patches. All in all, roads for the adventurous with a decent 4WD...

Elephants on the banks of the Rufiji river

Accommodation
There are 2 types of accommodation in the park - luxury tented camps or public campsites.  All the lodges seem well positioned with river views, and some with swimming pools which will make a huge difference in the hot season. Looking at the park, the recommendation would be those that meander along the main lakes from the Mtemere gate on the east side of the park. I think almost all lodges close during the long rains (Mar - Jun) when roads become impassable.

Mating lions

Camping facilities
Need to be fully geared.
We didn't camp inside this time around, mainly due to the armed ranger requirement (see under Other Logistics). The major problem that we see is that the public campsite is far, far away from the eastern side, and that also seems to be the prime game viewing area.  We estimate it's probably almost a half day's drive (dependent of course on road conditions), so it's just not practical to head back and forth.  There are a few lakes in the area, and the campsite is supposedly very beautiful, but we have no idea as yet from first hand experience what the actual camping and game viewing is like around there.

The campsite at Selous River Camp

Other accommodation
The option we chose was to stay outside the Mtemere gate and drive in every day, which has its own frustrations (see under Wildlife viewing). We stayed at Selous River Camp, which has a pretty basic campsite, but well worth the money at $5 pppn ;)  The campground is pretty small, so it'll be pretty crowded if there are a few campers staying - we were lucky and had it all to ourselves for the 4 days the first time around.  Our next trip, we actually camped in the carpark instead!  Otherwise, cold showers (a necessity!) and flushing toilets, and an area under cover to do the cooking and stuff if it rains. 
Update Jan 2015: They have now built their own tents in the campground, so space is very limited.  You may need to contact them ahead of time, as they may have built more and no longer have a place for rooftents.

Blue-cheeked bee-eater

A nice bonus was the sightings of black and white colobus monkeys that jumped between the trees, and a few bushbabies that visited us at night. 
We did check out some of the other places to stay outside the park on our way back home, and the biggest problem for self-drivers with roof tents is the lack of campsites (a common problem in Tanzania).  Only Hippo camp seemed to be okay if we wanted to camp with car, although we didn't check out every single place.

Wildlife viewing
This is from self-drivers' perspective camping outside the gate and who is looking for cats:
The gate opens very late in the morning (well, relatively) - 6.30am in summer and the sun is already quite high.  By the time all the paperwork is done (we had to fill out the paperwork every morning) so it's almost 7am before you can actually start driving.  (We figured out on our second trip that you can actually pay for all the days in advance, so that cut some of the time down)

To get to good game viewing areas (where the bush isn't so thick you can't see 10 meters in) takes about 20 minutes, so if you're looking for cats, you can imagine the frustration.  Especially since it's so hot that come 8am the cats are already looking for shade!  Chances are that by the time you find any lions, they're going to be sleeping. 

A rare sighting - civet

Similarly, the prime game driving time in the afternoon, is spent trying to get back to the gate as it closes at 6pm.  Of course, if you're staying at one of the lodges, that's not a problem as they can be out first in the morning and last in at the end of the day.  For 2 people who are obsessed with cat time, it's extremely frustrating to be back at camp outside the park before the sun has set...

Waterbuck

We did however see lions (yes, mainly sleeping) - we saw members of 3 prides between the east gate and Lake Manze, although there are probably more, which is good.  Wild dogs are often seen near the eastern side between Impala camp and the gate, and we were very unlucky not to catch them.  Selous also gave us our rarest sighting up to now - a civet in the morning sun.  Plenty giraffe and impala.  Elephants were scattered, mainly due to them not needing to come down to the river to drink every day.  Same story with most of the animals - with the rains having arrived, there is no need to drink from the river, and the herds have dispersed.

Tree climbing lions

Wildness factor
After Ruaha NP, it's the wildest park that we've been to so far. There's not too many other game drive vehicles, although sightings of lions did get quite a few cars at a time. 

Other logistics
TANAPA card needed? NO, they are not part of TANAPA.  You can pay cash when you get there.
Cost? expensive... $75pppd (we think), camping is another $30pppd in the park and then you also need an armed ranger at $20pd (see below)  Those are the current prices as at December 2014, but good luck finding an official website that gives the most current rates - I still haven't found one.
Booking ahead? Not to get into the park. You may want to check if there is accommodation available if you are staying outside the park, especially if you have a rooftent as places are limited.
Armed ranger - It's mandatory to take along an armed ranger when you are camping.  Costs $20 per night, and I believe you need to provide dinner, but he brings his own camping equipment (I think) - check with the Park HQ.

Running zebras

Guide - It's recommended by Selous, but not mandatory to take a guide when self-driving.  There are some advantages in that he will know where the game is and will make sure you don't get lost ;)  We didn't take one (got lost a few times, but still managed to find our way back)  $20 for the day I believe.
Driving offroad - According to the tour guides, the rule in Selous is that you can drive offroad for one of the big 5 sightings, or the wild dogs, and you can drive up to 300m from the main road.
Map - we got a map at the gate, but this is not always reliable, so helpful if you can get one beforehand.

Our impression
How many times have we been? 2
Would we go again? Yes.  We've been both in the wet and the dry and it's definitely a dry season park in terms of driving.  Along with Mikumi, it's the closest reserve to Dar and great for a long weekend.