Maasi Mara

A few weeks ago we went on Safari. I wrote this and never posted. Enjoy.

Feet away from our van sit four lioness silently stalking their prey. In the distance sits a majestic Tope, perched on a rock, looking out for his children and women as they grazed. The lions kept their distance and creeped into formation. Everything was going according to plan until a van moved exposing one of the lions to the male Tope. He ran and his herd followed. This is life in Maasi Mara. A place where humans can come and interact, albeit from a distance, with extraordinary wildlife. Humans can at the same instant provide cover for a hunting animal and completely ruin its plans of attack. These lions seemed to shrug it off easily enough and regrouped, scanning the plains for another potential meal. As the sun began to fall between the mountains we had to wait until morning to see if these lions had any success.

We didn't come across this pride the next day but saw at least three others including one napping next to the carcass of a wildabeast. The day started with a search for the ever elusive cheetah. As the fruitless search wore on we found ourselves mere feet from a pack of giraffes, some hyenas, and large herds of gazelle. By mid morning we had moved into the heart of Maasi Mara characterized by large swaths of open grazing lands in the area between two ranges of hills. Here we happened across a herd of elephants intent on protecting a new born from our sight. As we drove on the elephants watched with ears at attention ready to force us away. After eating a surprisingly delicious boxed lunch we walked along the banks of the Mara river viewing countless hippopotamus almost completely submerged. As we approached a bend in the river a 7 foot crocodile slid off the bank and into the water. This bend will play a crucial role in the annual wildabeast migration that begins in July. It's at this junction where predators sit and wait for easy prey. The rest of the afternoon provided more of the same; a relaxing yet exciting ride through one of earths greatest natural environments.

Early the next morning we set out for our final game drive. We reached the park in time to see the sun emerge from behind the distant mountains. As we drove away from our first view point our driver noticed something perched on a far off hillside. These could be cheetahs. I quickly took a picture zooming in on the image as far as I could. Confirmed, we headed fast in their direction. We were the first van to arrive. The morning air was cool and these cheetahs looked hungry and ready to hunt. Cheetahs shy by nature and once more vehicles showed up they disappeared into the tall grass. Upwind from where the cheetahs disappeared sat a large herd of gazelle. We waited between the tall grass and gazelle for the predators to emerge. After thirty minutes, nothing. We moved on. Not so long after we stumbled upon a large pride of lions, twelve strong lying in some tall grass. They were hunting. Some Buffalo anxiously stood guard in the distance. Before we could see a kill however we had to head out. Our created world beckoned and we had to leave this raw, untamed nature behind.