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Leaping Leopards! Another Kenya Trip Report -- November 2018


amybatt

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On 12/5/2018 at 10:48 PM, janzin said:

 

 

Okay, good to know that you still recommend Offbeat. But it still sounds like they discourage an all-day outing. And yes it may very well be different if one has a private vehicle! I do recall at Porini Lion we always came back for lunch, but I never requested otherwise, so I don't know how they would have dealt with it. Serian always is a private vehicle, its included (and reflected!) in the cost, so they stress their flexibility.

 

To be fair, I think most of these camps allow a lot of flexibility if you have booked a private vehicle. With shared drives flexibility is great until you're put in with a group who want to set off late or come back for a cooked breakfast at 9.30 am. Double-edged sword. And nothing against people who want a cooked breakfast at 9.30 - just not ideal for me. 

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read this gripping TR in parts over the last few days. 

wow Amy you had marvellous sightings, especially of your fav cats! Ping sounds like a fantastic guide, no wonder he's in so much demand. 

 

so have you booked your next Mara trip already?! 

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3 hours ago, Kitsafari said:

read this gripping TR in parts over the last few days. 

wow Amy you had marvellous sightings, especially of your fav cats! Ping sounds like a fantastic guide, no wonder he's in so much demand. 

 

so have you booked your next Mara trip already?! 

 

Thank you Kit!  Glad you enjoyed it.  The wheels are in motion...I waited to see if it was just an adrenaline rush, but I think not!  ;)

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Mara Predator Conservation Program seems to be doing well keeping track of the Mara lion prides through all the instability.  The latest installment of Lion Tails summarizes most of it, although they still use "Cheli" as a pride name, which has been abandoned by guides since the Cheli and Peacock camp was taken over by an Italian company.

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offshorebirder

Thanks for sharing the update @amybatt.

 

I was very sorry to hear of the presumed demise of Napono, the elderly matriarch of the Offbeat Pride.  She was a favorite of mine. 

 

I hope all the turbulence in MNC settles down soon.

 

 

 

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44 minutes ago, offshorebirder said:

Thanks for sharing the update @amybatt.

 

I was very sorry to hear of the presumed demise of Napono, the elderly matriarch of the Offbeat Pride.  She was a favorite of mine. 

 

I hope all the turbulence in MNC settles down soon.

 

 

 

 

I know @offshorebirder she was really well known there.  It seems like Leah and Lucinda are doing their best to keep the remnants of what was the Frank/Jesse era of the Offbeat Pride safe and secure.  They continue to be fairly reliably sighted by David and Kappen.  The lioness that gave birth near the Offbeat camp in late October/early November is thought to be a 2 year old daughter of Frank/Jesse.  Kappen said she would have been among the 5-6 month olds when I was there in Feb 2017.  

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  • 6 months later...

Amazing report Amy and very good sightings in one single trip. Very good job.

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  • 2 months later...

Just catching up on my ST reading (you know that is how some of us cope with safari withdrawal) and came across your wonderful trip report, @amybatt, from last December  Compelling reading and great photographs.  But what really caught my attention, and is now stuck in my mind, is something you said at the very end - "I'm not done with the Mara, any more than it's done with me."   That captures my feelings exactly about this special place.  I am going to try Botswana this November, and I hope it is worth the premium over Kenya.  But I am already thinking that I need to get back to the Mara in 2020.  It does have a way of grabbing on to you and never letting go, doesn't it?  Thanks again for a great report.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Stayed up well past my bedtime to read your marvelous report in one go, tho I know I'll be back to read it again and again - there's so much great info & emotion. And yes, tears were streaming down my face when I got to the bit about Scarface. Jeez that was hard to take. I can only imagine how emotional it was to have been to be there in person. I would've been a blubbering mess. 

 

Anyhow, thanks so much for posting such a detailed report with such fabulous images. My husband and I are planning a trip to Kenya and you've convinced us that we need to contact The Wild Source in order to plan a trip to Enaidura Camp, preferably with Ping. 

 

Thanks again. 

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