Boredom in the Rain - Kenya 2023

[madaboutcheetah]

Thanks for your candid view @paultmuch appreciated

[wilddog]

the 5 vehicle rule is not that unusual, particularly in conservancies. I am not sure how it works around Loisaba but they often share access with other lodges which can increase numbers of vehicles around a sighting, particularly when the word gets out.

I know of other guides elsewhere who have broken the rules and got heavily fined and the ultimate penalty for repeat behaviour is a ban of ?6 months or a year. @paultI personally believe it is our duty to ensure that we do not push our guides beyond what is permitted so the chance of penalties is minimised.

[pault]

49 minutes ago, wilddog said:

the 5 vehicle rule is not that unusual, particularly in conservancies. I am not sure how it works around Loisaba but they often share access with other lodges which can increase numbers of vehicles around a sighting, particularly when the word gets out.

I know of other guides elsewhere who have broken the rules and got heavily fined and the ultimate penalty for repeat behaviour is a ban of ?6 months or a year. @paultI personally believe it is our duty to ensure that we do not push our guides beyond what is permitted so the chance of penalties is minimised.

 To be clear, I do not know that he was penalised and I am not even sure he broke the rules - although his reaction to the rules (this 10 minute thing assuming it exists, not the 5 vehicles thing, which we were informed about by him) suggest someone accused him of doing so. 

 

Anyway, no worries about the 5 vehicles thing. I knew about that and was fine to rotate out if needed. Just surprised at what happened. All the lodges/camps on Loisaba are run by Elewana as far as I know and while there may be more self-drivers on the weekends or holidays I doubt it is many as the fees are high compared to a national park. While we were there we saw two non-Elewana vehicles. I doubt there were more than a dozen vehicles out in the whole conservancy. It's a puzzle.

 

And I know you didn't mean that, but to be clear nobody pushed our guide into breaking rules. Just I was like "what?' when we completely abandoned the cheetahs as soon as things got interesting. But abandon we did, sulkily. 

 

 

[Zubbie15]

11 hours ago, pault said:

Yes I think she does. She looks very pretty among the cacti - I’ve seen a couple of photos. I believe there is at least one more black leopard in Laikipia, but I think Giza is the one that is totally unbothered by vehicles as she’s had them near her at LWC since she was a youngster, so probably the subject of most photographs out there. No expert in this though. Hope somebody will see and correct this if I am wrong.

 

When we were staying at LWC last November, we had a long discussion about melanistic animals in general in the laikipia area.  If I remember correctly, I think we were told that it was thought that there were 6 or 7 black leopards in the greater laikipia area.  Obviously Giza is the star, I think they said there was another black leopard around LWC that was seen once or twice a month. And then another conservancy had a large male blacky, but it was seen even less often. 

 

Really enjoying this report, it makes me want to return. The predators in general really came out for you. 

[TravelMore]

@paultyour images are fabulous and I'm really enjoying the trip report so far.  What sony are you using and what lens?  I'm guessing the 200-600?

[pault]

12 hours ago, Zubbie15 said:

 

When we were staying at LWC last November, we had a long discussion about melanistic animals in general in the laikipia area.  If I remember correctly, I think we were told that it was thought that there were 6 or 7 black leopards in the greater laikipia area.  Obviously Giza is the star, I think they said there was another black leopard around LWC that was seen once or twice a month. And then another conservancy had a large male blacky, but it was seen even less often. 

 

Really enjoying this report, it makes me want to return. The predators in general really came out for you. 

 

Thanks for that. 

[pault]

5 hours ago, TravelMore said:

@paultyour images are fabulous and I'm really enjoying the trip report so far.  What sony are you using and what lens?  I'm guessing the 200-600?

 

A9 (it is the same as A9II for focus due to a very generous firmware update in 2019, in case you were unaware) and 200-600. Imagine what the A1 and A7R5 can do! You guess right.  But I also used a Canon R6mkII and 400/4 DOII when the light got low. A 70-200/2.8 too, but not used very often (although I should probably have used it more).

