Summit Family Surprised By Cheetah On Safari

SUMMIT, NJ - Jennifer Shimek and her family brought home more than the usual vacation photos from their trip to Tanzania, they came home with video of a memorable close encounter with a curious cheetah.

While on a safari tour in Serengeti a cheetah leapt up on to the roof of the open-roofed jeep right in front of them.

"I was so scared for them and just hoping it was not going to come to our vehicle," said Jennifer Shimek, who was travelling with her husband and twin 17-year-olds Kaitlin and Ryan. "As you can see all of the vehicles have roofs that are open and I was so scared he would come in."

Shimek has lived in Summit since 2013, when the family relocated from Florida. The trip was designed to be a fun adventure before the twins senior year of high school, she said.

"We also try to make sure our kids are worldly and love to travel and explore," Shimek told Patch.

Shimek said that son Ryan really wanted to see a cheetah and he was not disappointed.

"We had just arrived at the Serengeti and happened to see the two cheetahs on top of the termite mound. Little did we know it would be so exciting in a few moments," Shimek said.

While the cheetah was prowling about the roof of the other jeep, Shimek said she was concerned the animal might turn its attention to them.

"I asked the guide what would we do if the cheetah came in the car. He said sit very still," Shimek said. "I said 'sit still, are you crazy?' But if you jumped out of the vehicle there are other animals around."

Despite the spike of adrenaline and blood pressure, Shimek said it was a good experience.

"It was just so amazing to see how beautiful this cheetah was and so up close," she said. "The lions and lionesses were equally as beautiful and amazing."

The Shimek clan began their adventure into Kilimanjaro, stayed in Arusha for two nights and then began the adventure in the national game park call Tarangire. From there they went to Lake Manyara National Park, the Ngorongoro Crater and finished the journey in the Serengeti.

"As you can imagine, when we first pulled into the park it was breathtaking. Animals upon animals. And we were so close to them," Shimek said. "Elephants right next to the safari jeep. Giraffes eating from the trees. Zebras and their babies running in front of our cars and crossing the road. Wildebeests migrating from the Serengeti in Tanzania to the Masai Mara Serengeti in Kenya."

Shimek said that everyone wanted to see the "big five," lion, cape buffalo, elephant, rhino and leopard.

"We saw them all except the Rhino," she said.

The family also tried "glamping" in two spots. Little Oliver's Camp in Tarangire and then the Serengeti Migration Camp.

"Both so amazing. You literally had to have a guide escort you back to your tent/structure thing from dinner because of the animals. I was hidden behind the guide at the Serengeti Migration camp as we had to walk past the hippos and cape buffalo, no lie 50 feet or so from us. I have watched enough Discovery Channel to know that those animals are aggressive and it was dark and you could see their glowing eyes," Shimek said. "I was scared but invigorated."

During the glamping experience, Shimek said the tent/structure at night they heard animals all night.

"Including the roaring of lions," she said. "I just prayed I made it back to New Jersey. You just really can't believe how close you are to these animals and how they just live amongst these guides in the bush. Truly a life changing experience. Although I do have to say the tsetse fly were quite annoying and I could live without seeing them again."

Despite some of the misgivings, Shimek said the overall trip was amazing.

"Such a great adventure that everyone should try if possible, including the 12 seater plane that we had to fly back to Arusha taking off from a dirt road," she said. "But we lived to tell about it."

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