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Leaving Sunbird Lodge behind, we began the long journey towards the Mara. From 8am - 12noon it was all highway, driving past local farmers & the Masai herding their cows & goats alongside the road, cringing at the driving of locals and laughing at some of the loads we saw on bikes, vans & buses. We then hit the turn off to our destination and from here on out it was dirt road, most of it corrugated, muddy & quite bumpy. Before long we were in the Mara North Conservancy and our game viewing began. We stopped just past a small village for a stretch of the legs before continuing & looking up, the local kids were running our way, hoping to reach us before we left. Surprisingly, they didn't ask for anything which most kids do. Just happy to watch us and have their photo taken so they could look at it.
We soon came across animals & we could see wildebeest as far as the eye could see. Lots of grazing animals which are great to watch but we were really hoping to see one of the big cats. Before long, we got our wish and 2 lionesses were posing on some rocks. Behind a tree there was another lioness and two cubs which we couldn't get very close to. They weren't bothered by our presence in the least. You watch their mannerisms and they really are like the kittens you have back home, just bigger teeth & paws!!
Continuing our search, we started making our way to our camp or so we thought. Our driver got a tiny bit muddled up where he was and drove to a new camp that is still being built. They directed him further left so off we went again. Some of these tracks (they don't deserve to be called roads) are pretty eroded and we sometimes wondered if we were going to be bogged. We went down another track towards a camp and again, the wrong one. The sun was slowly setting and we were worried about being stuck out in the dark even though our driver kept saying 'no worries'. Directed further left again off we went, over rocks & through mud. Mum spotted two Jackals on the drive out so at least something came out of being lost. Further left we continued and then down another track, hopefully this time the correct one. However, before long he stopped himself and turned around once more. 3rd time was not the charm this time. Spotting another vehicle he asked for directions once again and off we set, fingers crossed we were going to find our camp because we seriously needed the bathroom!!
Very excited to finally find the camp and out we jumped to find the bathroom, not even looking at our surroundings. When we did look around, we were excited to see hippos in the river outside the main part of the camp. The manager welcomed us with an umbrella (those afternoon rains again) and a drink. We were shown to our 'tent' and given a cow bell. This is to ring when we want to leave the tent at night so someone will come & collect us. We have a lovely big deck out front that is covered and overlooks the river and the main tent is divided into two. The beds are in the main part and the back section is the toilet & sinks. You unzip the back part of the tent which leads out to the shower which is half under cover and half out in the open but a high brush fence all the way around.
After the long dusty ride, I braved the shower even though it was raining. Was going to get wet anyway but the water was lovely and hot. As I stood there, you could hear the hippos bellowing in the river. When we were ready to leave, we rang our bell and a guard with a spear came to meet us. He walked with us to the main part of the lodge for our dinner. Chatting with mum, she said something about the campsite being fenced - I just looked at her and she realised what she had said!! There was no fence out here.
After a lovely dinner, we took our tea in the 'lounge area' before being escorted back to our tent. Again, beds turned down and lovely hot water bed placed between the sheets.
Another early morning and out we headed at 6.30am for a game drive, just hoping our driver would find his way back the first time. Out we headed, hoping for a look at one of those elusive big cats. We got to watch some vultures feasting on a carcass and then at another carcass, vultures, marabou stork & 2 jackals were having their breakfast. Another driver spoke to ours and we headed towards the tree line were two vans were. In the bushes there were some beautiful lionesses, having a sleep amongst the bushes. However, one made her way up and out of the bushes and started stalking her way towards a lone wildebeest. We then lost her in the tall grass (they really do become invisible) before out she sprung towards the wildebeest. She chased him around before another lioness joined her. It was amazing how they just played with him, attacking, falling back, attacking. I don't think they were too hungry, just being greedy but they hunted him for a good while. We started to follow in the van and as we left the bushes, we could see some young lion cubs getting up too, but they stayed in cover of the trees. Before long there were quite a few vehicles racing towards this chase but everyone stayed a good distance away. However we all soon departed as the word got around the ranger was coming and no one wanted to be fined. We went back to the bushes to see the little ones and you could just see them through the branches.