[TravelMore]

18 hours ago, pault said:

 

A9 (it is the same as A9II for focus due to a very generous firmware update in 2019, in case you were unaware) and 200-600. Imagine what the A1 and A7R5 can do! You guess right.  But I also used a Canon R6mkII and 400/4 DOII when the light got low. A 70-200/2.8 too, but not used very often (although I should probably have used it more).

I've been using the Sony A7riii since 2018 and I was stricken by a bad case of GAS (gear acquisition syndrome).  For a couple of years, I kept wanting various lenses, but the promise of the next version always seems to be right around the corner. So, I've been holding off, holding off, and it all built up to wanting a new camera - lol.  I ached for the A1, but then the A5 came out.  So once again a got analysis paralysis, pouring over every spec and review and contacted photographers on DPReview that I've grown friendly with.  Now, let me digress for just a moment to say I'm a computer science teacher so the AI autofocus was what had me on the A5. Add to that the in-camera bracketing and increased stabilization and I was a goner.  The animal eye-focus is the best thing that ever happened to me and the updates to the A7riii gave it to me, so I wanted more.  I really felt the A5 was enough camera for me until I rented an A1 to try it out.  Well, you can probably guess what the result was.  I have a shiny new A1 that I'm taking on safari later this week.  I have a 30-day return period but don't think I will be taking advantage.  So, to afford it, I found an open box on B&H, sold an a6500 and a couple of lenses, completed a couple of independent contracts directing my savings to the camera.  We'll see how it goes.  The a7riii is coming along so if anything goes wrong, I'm covered.  I will also be using my 200-600, a 100-400, and a 14mm.  I know the 100-400 is a bit redundant but I have such great pictures out of it, I hate to trade it in.  I need to get a 70-200 f2.8 but then I'll also need a porter to carry it all.  

 

Aside from all this, that 10-minute rule of thumb is a bit annoying.

[pault]

You really don’t need the 100-400 if you get a 70-200 @TravelMoreI know what you mean as I have both long zooms too and the 100-400 was the lens I would never leave behind, but there was honestly rarely a moment that I thought “I wish I had my 100-400”, other than as a slightly wider option. Would have been very different if I had been walking at all.

 

But if the 70-200 in your bag is going to remain an imaginary one, sure. 

 

[pault]

On our final morning we were not allowed out - just the way things are done - so it was a ‘fried egg day’ at the Star Beds. The stars of the previous night had helped it to live up to its reputation and it really is a nice place to stay. It is basically a wooden platform under a roof, but the roof is huge and the sides have been built up now, although not closed completely, to protect you from any but the wildest storms. I wish more accommodation was like this, with rocks incorporated into the room design a la Elsa’s Kopje (although it is a little more basic than the bandas there. It is not genet-proof, but that’s just fine. I wish they didn’t have a fence, but it didn’t stop smaller wildlife running in or out (there were at least 3 pairs of dik-diks visible from our room, and when I went for a walk around the property they were able to flee under the fence without ducking.

 

Actually, I should mention walks as I walked up and around the Kopje at LWC too. That is a better view, but Star Beds is a better, longer walk around the fence line. However, I was picking thorns and burrs out of my clothes for a while after. I just removed the final burr from inside my socks today.

 

View from our room again.

 

 

 

You may have concluded that I don’t like Loisaba all that much, but I do. I wouldn’t be in a rush to return for the reason mentioned, but don’t let my bad boy tendencies put you off. It is beautiful and full of wildlife. I was pleasantly surprised how much wildlife there was. And I’d definitely stay at Star Beds or Lodo Springs as the tented camp had a busier feel than its size would suggest and they have a constant, rapid turnover of guests, with lots of 2 or 3 night stays and very few longer. Just our personal preference though.

