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Safaridude and Game Warden's Excellent Adventure - February 2014


Safaridude

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Great stuff! The cheeky Aardwolf shot was great, but the hyaena hunt was superb. Great series of pics there.
A very poignant ending too : "There is that sense of dread heading toward the airstrip on the last day of safari. You know… everybody in the vehicle goes silent, and you start thinking about the pile of stuff civilization has waiting for you upon your return."
Too true! :(

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spellbinding stuff @safridude & @@Game Warden. I your great adventure really at an end?

 

I adore the Mara landscapes and for a male lion Scarface looks pretty cute.

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Thanks everyone for your kind words.

 

@@pault - there is nothing wrong with your I-pad.

 

It was cloudy almost all the time! February in Kenya is usually sunny with very clear air photographers dream about. Apparently, some freakish weather system came in from Madagascar during our trip. We had one cloudy day in Meru… we thought no big deal. Then from Sosian on, I think we may have had maybe 6 hours of bright sunshine. It made photography challenging.

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SafariChick

Just loving this report. The hyena sequence is amazing - though I know that hyena hunt as well as scavenge, I never quite imagined seeing it and your pictures capture it so well. The aardwolves are so special, the lions and leopards beautiful, and you make Offbeat Mara sound very inviting. And nice to see a photo including you, @@Safaridude , in addition to those of our fearless leader!

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Oh dear, just when I was reconciled to never going back to Kenya you guys go and do this to me. Great shots.

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Oh dear, just when I was reconciled to never going back to Kenya you guys go and do this to me. Great shots.

 

Second that!

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wow. love the wild dogs sequence, the hyaena sequence, the lions sequence. how do you top such a fantastic trip report? the answer is -you can't. i can't for sure!

 

and that mankini sequence is special. mankini over clothes? not only is Matt lord of the Pith, he's now SuperPith.

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@@graynomad, @@AKR1 and @@KasperW

 

There was a time when I swore to myself that I would never return to Kenya. But as AKR1 says, "if you know what you are doing", you can carve out a wilderness experience not just in the Mara but in other crowded parks.

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I stayed away from Kenya for nearly 10 years because I was so disheartened by the way I saw the safari industry developing.

In the past 10 years I have enjoyed every visit immensely. As has been said, it is a matter of working out how to get what you want whilst avoiding what you do not want.

My over-riding observation though would be that whilst it is still possible to do this it becomes more expensive every year and if you want a quality safari Kenya is no longer a cheap option.

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There is that sense of dread heading toward the airstrip on the last day of safari. You know… everybody in the vehicle goes silent, and you start thinking about the pile of stuff civilization has waiting for you upon your return.

 

Dammit, @@Safaridude. I'm back less than one week. This sentence really hit home. You forgot to mention the empty-chested feeling though.

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That's OK. I'd sell my pants to go on safari, and not gibe it a 2nd thought. ;)

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Are your pants valuable @@Jochen ?

I wouldn't be able to pay for a safari by selling mine :P

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Game Warden

Not finished yet. More to come soon

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SafariChick

Not finished yet. More to come soon

 

Well let's get on with it then, what are you waiting for :D (sounds like something you'd say to us!)

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I have nothing exceptional to add, only thank you both for making the week so enjoyable with the words, pics and banter.

 

I doubt I can get GL back to Kenya, (he doesn't like to repeat) but as it was the beginning of my obsession for Africa I esp. LOVE seeing it over and over.

Or,perhaps one day I will just go with another St'r..

 

No bikinis, male or female!

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Super LEEDS

Is sell my socks!

 

Leopard Gorge :) I know that rock well, wonder where the hyrax had gotten to.

 

Thanks for sharing guys, over a little too quickly though. Maybe some horse riding outtakes or a directors cut with extended mankini footage?

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@@Super LEEDS

 

Ok, no more mankini, but some "director's cut" material...

 

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Super LEEDS

Lovely :D

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Game Warden

Chapter 5 – Mara North Conservancy – “Masai Mara… crazy…” (GW)

 

I wasn't sick on the way in: thanks to another guest at Sosian who had left me their supply of motion sickness tablets and Simon and Rosie's insistence that I have a light breakfast, nothing came up or out. Much to the relief of SD, James and the pilot. (Whose name I can't recall but @@Safaridude will no doubt remember.) Of course I was nervous at the prospect of another flight, I didn't want to embarrass myself in front of such exhalted company, but other than the odd bump ascending through cloud to Angels eleven everything was smooth. I was quick to grab the co pilot's seat: I didn't even ask anyone else and for that I apologise, but my thinking was the closer I was to the cockpit, the better my stomach would be. And the pilot confirmed that at the rear I'd probably suffered from the pitch and yaw. Now, having skydived on many an occasion and started my PPL a few years back, (but never getting very far due to $$$), the flight was very hands on for me with the pilot's permission of course. A very enthusiastic South African, he made me feel very at home "up front" - it was a sad sight as we flew over the Mau Forest to see the extent of the deforestation. At 10,000 feet you really get an overview of just how small the forest has shrunk. Without serious conservation efforts, in another twenty years, how much will be left?

 

The pilot brought us in low so I could really appreciate the landscape knowing it was my first visit to the Mara - we buzzed low over the hills north (?) of the MNC and I was hands on as we did a fly past of the landing strip, banking away at the end ensuring the runway was clear of wildlife. An easy touch down and we had arrived. The old GW was in the Masai Mara...

 

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The vintage KAR Pith was at home in the Mara... the perfect place for a pose.

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PersonalPangea

Speaking of The Dude, I've been on safari in Berlin last week and my hotel looped on each channel and each TV in the corridors The Big Lebowski. This trip report is reading like a Cohen Brothers film too.

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samburumags

Just a note for Graceland......never mind your husband go on your ow n it's great!!!!

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Just a note for Graceland......never mind your husband go on your ow n it's great!!!!

:rolleyes: Always in the back of my mind......

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Just a note for Graceland......never mind your husband go on your ow n it's great!!!!

:rolleyes: Always in the back of my mind......

 

 

 

totally agreed with @@samburumags. I did the Okavango trip on my own. I did miss my hubby at times, but my camp and vehicle mates,and guides, were great and made up for his absence. the managers also made sure i wouldn't feel too alone. it's completely safe altho i was filled with trepidation initially.

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