Travel blogs Pt5: Maasai Mara National Reserve 1

(I have to separate my travel log in Maasai Mara into 2 parts because there are so many to share. )

Finally, with so much joy and many expectations, we drove to the most renowned and popular natural reserve in Kenya, the Maasai Mara National Reserve.

The Maasai Mara is famous for its high density and rich variety of wild animals. Reports from travelers and wildlife conservationists all refer to the relative ease of spotting lion prides, cheetahs, and leopards in the Maasai Mara. So I expected so much for this part of my journey. I did a lot of preparation. Three days before we actually travelled to the Mara, I surfed online to gather as much information as I could. I got a lion pride distribution map across the whole area, including some nearby private reserves like the Mara North. During my safari trip, I once tried to use Google Maps as a reference for my location to infer which lion pride I might encounter. Unfortunately, I resignedly gave up due to the bumpy roads and the impossibility of holding a camera and looking at my phone at the same time…

Before we entered the park, loads of Maasai people came around to sell their products to us. They were passionate and welcoming, maybe too welcoming. They said they have lion teeth products to sell to us. Although the authenticity of this statement is doubtful, I was still astonished to hear that in the first place. After all, talking about wildlife products at the gate of a wildlife conservation area is somewhat inappropriate.

Then we entered the park. There are well-paved dirt roads and clearly labeled road signs in the park. There are also camps or hotels for tourists constructed in the reserve. There is even a small airport. According to our guide, the airplanes taking off from that airport patrol around the reserve to spot violations.

After some rest, we started our safari trip. The bio-density here is tremendous and incredible. We can see zebras, topis, elands, wildebeests, giraffes, warthogs, and antelopes everywhere. Just randomly driving around, we can encounter multiple herbivore herds. At first, we were so curious about them. But after some time, we got bored and got used to seeing them around our vehicles, eating grass.

We were fortunate enough to witness a portion of the great migration. Wildebeests formed neat queues, traveling like a well-trained army.

In estimation, there are over 1.5 million wildebeests and hundreds of thousands of zebras and gazelles participating in the great migration, making it one of the must-see sceneries around the planet. We encountered a tiny portion of the main force traveling, but still in great numbers. They crossed the river in sequence. To be honest, their order is even better than ours when rushing to the dining hall for food.

Interestingly, when they were crossing the river, a lioness was resting on the riverbank, silently watching them. We all thought that she was there waiting to hunt. There were so many targets, who could resist this temptation? However, she lay down cozily, showing no interest to the wildebeests and the zebras coming towards her. Maybe it was noon, and it was too hot, or maybe she was tired, or maybe she was so full that she had no room for another feast. Well, as long as she felt great, we had nothing to say about it.

A sudden call from the walkie-talkie appeared. I did not understand what they said, but our guide seemed to be super excited. After 10 minutes of driving, we saw like 30 cars surrounding a gazelle.

What was interesting about a single gazelle? I thought everybody had been used to seeing them everywhere.

NO, our guide said, it was not a single gazelle. There was a cheetah hiding in the bushes waiting for an opportunity for a race.

I was so excited that I even forgot to take pictures of the scene. I was amazed by the cheetah’s perfect camouflage. Even with my glasses and with the aid of my phone, I still could not easily find the cheetah. She lay low, concentrated. The gazelle was walking closer and closer to the location where the cheetah was hiding, looking blank and peaceful. The gazelle seemed not to sense the danger yet.

Time goes by. The cheetah is an exceptionally patient hunter. The gazelle was only 8 meters away from her, but she still waited for a better chance. However, this waiting ruined everything. The gazelle changed direction, walking to the other side, away from the cheetah. The cheetah had no way but to start chasing, or the gazelle would be way beyond her reach. But the gazelle was so acute and agile that he ran away quickly. The cheetah just ran a few steps, not even fully accelerating, and then stopped, licking her fur to console herself.

She then lay down to rest, allowing us to observe her at a closer distance. Cheetahs are very elegant animals; their body shape is perfectly streamlined and well-proportioned. Her fur is very well mixed into the surroundings, providing good cover.

In the next part, I will show you more photos of the prominent predators on the savannah, including lions.