 

We were taken to the airstrip by Bob after he dropped off his guests for the morning drive we could actually have been on*, which was nice. It was a bright day with blue skies and hot enough for a haze, so pictures were not really working. We did finally see and ostrich though!

 

* There are good reasons why they do this, most especially that the timing of the flights can change at very short notice and some people prefer it. However, some other camps manage this so it may be worth mentioning.

 

Hazy ostrich

 

Grant’s gazelles

 

 

 

At the airstrip we just had time to visit the bathroom (oh they have a tame kudu and her baby there - I join the phone photographers) before the plane arrived. We had to fly to Ol Pejeta to connect to the Air Kenya big plane for the Mara, complete with flight attendant and overhead bins. It was a minor shock to be in the presence of 70-80 other people for a short while as people disembarked and boarded. Somehow everybody’s luggage got found or tagged there on the runway, next to the plane. Mara North was first stop, so that was perfect.

 

Since Elewana don’t have a purpose-built reception center at Mara North, on arrival we were transferred to a tree, where a table set with drinks, one of the Elephant Pepper F& B staff and two other guests were waiting. It turned our these two, from Houston, had lived just up the road from us in the past and we got so into chatting that our guide had to politely ask if we would like to get to the camp soon - there was something to see on the way (actually he wasn’t our guide because we had another waiting),

 

The ‘something to see’ was the hippo carcass that Molly described, arriving the day after us. There were about a dozen hyenas on it and it was pretty noisy and very pungent. I believe lions had killed it the day before and abandoned it when stuffed. Now it was being shared by the hyenas, a few jackals and a lone male lion. It was a very sunny early afternoon here too (that would not last).

 

 

Hyenas and hippo remains

 

 

 

The lion was in some nearby bushes and the hyenas kept on looking up to check he wasn’t coming.

 

 

 

When he did come for a feed, the hyenas scattered and all ran into a nearby pool - presumably what the hippo had been heading for in its final minutes). This had clearly been going on for some time as they all sat in the water to cool down (as hyenas do, with puddles or even mud) before coming back out to wait for the lion to finish his turn. They only washed their hindquarters though, so the stink coming off them was as bad as the hippo.

 

 

 

Having seen one whole cycle of this game, we drove a short distance to see the River pride, who were the hippo killers (a speciality apparently). They were stuffed and trying to sleep off the long meal, so after a short viewing (and me remembering that the River pride were the only lions on the other side of the river at Serian and briefly wishing we were going to Serian) we headed to Elephant Pepper Camp for our briefing and lunch. The briefing was again conducted by the ‘barman’ who I never thought to request a cocktail from.

 

As expected, the camp is in a beautiful location in woodland right in the middle of the conservancy. If you have been to Mara North you will have seen the camp, although you may or may not have noticed it. It is bigger than we would prefer with 10 or 11 tents, and some are closer together than ideal due to the trees (necessitating a privacy fence for the neighboring ‘honeymoon tent) but it is really quite nice. It is certainly the kind of location you would choose as ideal for camping in the wild. Perfectly adequate isn’t what they want to see on the customer feedback forms they take so seriously at Elewana (and not what I wrote as we aren’t really the target clientele and I didn’t want our barman to stress that he could have done more to make our stay better) but that is what it is. Food is much more than that though and (most importantly) so was the guiding. And of course the wildlife doesn’t care which camp you stay at.

 

Edited July 18, 2023 by pault

[pault]

Our guide for our stay was Sammy - and yes, it probably is that Sammy if you are wondering as he was freelance for a long time (maybe a decade) and has worked at Kicheche, Serian, Offbeat and others - I am pretty sure he was at Encounter Mara when we were there and transferred us from the airstrip, but we couldn’t together be sure enough, although he said the timing sounded possible). He’s the one (along with Patrick at Kicheche Bush) who still wears the traditional Masai style earrings, hanging from the top of the ear. Among guides we know he’s also friends with Nelson and Patrick from Kicheche Bush Camp (formerly in the case of Nelson) and best buddies since school with Benja from Kicheche, who guided us for 10 days in 2009. The only guide we had had in the Mara conservancies he didn’t know was our guide from Serian.

