Mara Game Drive

The Masai Mara National Reserve and the Conservation Area are managed by the local council and a group of Masai people.   The 2 areas are part of the same ecosystem as the Serengeti in Tanzania.  Some rules are slightly different in the reserve than the conservation area but in both places, tourists are seen as visitors to the animals space.  Safari vehicles must stay at least 25 metres away from animals but if you are on the road and an animal approaches your vehicle, you are not in violation.  Chris told us that the fine for being too close is $10,000 Kenyan shillings (not an exorbitant fee according to our standards but quite severe on a Kenyan's salary).  It was interesting to hear about the management of the park.

The east side of the park is about 240 kilometres from Nairobi and is a popular destination for tourists having only a few days to do a safari.  We crossed through the Conservation Area, over the Mara River and then through the park to our hotel.

While enroute we managed to find some interesting animals - like this leopard!

He crossed the road behind our vehicle and then laid down in a small bluff of trees on the edge of this bank.

Cape buffalo are the most difficult of the Big 5 to hunt.  This guy definitely kept an eye on us but we never saw any of them being aggressive - at least from the inside of our vehicle!

This jackal was eating an afternoon snack.

We saw all of these in just the hour or so it took to get to our hotel.  The next day we did a full day game drive - and it was amazing!  Stay tuned!!