I hope you all enjoyed last week’s Gorilla Trek story & pictures. Now for the second part of our amazing Africa trip.
After the Gorilla Trek, on arrival in Nairobi we met up with our fellow ‘Dream Team’ to become the Magnificent Migration 13 and wow, what a wonderful Migration Safari we had. We travelled from Nairobi across the Great Rift Valley to Lake Nakuru and enjoyed our first glimpse of life in Kenya, travelling through many towns filled with colourfully dressed locals going about this daily lives.
Every place we stayed had its own vibe - different animals, gorgeous lodges, and amazing guides who really knew their stuff. We'd wake up each morning excited to see what the day had in store, and honestly - just when we thought it couldn't get better, it did. Our first stop was Lake Nakuru famous for abundant birds, special Rothchild Giraffe & home to both Black & White Rhino. On our first game drive, we saw monkeys, antelope, Rhino and a Zebra crossing and a bonus famous Giraffe!
Next, we travelled north through a very fertile area of the Great Rift Valley, crossed the Equator to Ol Pejeta Conservancy and on to Samburu National Park and one of our favourite camps, Elephant Bedroom…. And what a welcome we received from a resident Elephant!
This luxury camp has elevated fully equipped romantic tents that have all the comforts of a luxury hotel and they do the best ‘African Sundowner’ – a traditional safari ritual of stopping to enjoy drinks watching the sunset. It is built right on a river in an area where Elephants wander through the camp. This truly was an experience of a lifetime and right up there as a favourite place for all of us. Samburu has it’s own Unique Big 5 – Reticulated Giraffe, Grevy Zebra, Gerenuk, Beisa Oryx & Somali Ostrich and we saw them all. Another highlight here was our visit to a Samburu Village where we met with the Chief and members of his tribe who shared their way of life with us.
The highlights kept coming with our first light aircraft flight down south to Amboseli National Park, famous for its many herds of Elephants and Mt Kilimanjaro as their backdrop. From here, we crossed the border into Tanzania and headed for the Ngorongoro Crater and our beautiful lodge. Our rooms where big enough to accommodate a whole family and the service, food and stunning views made us feel like royalty. The Crater is the biggest intact volcanic caldera on Earth and is home to densest populations of large wildlife in Africa.
East Africa is incredible and my favourite place on earth; where all your senses are fully immersed in nature, culture, simplicity and where you experience the true ‘Circle of Life’.
From here we experienced our first serious “African Massage” on the way to the famous Serengeti on a very bumpy corrugated road however it was well worth it as our guide spotting a large male lion sleeping right by the side of the road. Our camp here was in another fabulous location, set amongst nature again and we had Elephants walking in front of our luxury tents and could hear lions & other animals roaring in the night.
Next, another lovely light aircraft flight departing the Serengeti to the Masai Mara, to spend the final days of our Safari. We came hoping to see the Great Wildebeest Migration where over 1 million wildebeest & zebra annually cross from the Serengeti to the Mara following the rains to graze & breed. The jewel in the crown if you are lucky enough, is to witness the spectacular Crossing of the Mara & Talek rivers. From the minute we arrived, it did not disappoint and even on our drive to our lodge, we felt the excitement as we saw herds of wildebeest & zebra gathering on the vast savannah plains with rolling hills dotted with Acacia trees.
Our four days in the Mara gave us experiences we will never forget. On the very first game drive, within minutes, we saw a pride of female lions hunt down an wildebeest and then wait for the male lions to eat first before the could enjoy the fruits of their labour. Next our incredible driver/guides knew exactly where to head for the best chance to see a Crossing and positioned us in the perfect spot, amongst hundreds of other vehicles. Thousands of wildebeest & zebras were gathered on the riverbank approaching to cross, when badly behaved drivers scared them away. However, we moved to another area where our drivers’ knowledge expected a crossing and they were spot on. We didn’t have to wait long before, after a few false starts off the herd went, jumping down the riverbank into the water.
It is a spectacular sight to see as they disappear in a large cloud of dust before entering the river. The sounds of grunting a deep echoing ‘gnu gnu’ sound, zebras barking, splashing of the water as they ploughed their way across and then find the energy to climb up the riverbank on the other side was captivating. Then the final challenge came, to escape the large male lion crouched in place, camouflaged by the rocks & grass, waiting for his dinner to arrive.
Our final highlights were a visit to a local school where the children, with the widest smiles, proudly sang and entertained us and then an awesome Hot Air Balloon ride. As we glided just above the herds of wildebeest, zebra, giraffes, and antelopes of all varieties, it brought a gratefulness and joy that is hard to describe. The beauty as the sun rose over the vast savannah filled with wildlife is a sight we will never forget.
East Africa is incredible and my favourite place on earth (as you can see from the many photos!); where all your senses are fully immersed in nature, culture, simplicity and where you experience the true ‘Circle of Life’. If you are interested in going on Safari, our experienced team have all the inside information to get your there. There is always something happening with the animals no matter what time of year and there are many different price points to suit all budgets.
Leonie
