Visiting the popular Tanzanian WHS has the disadvantage that it is difficult to organize it yourself - the best, and sometimes the only option, is to buy a safari. This is not my favorite sightseeing style, and when a travel agent offered me $ 500 for a 2-day trip to Kolo from Arusha, I had no hesitation in renting a car and driving there on my own. The rental itself is also not the cheapest - the standard rate for the smallest Toyota Rav 4 variant is $ 80 per day, but it gave me the freedom I wanted.

The road to Kolo is about 250 kilometers, which I covered in less than 4 hours. Even though the road is very nearly perfect, it is not worth going too fast, especially in residential areas - the Tanzanian police love to catch drivers in the least expected way. I paid fine twice - once caught by a policeman sitting in a truck, the second time when he took a picture of me perfectly on the line of the speed limit sign. "This is Tanzania, man," one of the drivers caught in the limitation told me. The fine is 30k TZS (approximately $ 12), regardless of the offense.

The Visitors Center is right on the Arusha-Dodoma road, it is impossible to miss it. There are supposedly a few guides waiting on site, so you don't have to book anything in advance - especially since, as I saw in the book of visits, there aren't too many tourists. My guide was honestly surprised to see mzungu without a driver and thought that I live permanently in Tanzania. If it was true, it would entitle me to a considerable discount on the fee.

The guide explained me how to get to all inscribed places, but I got the impression that he discouraged me from visiting sites other than the nearest ones, ie B1, B2 and B3. Considering the time constraints and not wanting to come back after dark, I decided to only go there. B-sites are a few kilometers from the Visitors Center, on a very poor road which, although it doesn't look, can be traveled by a normal car (I saw how the park rangers did it). Sites B1, B2 and B3 are located in caves on the hills, requiring a bit of climbing (quite demanding, but not too much - I did the route in flip-flops with terribly sore feet after trekking in Kilimanjaro NP the previous day). Nice views of the surrounding area are a reward.

As for the rock art itself, I got what I expected but didn't get the wow effect. The drawings show standard animals, hunting scenes and everyday life. Though they appeared clearly visible, they appear rather pale in my photos. Compared to the wonderful (and much older) drawings from Serra da Capivara in Brazil, seen by me a month earlier, they are definitely weaker. But overall this is a nice site worth visiting.