 

So there was no need for him to scope us out too much and although he did still follow the Elewana guidelines for guides, he did it in what I think of as a Koiyaki guiding school sort of way and the only time we really shared a sighting (other than when others later came along or we stopped to see what others had found) was when he was deliberately working in tandem with another guide from Elewana - or even sometimes another camp. This is how to do things and I am pretty sure there is a lot more coordination to it than we see (looking at you, with love, Loisaba).

 

Having said that, the first drive was not very promising. We did see a cheetah but it was so flat and the grass so long the only point of posting a picture would be as proof and I hope you will just take my word for it. We spent some time with buffalos - even those pictures suffered from the grass. We also spent time with migrating zebras, who had thankfully arrived in their thousands to deal with this troublesome long oat grass. I’ll discuss this migration later. We ended the day with giraffes and elephants on the (mostly) open plains and tried to shoot them against the sky, but they conspired against our efforts - as did the sky, which contained barely even a hint of evening oranges and reds but lots of darkening clouds, not quite dramatIc enough to be interesting.

 

Long grass and dark skies

 

 

Some elephants - a pleasing scene but not quite enough drama, and the largest elephant is facing the wrong way.

 

 

 

 

Boring grey (washed) elephants, yellow grass and white sky

 

 

 

However, Sammy had been a bit constrained as to where he could go that evening as there was a surprise camp sundowner planned at a specific stop, which he was not allowed to tell us about (naturally). Although the staff were doing a good job at getting a bow and arrow contest going (special headless arrows for the guests, fortunately, as I was sitting downwind of the contest) the wind was getting stronger and stronger and wetter and wetter, forcing an abandonment 20 minutes or so after we arrived. With the rain that night, the zebras had a lot of work to do if they were going to make a dent on the long grass.

 

It’s now time to stop the drive by drive and just focus on the area and selected sightings, but not just predators of course. You can take ‘it we saw giraffes, elephants, buffalos, zebras, topis, Thomson’s and Grant’s gazelles, wildebeest, impala and eland every day, often in very large numbers.

 

I don’t think we saw anything really spectacular or rare this time (well, maybe one thing but there are over 1500 photos of that and so I am just not dealing with it for now - quite common too according to our trainee co-guide, John) but we did see a few things that might be worth telling and posting a picture or two so I certainly wouldn’t say we were out of luck. The weather was an event in the end too.

 

Let’s do the hyenas first. There are so many hyenas in Mara North nowadays, to the detriment of the cheetahs - who we’ll meet too in due course. I wouldn’t say it is impossible for cheetahs to kill and eat due to hyenas, but it certainly looks a lot more difficult than it used to be. I did ask and the hyenas’ point of view is that this is rubbish spread by unpleasant anti-hyena elements in the safari industry. They tell me barely 3% of what they eat is stolen from cheetahs. They ‘steal’ many times more from lions.

 

Anyway, regardless of their ethics, lots of hyenas means hyena dens and I find them just as fun and interesting as the lions with cubs when there are a lot of pups (well okay, almost as much fun), There was a magnificent den in Mara North and we (no coincidence I am sure) picked a good time to visit. There was also a den with many fewer youngsters where we were less lucky with the little ones but caught some entertaining hyena action around it all the same.

 

Young hyena stumbling over an ethics question

 

 

 

 

We watched some great fun and games with a warthog tusk but the youngsters liked to play in the long grass, where they could hide and ambush each other, but this kind of messed up attempts at photographing them.

 

 

 

At a certain point the hyenas decided the vehicle was a promising playground and played underneath us. Obviously no photos but this one is coming to join two already under there. Sammy (and us) were a bit concerned about the tires, but these ones weren’t into rubber yet - or perhaps they’d just had their fill of it for the day.

