Safari Stage One: Into The Maasai Mara
Our base for the first two nights of the safari adventure is Jambo Mara Lodge, where we are greeted by staff bearing those heartwarming smiles which are already becoming very familiar since our arrival in Kenya, and then by baboons swinging from the trees immediately outside our window. Every now and again a playful one leaps from the tree and pitter patters across our tin roof as if to warn us that this is the territory of the animals and not of mankind.
The approach through the Maasai Mara to Jambo has brought us through tiny villages which bear ever more recognisable features of the Maasai people, until in the last few settlements every adult male seems to be clad in the familiar deep red and black chequered blanket/robe of the tribe. One of the tallest races on Earth, most of them look to be well over six feet tall and roughly the same physique as the staff which they all carry. Little wonder that they’re able to jump so high.
A late lunch precedes our first foray out into the plains, following dusty tracks through grasslands and copses for an introductory 90-minute safari – and if this 90 minutes is the shape of things to come then we are in for a whole host of treats. Elephants, zebras, warthogs, impala and gazelles all make an appearance; water buffalo stare inquisitively at us as we do the same back to them, but for sheer numbers it’s the wildebeeste which take the crown. An amazing introduction.
Back at the Lodge, falling asleep takes time: we have an unashamedly childlike excitement about us as we anticipate the joy of the next few days.
Day 2 is a pre-dawn start, joining again our travelling companions for the first few days here: Delia, Jenny and Annette from Switzerland, Jose from Colombia and Ashlan from Delhi. Oh, and our expert driver and guide Stanley, who quickly activates the CB radio which even at 6:30am is already alive with guides sharing information on the whereabouts of the big five, and others.
We wonder how each guide is able to respond to such a trigger – the Maasai Mara is almost 600 square miles in size and is latticed with mostly indistinguishable dirt tracks and grassy trails through which the jeeps and minivans make their way. I mean, it’s not like one ranger can say “drive down Main Street, turn right at the lights and then take the third turning on the left by the pub and you’ll find a lion”….is it!?
It’s not long before we have a magnificent encounter with an elephant family, which is an early indicator of the tone for the day. There’s really no point firing off a list of everything we saw, better that we just litter this post with some of Michaela’s very many wonderful photographs, but it’s fair to say that the sheer number and variety of animals to be seen here is nothing short of magnificent.
Do we have a highlight from today? There are many, but our first ever sighting of a leopard has got to be a candidate. But then again, it’s been a day packed with highlights.
36 Comments
Lynette d'Arty-Cross
Beautiful photos! Seeing the animals is such an amazing experience.
Phil & Michaela
We’re just coming to the end of our safari week and it’s been brilliant!
Heyjude
Exciting! The one thing I don’t like about some safaris is how all the vans rush to one scene and practically encircle the animals. I hope that’s not the case here. BTW that’s a mongoose not a meerkat. Meerkats are much prettier 😁 Great photos Michaela – I only wish I had had a digital camera when I went camping around southern Africa.
Phil & Michaela
Well the jury’s out for us on that one, Jude. At times it does feel intrusive and that money is talking louder than animal welfare. To accept it, we’re telling ourselves that there’s thousands of square miles of free roaming and only a handful of tracks, so hopefully the majority stay undisturbed. We’ll most likely put notes about this when we do our last safari post. And of course you’re right about the mongoose – caption altered now!
Helen Devries
Wonderful photographs of wonderful beasts.
Phil & Michaela
Thank you Helen. I think someone once made the same comment about my school photo 😂😂
Helen Devries
Were you the one who ran from one side to the other to be in the photo twice?
Phil & Michaela
More likely the one pulling faces I’m afraid.
Travels Through My Lens
Amazing photos and experience!
Phil & Michaela
The sheer quantity of wildlife is just incredible.
Miriam
Your photos are truly magnificent. Such stunning encounters, all of them, you must be in wildlife heaven. Keep enjoying this magical adventure.
Phil & Michaela
It really is amazing, Miriam – the sheer numbers and variety are incredible.
Alison
Fantastic photos and so close too. If people didn’t go to these safaris there wouldn’t be the money to care for them, one way of looking at it. Travellers are also providing jobs.
Phil & Michaela
No doubt there’s good and bad…there’s definitely good sides to improvement to local economy.
Toonsarah
Fantastic animal photos, especially that roaring lion! You clearly had some great sightings 🙂 As always the elephants are my favourite (love that one sliding down the bank!) but the leopard is special too f course – well, they all are!
Phil & Michaela
And that was only the first of five different locations! We’re just at the end of it tonight and it’s been a catalogue of fabulous sightings. Just so much to take in.
Toonsarah
I look forward to seeing more!
grandmisadventures
Wow what an incredible experience and beautiful pictures of the many animals you saw! If this is day one then I think you are definitely in for a great trip 🙂
Phil & Michaela
So many amazing sightings!
WanderingCanadians
Heck, even the introductory safari sounds like it was amazing! It’s incredible how much wildlife you managed to see. Michaela definitely took some wonderful photographs.
Phil & Michaela
It’s just stunning how many wonderful sights present themselves. Lots of wow moments!
Phil & Michaela
It’s incredible how many amazing sights present themselves. Incredible!
Parks and Planes
Spectacular photos! What an experience to stand right on the border like that too.
Phil & Michaela
Thank you guys…so many great sightings…
Lookoom
I’m always surprised when I see photos or videos of safaris that the animals don’t run away when the cars approach, they hardly even look at them.
Phil & Michaela
They’re well used to it…although some species are more wary than others. I don’t feel totally at ease when the whole viewing thing starts to feel a bit too intrusive.
Annie Berger
The shots of the lion(s) roaring are top notch, stupendous, fantastic, etc, etc. Award-winning in my opinion. Can’t wait to read about the rest of your safari experiences!
Phil & Michaela
Cheers Annie, Michaela is very flattered.
Annie Berger
Well deserved!
Latitude Adjustment: A Tale of Two Wanderers
This is so amazing. You got some great shots. Will be curious how your thoughts are on the company you hired. Cheers!
Phil & Michaela
The company was very good indeed, well organised, tailored the trip exactly to our requests and provided us (as you’ll see in later posts) with a really good guide/driver. Go East Africa Safaris, based in Nairobi.
Latitude Adjustment: A Tale of Two Wanderers
Thanks folks!
wetanddustyroads
Wow… I’m in awe! Africa has welcomed you properly with so many wildlife sightings! Michaela’s photos are amazing – those elephants and lions … just wow! And the warthogs – I suddenly have a longing for our recent weekend in the Addo!
Phil & Michaela
It has been amazing. I’m not sure we really thought we’d get quite so many fantastic sightings!
Cherryl
You got some amazing captures there, even the leopard, I remember hearing that leopards are very hard to spot, they’re quite shy and tend to hide (during game drives on an India trip).
Phil & Michaela
Some amazing sightings during our safari week, that’s for sure