This valley is spectacular not only for its landscape but also for the presence of animals, both herbivorous and carnivores, thanks to its permanent water sources.
 
Compared to the rest of the Serengeti, the best big cats, i.e. lions, leopards and cheetahs, abound in the Lobo Valley; as well as in Seronera, this is the only place where you can view all of them on the same day. 
 
The second largest lion pride of the Serengeti National Park lives here; the Lobo pride comprises about 26 individuals; it is quite common to spot them while dozing at kopjes during the hottest days.
 
Food sources are certainly not lacking here: there is an extraordinary concentration of preys; the Great Migration passes through this valley and some herds linger here in the dry season; this is the happiest time for lions because food is always assured.
 
The Lobo Valley is a pristine, remarkable place of great beauty, scattered with woodlands, open plains, ranges of hills and spectacular granite kopjes; there are different sources of water, such as Gaboti River, Bololgedi River and Lobo Springs.
 
The dominant feature in the valley is Lobo Hill, which flanks the Eastern side of the valley.
 
The right time to visit is in the dry season, from July to November, the best months are from September to November when the dry season is near to the end and the animals are all concentrated on where to find water sources for their survival; in these months Lobo becomes one of the best places in all of East Africa to spot the animals.
 
Also in November the Great Migration passes through Lobo Valley on the way back to the fertile pastures of the South; sometimes the herds stop here waiting to hear in the distance the first thunders announcing the start of the rainy season; wildebeests can be viewed here also in June and July as they migrate Northwards; some of them stay here for the duration of the dry season.
 
This valley was first explored by Stewart White in 1913, and little has changed since then.
 
It is quite common spotting stealthy leopards on the shady branches of the fever acacia trees lining the banks of the rivers and springs in Lobo Valley; one of the best places from where to view these wonderful cats is the Lobo Springs.
 
During the dry season cheetahs can be viewed from the plains in Lobo Valley, where they can find Thomson's gazelles, their favourite prey, while in the green season cheetahs move following the migration of gazelles coming down Southwards and stopping in South-East Serengeti.
 
At the center of the valley, near the Lobo Lodge, there are often old male buffalos or groups of young males; while it is rare to see the herds of female buffalos as they usually prefer the dense forests farther Northwards.
 
A close-up to kopjes reveals the small klipspringer, who usually lives on rocky surfaces, on which it can walk easily due to the particular structure of its legs.
 
The Lobo Valley is home to the largest concentration of elephants in the Serengeti, one of the two largest populations of these pachyderms present in the Serengeti ecosystem: one is indeed present in North and West Serengeti and the Masai Mara in Kenya; while the other resides in the South, in Kusini, Ndutu, Masawa and Edulen.
 
Elephants present here have a different and opposite behaviour compared to other herbivorous: they gather in the Lobo Valley during the green season and disperse during the dry season.
 
The other animals residing in this area of the Serengeti National Park are: impalas, warthogs, giraffes, topi antelopes, hartebeests, baboons, vervet monkeys, dik-diks and hyraxes.
 

The areas of Northern Serengeti

  • Lobo Valley
  • Upper Grumeti Woodlands
  • Mara River
  • Kogatenge Ranger Post
  • Lamai Triangle
  • Wogakuria
  • Bologonja Springs