 

 

Great as this was, what we were really hoping for was the little black ones to emerge and start their own version of play, which was mostly just running fast somewhere and then back to the den site, mixed with a bit of exploration. They were shy of the long grass, which was too far from the den for them, so much easier to photograph.

 

Getting interested

 

 

 

Running

 

 

 

 

 

Taking a rest

 

 

 

Sniffing grass (or rather the scent marking on it)

 

 

 

 

One issue with young hyena pics is that you have to watch out for the huge, swinging sex organs that seem to emerge once they get really excited. No worries with that, but they do spoil the ‘cute’ look a bit.

 

Top of the swing is probably least conspicuous

 

 

A more mature hyena.

 

 

 

I’ll return to hyenas when we reach Olare Motorogi. Patrick knew about this den in Mara North and accepted he probably couldn’t match it, but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t try.

 

 

Some other stuff we saw (other than the cheetahs, lions and leopards) in the first couple of days.

 

 

Zebra brouhaha - over in a moment. It was a time for eating and drinking, not fighting.

 

 

 

 

Zebra and foal

 

 

 

 

Zebras everywhere you looked

 

 

 

 

Hammerkop in flight.

 

 

 

 

Kori bustard taking down a snake or a giant earthworm? I think a snake.

 

 

 

 

Either way, the end was swift

 

 

 

 

Which one to photograph? I kind of ended up missing both.

 

 

 

 

Pretty buffalo - she loves pastels 

 

 

[offshorebirder]

20 hours ago, pault said:

we headed to Elephant Pepper Camp

 

I have been impressed with their guides and vehicles on a couple of safaris in MNC and the camp certainly has a great location.  

 

[pault]

A small correction to the previous post. The hyena cubs were not playing with a warthog tusk, but a bit of animal skin. The warthog tusk was at the other den. I know you didn't mind, but I am such a stickler for absolute veracity. 

 

The first morning out was a good one and a leopard one. It started with the hyena, zebra fight and flying Hammerkop above and we swung by to see what the cheetah was up to, since Sammy heard it was still in the same area. We did find it, but there was little sign of imminent excitement.  

 

 

 

So Sammy persuaded us to go look for a leopard that had been spotted heading into some thick bush on a hill/outcrop covered in thick vegetation earlier that morning, and come back later to see if the cheetah was moving - although he didn't think it would.

 

When we arrived at the outcrop another vehicle from camp was already there, so the pair of them (us passengers did little useful) set about finding the leopard, of which we managed a glimpse. But there wasn't much to see and no way to drive in. From a couple of bird alarms, the guides thought the leopard was almost certainly moving and the other vehicle took up a post where I guess they could see some distance into the bush, which was really dense at the edges but seemed slightly more open inside. As is the way, Sammy went past the first vehicle to where there was a way up the hill (a very slow and very rocky way, but with few bushes and passable. Eventually we got into a position where we had a clear view of the edge of the really thick bush and settled in to wait. I thought the other vehicle had the better spot but Sammy said he didn't think that. We got a call from the other vehicle that they had seen the leopard on the move and it was going to exit the bush soon. I assume the guide then moved to a position at the bottom of the hill. Based on alarm calls (and maybe knowledge of leopards, and even this leopard) Sammy then told me the leopard was close and get ready. A dik-dik came racing out of the bush just after that, to confirm he was correct. And a few seconds later we saw the leopard, which sat down at the edge of the bushes, peering out. We drove into a slightly better position (as judged by Sammy) and the leopard then got up and walked straight to us and right by the vehicle.

 

 

 

It was our lucky day. Sammy then positioned the vehicle for a tree climb and warned me he was going to go up, which wouldn't have been obvious to me. Sure enough...

 

 

 

 

 

There was only one clear angle of view up to the leopard in the tree so we made way for the other vehicle - and the two others that were already coming up the hill.

 

On the way to check on the cheetah we saw a lone male lion. "He's going to hunt that warthog. He has seen that it has a bad leg." Sammy told us. Then I saw the warthog was indeed limping. And sure enough... 