So an amazing morning and even better, we made it back to camp the first go. In for breakfast and out at the hippo pool, there were giraffes, zebras, antelopes, baboons & warthogs hanging around. There is a salt lick just on the other side of the river (which isn't very wide) and the animals come for that. After breakfast we were taken to the local Masai village so mum could see one up close (I went to one last time I was here). We were welcomed by the local women singing some songs and then some of the warriors singing & leaping. However, mum then started to feel ill so needed to go and sit in the van while I went on the rest of the tour. We went into one of their houses which the women construct out of cow dung. They are small & dark, the first room being for the calves so they don't drink all their mum's milk. The Masai drink milk and blood from the cow. The next room is where they sleep & cook, about the size of our bathroom almost. You wouldn't want to be claustrophobic. I was able to ask any questions, but most stuff I already knew from my last visit and then I was taken to the 'market' where the women put out all their items they have made. I managed to get mum out of the car to come and pick a bracelet out in the colour of her football team and selected one myself, however my bargaining power was lessoned when mum walked away with hers and said you pay for it so she could sit down. Can't bargain too much when they know you want it!!!
Back to the camp where we sat in the lounge and just watched the animals. Most of the hippos had come out of the water and were 'sun baking on the beach' while the other animals wandered around them carefully. Again, the afternoon rains came, harder than yesterday so our afternoon game drive was cancelled. There is no way our vehicle would be able to get out in this. Relaxed instead & checked out the photos we've taken so far.
Our second full day out in the Mara and we drove to the Masai Mara National Park. It was rough going driving, slipping & sliding quite a bit but we must say he Ikua did an incredible job steering into the slides and righting us quickly. We thought for sure we would be bogged by the end of the day but to his credit we didn't. The roads were very muddy and you could see where tyres had sunk into the black mud. We made it to the official gates and in we headed. Within about 10mins we spotted our first male lion. He was slowly walking through the tall grass in an area known as the marshlands. For those who may watch the BBC Big Cat Diaries, this is the area they film the lions, and they were actually there today filming our majestic lion. There was a younger male lion lying by the side of the road and we wondered if there would be a fight but the older one went over, said hello with a rub of the head and continued on his walk. Ikua said they were probably brothers. It was funny watching all the animals instantly at attention keeping their eyes on him to see what he was going to do but he wasn't interested in them.
A few minutes further down the road we came across some lionesses sleeping on mounds, obviously with full stomachs as there is plenty of feed around for them at the moment. We continued on our game watch and some of the new animals we saw today included mongoose, elephant and crocodiles. We went to the Mara river where there were plenty of hippos and floating down the river were lots and lots of dead wildebeest who had obviously attempted a river crossing and were unsuccessful. They just kept floating by. We saw a big croc hanging out on the river edge and some smaller ones in the water. We drove away from the river's edge and found a tree to have our picnic lunch under. Ikua checked for animals around the area and when he got out of the car he looked up into the tree to ensure there was no leopard lurking up there (unfortunately not).We were pretty lucky with the rains, it didn't start until just after we left the park and it was nowhere near as bad as the day before. We made it back to the camp with only one wrong turn!!
Outside the lounge, a leopard tortoise was slowly making his way across the grass - he is one of the Small Five. We went for a walk along the river bank and saw a croc on the other side and also a little furry creature that was rather cute but we later found out was a rat. After a lovely hot shower (the first one I've had without it raining) we headed back to the lounge to check out our photos. As we exited our tent, we could see a rather large hippo on the other side who had made his way out of the river and was relieving himself on the bank. It was quite funny to watch because his tail wagged like crazy when he was 'going'.
It was another early night, it's hard to keep awake at the dinner table with these early mornings. This morning we left at 8am and headed back to Nairobi as our time in Kenya has come to an end. We arrived back about 3pm and tonight we are staying at the Serena Hotel which is pretty fancy - lots of famous people apparently stay here and we can see why. The room is lovely, although the bathroom is a little on the small side. We went for a walk around the hotel and we found the pool and the health club which is free for guests and I was excited to find a sauna, steam room & jacuzzi here. I knew where I was headed afterwards.
We sorted out our bags and after dinner which was amazing and surprisingly reasonably priced we spent 1.5hrs in the health centre which was perfect after the jarring roads we've encountered over the past couple of days. We head back to Joburg tomorrow for the night before flying to Livingstone and being transferred to our river lodge on the Chobe River. Hope you've enjoyed our travels so far.
- comments
Grandma Bunny It's great to keep up with your travels. Great writing Tanya I can see it all. Thank you