Leaving Kongoni! This morning we woke up bright and early to pack up camp and hit the road. Our two safari vehicles came to pick us up and we hit the road to the Masai Mara!! In my vehicle it was me, Kendall, Victoria, Rae, Kat, José, Lindy, and our safari guide/driver Daniel! It was Rae’s birthday today so we all sang to her and tried our best to make it an amazing birthday! By late afternoon we arrived in the Mara and made our way to Crocodile Camp where we stayed for this portion of our trip. On our way to to campsite we saw many animals including water buffalo, wildebeests, giraffes, elephants, cheetahs, and zebra. When we made it to camp we realized there was a reason it’s called Crocodile Camp… There was a small drop off behind the tents with a small river that hosted a gigantic croc who sure did not seem friendly! During our time at the Mara we were with a company, Game-tracker Safaris, who did all of our cooking and dishes and tent set up for us. It was so incredibly nice to have a few days off! The 12th was our first full day in the Mara and we saw so many things that many people don’t see. We saw a mother lion and her cubs eating a zebra, as well as a leopard chilling in the grass eating its kill! We saw of course all of the other animals you would expect and I feel like there are just wayyyy to many to write down, so instead I will just put pictures! During the middle of the day we went to the Masai Mara River which is famous for the wildebeest crossing during migration. The guide estimated that in our area we saw about ten thousand wildebeest of the 2.5 million in the Mara/Serengeti parks. 10,000!!! It was insane!! And that was just in one small section of the Mara! We were also extremely lucky to watch an intense chase when a mother wildebeest tried to cross the river. She was brave enough to cross which is extremely rare and her baby ended up following her. There were about 8 crocs in the water waiting to attack and one croc was so close he almost touched the baby but luckily it got away unharmed! Daniel told us that the crocs must not have been too hungry, or else they would have definitely killed the baby. From there we enjoyed a couple hour lunch break under a tree where we napped and enjoyed the incredible beauty of the area. The rest of the day was filled with more animals and team bonding and an early bedtime! The next day was our second and last full day of safari. We set out in the morning and did not see any new animals but we drove around for a few hours through the crazy trails enjoying and absorbing everything we were experiencing. We went back to camp for lunch then left to finish our safari for the day which ended up being during sunset which was one of the most beautiful things we have all ever experienced. The sky was every sunset colour you could imagine glowing the brightest you’ve ever seen, with mountains and animals and trees. It was one of the most beautiful, incredible moments I have ever experienced. After a long day it was once again an early bedtime to prepare for another early morning! (That is a very common theme on this trip)! The next morning we went out around 6:30 am in time to catch the end of sunrise which meant also watching multiple hot air balloons float effortlessly into the sky. This morning we were lucky enough to see a leopard once again as well as an interaction between a female lion with fresh meat and multiple hyenas. We watched in awe as the hyenas taunted the lion until she pounced which left her meat unguarded which the hyenas all snatched in an instant and disappeared with! Shortly after, we found the same lion with her family of 8 under a tree enjoying the sun. This resulted in many good photos! Around 10 am we went back to the camp where we had breakfast and packed up then left camp. We drove all day from the Mara to Kembu Camp where we were reunited with Jan and Turbo (the truck) after a few days of separation! On our drive we endured tons of rain and some hail which made our dirt roads an adventure to drive on! Once we arrived we set up camp and took warm (!!) showers then went to the campground restaurant for an unbelievable dinner of soup, bread, veggies, salads, meats, and cake! I’d have to say it was definitely one of the best meals on the trip! After that we had a long evening meeting which meant we didn’t get to bed until after midnight, but it was well worth it!
(more images on separate post!)
Heather Goes Abroad 