 

 

All the room on the right is for when it hits full speed after the warthog. LOL

 

LOL because the lion stopped. Looking left and then at the warthog, which was limping away as fast as three good legs could carry it. Unfortunately the lion had spotted two male buffalos feeding, which he would have to run past to get the warthog. Suddenly unsure it had decided on caution and we were denied a sure thing hunt.

 

Doing the calculations .. you could have made it!

 

 

After that, Sammy said the cheetah was quite far and a poor bet so let's go back and see if the leopard is going to do anything (there were some impalas up on that hill, who hadn't spotted it when we left) and check out the cheetah in the evening. It was a good call, even though the leopard was  satisfied simply watching the impalas, who had drifted considerably further away. 

 

 

Nice morning though and really saw very few other vehicles at the sightings - just passed them on the tracks going the other way. 

Edited July 19, 2023 by pault

[AKR1]

Superb Leopard pictures. Nice narrative too! Thanks for sharing this report @pault

[pault]

Postcript... The cheetah had disappeared by the afternoon and despite Sammy's best efforts over an hour, we never saw it again. Sammy was a bit embarrassed by that as he knew we favour cheetahs, but we weren't really disappointed. He'd make up for it on our final evening anyway. We knew cheetahs weren't as easy to see as in the past. We did better in Olare Motorogi this time (six versus two) but that's just the luck of the draw, having more days and perhaps having more guides teaming up on the job.

 

With no cheetahs apparently around we would have to move on to the lions. Our first views were quite brief as we had been focusing on the cheetah and I know Sammy hadn't orignally planned to bring us up here that evening. So we got there just before six and, with rain coming, it seemed like the last of the lions were moving out of the open and down a hill where we could not follow. In any case, the lions were soon gone into the bushes and there was nothing much to see. 

 

This is the best shot I could manage of one of the cubs (look at that grass!) before it disappeared from the open.

 

 

The male hung around a little longer. I believe we joined the two vehicles in picture after this but

 

 

I believe this was the Offbeat pride and we met Molly again this day - in fact her sightings would coincide with ours quite a bit although probably at different times. However, I could be wrong as I didn't really pay much attention to names this time, even of prides. I'll try to dredge my memory before my next post though, as it will be all about these lions - and the big group of young lions that has sort of split from the Cheli pride.

 

Edited July 19, 2023 by pault

[offshorebirder]

Great photos in the last two posts @pault - they tell nice stories.   

 

You are in fine form with this TR.

 

[pault]

14 hours ago, pault said:

The male hung around a little longer. I believe we joined the two vehicles in picture after this but

 

Fine form indeed @offshorebirder  

 

That was supposed to end "I don't think we joined them for sundowners" but I realised that assumed it was the time we met Molly as I remember other vehicles were having their sundowners in the rain. 

 

In fact, I could have finished that sentence because it was the Offbeat pride that evening, with the one-eyed male pictured above. Next morning we headed back straight there on leaving at 6.30. A little late of a starting time in my book given our plans but things run like clockwork at Elephant Pepper and just before six was when the coffee, cookies and wait staff appeared - and in any case it was still miserable weather. I am not going to grit my teeth and say it was "welcome rain" no matter how happy the cows, zebras, buffalos and elephants were with even more grass growth. Of course if I had been there through the preceding drought I may gladly have called it that, but was Sammy really looking forward to some sideways driving and detours around now unfordable luggas? Quite possibly he was, so I said "Yes, the cows must be very happy." He was glad that I got it but experienced enough to know that this may have been my idea of a joke. At least the rain had stopped so we didn't have to decide whether or not to cover one side (unlikely we would have unless it was heavy rain). There was no need to debate whether to put the roof on since the roof is fixed on Elewana's fleet of mostly identical custom vehicles. You could probably get it off, with notice, if you were particularly keen on birds, although it is high due to the three rising rows anyway and in the front row you can see to quite an elevation without any gymnastics. With the weather as it was any request to take it off would have been met with incredulity. I never even had a good look to determine how complicated it would be although I might have if we had had more down time and if Sammy hadn't offered to buy my wife, which meant we had to discuss the price at most breakfasts and sundowners after that. I thought 10 cows sounded very low for a man of Sammy's status, even on the used market, and told him I wasn't going to name my price until I had talked to Benja at Kicheche Bush Camp, who is totally trustworthy and would never do something like offer to buy one of his guests. 

