Gym's Ramblings: November 2023 - In To Africa: Maasai Mara

Maasai Mara’s grassland, with widely spaced trees

In the Maasai language, Mara means 'spotted' and when you gaze at the savannah in Maasai Mara from afar, you see a vast grassland spotted by widely-spaced, bushy trees. Late in the afternoon of November 23, 2023, the safari group was met by Joseph at the dirt airstrip. He would be the driver and guide during their stay at Maasai Mara. Joseph grabbed all the luggage and took the group on a short introductory game drive before passing through the gates of the Fairmont Maasai Mara and settling everyone in to their new accommodations.

The Fairmont Maasai Mara is built along a cliff above a sharp bend in the Mara River. This is the same river that the Great Migration crosses when the vast herds of migrating Wildebeests, Zebras and Gazelles move from Tanzania to Kenya and back again. If you have watched any of Sir David Attenborough's videos of the migration, you know that this fast flowing, chocolate brown water-course is full of hippos and crocodiles. With the river forming a natural barrier around most of the Fairmont grounds, a very robust electric fence completes the enclosure of the property. So unlike the Turner Springs camp in the Serengeti, there are no elephants or cape buffalos to deal with on your way to breakfast. Notwithstanding the absence of big game, monkeys, baboons and a lone female bush buck share the grounds with the Fairmont staff and guests.

There were several unique and wonderful moments that the group experienced during their time exploring the grasslands and bush of Maasai Mara, as follows:

1. On several occasions, the group got up close and personal with cheetahs, They had seen cheetahs in the Serengeti but here they were able to drive right up close to them and see what beautiful animals they really are;

2. They also got close to two sets of lion cubs. The cubs were a little bit shy but the adult members of the pride considered the Land Cruisers as no threat and almost seemed eager to pose for pictures;

3. At one very memorable point during a game drive, Joseph drove up a dirt track, through the bush on a slope above the savannah and came upon a group of rangers, some heavily armed with automatic weapons. Gym was a bit alarmed at first but soon understood what was going on when he spotted the first massive grey bulk, calmly grazing in a clearing. These guys were protecting a pair of white rhinos. The male was Kofi Annan and the female, Queen Elizabeth II. The pair of rhinos 🦏 had 24/7 protection from poachers. Very used to living with humans around, one could walk up quite close to admire these weird and wonderful beasts;

4. There were several "David Attenborough moments” during these game drives. One that stood out was watching a female Thompson’s Gazelle trying to draw a jackal away from its offspring who was hidden in the high grass. The mother gazelle was offering herself as a meal substitute by approaching the predator from the area furthest away from its baby.

5. Another strange and wonderful sight was when the Land Cruiser came upon a group of giraffes sitting on their haunches like big unwieldy dogs. This is a rare sight indeed because the giants have difficulty getting up and are somewhat vulnerable when seated.

5. There were also some rare sightings of animals such as bat-eared foxes, warthog families including the babies, several of the massive elands and some topis as well. In addition, the many and various birds that the guides introduced were so numerous that Gym could not keep track of all of them.

Observing the fauna of Maasai Mara on November 23 and 24 was very rewarding indeed. Hopefully, Gym’s photos give you some appreciation for what he and Mrs. Gym saw.