The full day in the Masai Mara National Park, centered on the Keekorok Lodge
was the high point of the safari and fittingly the last full day. It was a long
day, with three game drives and an extended dinner.
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Early Morning
We started at 6am before sunrise. We briefly considered the
balloon safari which started around the same time and finished with a
champagne breakfast, but the price seemed excessive, so we were back in the
Kuoni van.
Just outside the gates we saw our first giraffe of the day
and just down the track we were able to watch the hot air balloons taking
off.
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The Black Rhino
After twenty minutes or so searching for interesting
wildlife, suddenly our driven was off with a sense of purchase.
One of the handful of black rhino in the park had been
spotted for the first time in some weeks. The black rhino was extinct in
East Africa, but a small number, maybe 20 pairs were reintroduced into the
Masai Mara and with careful protection are surviving.
As we arrived to join several other buses, the rhino was
walking ponderously across the track and into the bushes. We got a good view
and were even able to see the birds that enjoy a symbiotic relationship with
the rhinos.
Missing out the hot air balloon was the right decision ..
those who took the ride enjoyed the tranquility, and the breakfast, but saw
little game.
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The vultures were a common reminder of the realities of life
in the Mara. The big cats are predators that live by hunting and the
vultures are a sign of their success.
We saw vultures with the remnants of a kill, vultures
circling in the air waiting for the big cats to eat their fill and vultures
perched on trees, looking for the opportunity to eat.
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As on previous days, we encountered plenty of antelopes,
such as these xxxxx. Thanks to their natural timidity, most of the
time, we had rear views of deer running away from the road.
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Cheetah Hunt
Once again there we reports of cheetahs and lots of
vans converged on a stretch of grass where there was apparently a cheetah in
hiding. We did get a fleeting sight, but the cheetah seemed inclined to
sleep rather than hunt.
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Every so often we were reminded of the reality of life in
the wild. This lion and lioness were still gorging on a recent kill, with a
vulture in the background waiting for anything that is left behind.
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Back at Keekorok Lodge for breakfast and a short break
before the next game drive, we were able to enjoy the Golden Weaver
and Superb Starling.
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Walking back to our room after breakfast we came across a
group of very tame Vervet Monkeys enjoying the grounds.
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Mid Morning Game Drive
Although the Mara River is one of the most impressive
areas of the whole Masai Mara area, the distance from the lodge means that
it is not included in the normal itinerary. Before we left Nairobi, we
were invited to make arrangements with our driver if we wanted to do
anything not in the plan. Our driver, John was able to arrange an
additional drive to the Mara River.
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The main objective of the drive was to get to the Mara
river, so we only stopped twice and then briefly. The first stop was for
this flock of vultures cleaning out a day old kill.
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The second stop was for a group of Ostriches. We saw
quite a few ostriches, but they were usually in the far distance .. this
group of four was about the closest we saw.
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Once at the Mara river, we passed by the most popular
viewing spot on on the North bank of the river and crossed over the bridge
and drove along the South bank.
This nine inch long Red-Headed Agama was basking on a
rock in the sun near one of out stops.
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The Mara River
Well know to anyone who watches wildlife TV programs, the
crocodile infested Mara River crosses the plain from East to West, flowing
towards Lake Victoria. At all times of the year it is a muddy brown colour
and has steep banks.
It is famous as the barrier that herds of Wildebeests and
Zebra have to cross twice in their annual migration from the Serengeti to
the Masai Mara and return following the rains.
We were a few days too late to see the migration.
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For a while we struggled to identify this strange bird with
the long curved beak, but eventually realised that is was a xxxx
trying to swallow a rather large fish. We watched for quite a long time but
never did see whether the bird managed to eat the ish.
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By now we were getting used to stopping to fix tyres. This
time, after one of the stops, the van refused to restart.
John was rather worried. We were a long way from the base
with no other vans close and as the bones a few feet away showed, there were
dangerous animals around.
After some time fiddling the battery, John decided that we
needed to push, so we all got out. It was good to get out of the van to walk
around, but John was obviously nervous.
The problem was a jammed starter motor and one push was
enough to unstick it.
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Crocodiles
We came to the Mara River to see hippos and crocodiles, and
we were not disappointed. As we drove further West along the river bank we
progressively got closer to the water and the crocodiles, who
certainly seemed well fed.
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Hippos
Seeing the hippopotami in the water, it was difficult to
realise that these docile looking animals are responsible for more deaths
than any other species in Africa!
They come out of the water at night to graze (they are
herbivores) and if anything gets in their way they are short sighted, very
heavy and can move remarkably quickly. They never stray more than a few
miles from water .. their skin needs to be kept moist.
Along the Mara River there were several groups keeping cool
and wet, including a family with a calf and one which looked terminally
sick.
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Once we had our fill of crocodiles and hippos (and restarted
the van) we started to retrace our tracks.
In the heat of the middle of the day, most animals were
sensible and in shade. Exceptions included a group of Giraffes and a
small herd of Thomson's Gazelles.
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The border between Tanzania and Kenya is very close to the
Mara River. A short diversion of the main track just North of the river
crossing took us briefly into Tanzania. The border is marked with a rather
inconspicuous stone, with T and K marked on in chalk. There is certainly no
border post and no customs.
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The Team
The last game drive of the day (and of the whole safari) was
in the late afternoon. Before we set off, we took the opportunity to get a
photograph of the "team" from the van.
Left to right: Eileen Maxsted, Debbie and Tim Quilter, John
the driver, Sue and Mike Lambert.
Kneeling: Brian Maxsted.
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In many respects, the last game drive was more of the same,
but in many respects a fitting end.
The vultures were closer and more revolting and they fought
to pick out the eyes of the dead zebra.
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We got pretty close to the lion, who really didn't want to
know anything about us.
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We had to choose between giraffes and elephants, so we only
saw this group of giraffes at a distance.
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It was a good choice. We came across a family of elephants
cross the track. One of the large males started to get a little menacing, so
for the only time in the week, John backed off.
Apart from that we were right in the middle of them,
including the youngster and watched them until the disappeared into the
bushes.
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The previous afternoon we were caught in rain and got a
little wet and cold. There was obviously heavy rain in some places but we
managed to escape. It did get very dark.
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Zebra and Wildebeest
The zebra and wildebeest stay pretty well together in their
annual migration. The herds are enormous .. over a million animals migrate
around the plains.
Most of the time they move in well organised groups, with a
clear sense of purpose.
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"Big" John - Our driver
Before dinner, John joined us in the bar for the only time
of the week and told us something of his life. If he is to be believed, in
addition to being a long-standing tour driver, he also turns his hands to
writing plays and broadcasting.
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Dinner
However Kuoni arranged people into vans, it seemed to work.
We got on pretty well with the other two couples in the van and the final
dinner was a leaisurely affair with a reasonable amount of wine.
After dinner, we called for an armed guard (actually armed
with a long stick and a torch) and went to investigate the nature walk. It
was something of an anti-climax, with absolutely nothing to be seen around
the illuminated water hole.
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Mosquito nets
We were always aware of the mosquitoes. We started on Larium
tablets before we left home. Several other people blamed various symptoms on
Larium, which has a reputation for side-effects, but Sue and I didn't
suffer.
During the early morning and late afternoon/evening, we used
mosquito repellant and at night (apart from Treetops) slept under mosquito
nets.
Sue had a few bites, but by and large we had no problems.
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