 

I had thought the pride were a long way from camp but it turned out that we had gone a long way round the previous day and there was a much shorter route that got us there just before 7, stopping briefly to watch a hippo out on the rolling plains. We were just in time to see the mother of the youngest cubs calling them to come down the hill for a rest and one following obediently.

 

 

The other pretended not to hear and sneaked back to join its older siblings (although whether actual siblings of course we could not guess, with two males and a few mature lionesses). Mother lion called and called but there was no response so she looked after the one that was listening to her.

 

The attraction for the cub was that it was time to play with the thing. It isn't a plastic bag but appeared to be rubber - possibly part of a very old inner tube? With the murky light, long grass stalks and plenty of bushes it wasn't ideal for photography but it was an awful lot of fun to watch.

 

.

 

The little one had fought for its own tiny piece and was proudly playing its own game with this. Just as well as I suspect running with the big prize wouldn't have worked so well.

 

Age-appropriate lion toy

 

 

It was being very very fierce though, showing the older siblings who was really boss here (when they stopped to let it catch up).

 

 

Don't try to take down a zebra like this, kid. You will likely get a kicking.

 

 

Some of the games were a bit rough and it was better just to watch.

 

 

After 30 minutes or so, the cub decided now it was time to answer mother's call and happily jogged down the hill. Only mother was gone. From brave killer beast to lonely mewling baby in a minute.

 

Calling desperately, but if mother heard she didn't respond.

 

 

The cub headed off down the hill what we knew was the wrong way, still yelping. However, I am sure they reunited soon after. Since the older cubs were settling down too now we headed off as the leopard was on the move not too far away. That didn't turn into anything of note as he was very comfortably asleep in a tree by the time we arrived. So the reverse of the previous day - our day for lions, not our day for leopard. 

 

Reaction to the morning from the two more anonymous members of the team - my wife and John, a trainee guide who was apprenticing with Sammy and Elephant Pepper. Having a trainee in the vehicle was a positive. Although we had to stop a little longer sometimes while Sammy explained what he was doing and why (I would love to know his explanation for the offer for my wife) we had an extra pair of eyes and it was interesting to see what Sammy felt was significant enough to explain. We all agreed he's very likely going to be an excellent guide, and you could see Sammy was a good teacher.

 

Social media ready content

 

And as a reminder that we are never out there focusing just on predators (zebra post coming soon) we spent 30 minutes after breakfast watching topic and discussing and observing the head-nodding and rubbing of faces in the ground. It's great that you can do this now - the drive to get conservancy guides to Silver certification makes things a lot more interesting just driving around. Elewana guides are clearly told not to let more than a few minutes go by in silence and we knew a lot of this stuff of course, but after six years without them it was really good to put all the topi movement and its relationship to the flies that invade their scent glands back together again. And I don't think I have ever seen so many topics together by the way, other than when they did a crossing of the Mara River. They were migrating too and seen at their best in Mara North this time. The wildebeest story is better told in Olare Motorogi, where there were many more and Patrick explained why this June was so different to 2017.

 

Nod down, nod up, two paused.

 

 

Some topis not nodding

 

 

Gland nicely visible

 

 

A typical topi scene in Mara North this time - some nodding, many not. 

