Greetings From the Yaeda Valley!

A group of students photograph the sun setting over the Yaeda Valley. Photo Credit:  Steven Pope

A group of Wildlife students observe the African Spoonbill from a distance. Photo credit: Stephen Pope

A young Hadza hunter examines the Kirk’s dikdik that he caught during the morning hunt. Photo credit: Kimberly Blasnik

Mel Cleary laughs as she struggles to set her arrow during target practice. Photo credit: Aileen Hearn

Three Hadza use smoke to draw bees out of the hive in order to retrieve honey. Photo credit: Kimberly Blasnik

We’ve made the trip from the chilly Nou Forest to the sweltering Yaeda Valley. It was a full day of truck travel, but driving in Tanzania is never boring. We stopped at a wetland along the way to see some Great Crested Grebes, a bird rarely found in Tanzania. Once in the valley we were fortunate to spend time with the Hadza, a tribe of hunter-gatherers. Early one morning we ventured out with the Hadza hunters and returned successful with a Kirk’s dikdik and klipspringer. Upon returning from an exciting morning of hunting, a small group of wildlife students headed to a seasonal wetland for an afternoon of birding while the rest of the group hiked to a cave containing ancient rock art from an unknown tribe. That evening the Hadza prepared klipspringer kabobs with a side of Kirk’s dikdik stew, it was delicious! After our exotic dinner, the Hadza treated us to a night of traditional song and dance around the campfire. The following day, ten brave students made the 24km trek to meet the rest of the group at our second campsite in the Yaeda Valley. The Hadza then shared with us the art of hand-crafted arrows or “mishale” after which we had target practice. Our best archers were Erin Cordiner, Carly Burrus, Stephen Pope, and Matt Fischel. We were instructed to use “power” when drawing the bow and the Hadza were thoroughly entertained when Stephen Pope, in his concentration, cracked the bow in two. On our final day in the valley we joined the Hadza women in their village to dig tubers or “mizizi”, a potato-like root. We also had the opportunity to sample raw honey from a hive in a nearby Acacia tree. Our time with the Hadza has been unforgettable. We have been inspired by the pride they take in their work and the fun they having doing it!