 

 

The same evening we joined part of the Cheli pride hanging out near the main road. They appeared to be hanging with some hyenas but on closer inspection there was 20 meters between the two groups. This was a breakaway group of young lions with two (or one next morning) of the pride lionesses. They (the lionesses) will have to break up this happy idyll for the youngsters soon but right now they are living the dolce vita prior to that very harsh reality. Only a couple may still be young enough to comfortably return to the pride with the females. 

 

For now, it's hanging with hyenas waiting to feed off their mothers' kills and dolce vita - bellies bulging.

 

 

At least he has one pride male characteristic already - entitlement.

 

 

Hyenas poised to respond to any lion aggression - or not.

 

 

Watching the world go by

 

 

Since this lions vs hyenas thing was developing only into each group settling down for naps 50 meters apart, we left them to it.

 

However, we returned very first thing the next morning to catch them on the move. It didn't seem that they had hunted in the night but they had been very full and likely didn't need another meal that morning either.

 

The road drainage made a nice play area.

 

 

Otherwise they were just walking down the road, bonding and hanging, with us waiting for them to pass us and then moving on ahead again.

 

 

 

 

 

 

As young lions do more than older ones, they sometimes appeared to see us and be a little shocked by the revelation, without thinking about it for too long. 

 

 

The remaining adult female half-heartedly stalked a zebra for a couple of minutes, raising interest. It didn't develop though.

 

 

Drinking from a puddle

 

 

 

 

The balloons were starting to appear. The lions were clearly used to this odd sight.

 

 

And some tree scratching for us before most disappeared into the bushes and we let them go as more vehicles had arrived and we were highly unlikely to get better than we had already experienced.

 

 

 

It was a shame they disappeared into the shade though as the light was getting really nice (another of those mornings where the early rays are blocked by clouds and the light is at its best an hour later than you'd expect, although without the same red tinge or opportunities for backlighting).

 

7.40 a.m.

 

 

Edited July 20, 2023 by pault

[Tom Kellie]

~ @pault: Although I've read about balloon tours in safari areas, your photos are the first time I've seen how they appear when observed from the ground.

 

The lone wildebeest looking toward the rising balloon is a striking image, if somewhat disconcerting.

 

Including such images in your exemplary trip report brings home the reality of such aerial intrusions in wildlife areas.

 

The color, composition, and sharp focus of what you've posted is my idea of a superb trip report...not to mention the fine sightings.

 

Thank you for these posts.

 

            Tom K.

[pault]

When we decided to leave the Cheli pride breakaway group it was not solely because they were not being active enough for us. It was because Sammy had got a message from one of the other Elephant Pepper guides that a giraffe was about to give birth not too far from camp. We fully expected to be too late for this but got lucky. Just at the very second we arrived at a point we could see the rear end of the giraffe (we'd seen her head and neck some seconds previously) a big white sack with long legs protruding fell to the ground. Of course arriving at that moment there was no chance to get a photo - we were still driving when baby dropped, but I was happy to have seen it and confirmed what a brutal way it is to enter the world - dropped from 6 feet without warning!

 

After no movement at all for what seemed like a long time, the baby finally moved a leg and raised its head a little. Mother appeared to be paying it no attention but of course she was just watching out for danger before she got to work. Since it was still partially covered by the amniotic sac and had gooey stuff in eyes, nose and mouth I hoped she'd get to that work sooner rather than later.

 

 

 

After what seemed like too long but was not even a minute she decided it was safe enough to get started. 

 

quite

 

She was encouraging the baby to move right from the start and that seemed to be her priority rather than cleaning. It is quite possible though that I projected that 'priority' on to her as I felt she needed to get that amniotic sac off and the mouth clear before baby could do any standing and walking. The first attempt at standing was only a few minutes after birth and was not a great success.

 

Up.... 

 

 

...and faceplant.

 

 

A better attempt with some maternal support a bit later - there were a few attempts and this is the first one when it managed to get the front legs moving too.

 

 

Too eager though - trying to run before it could walk. Result: another collapse. Brilliant effort for 10 minutes old though!

 

 

 

When it did finally manage to get on its feet it was very wobbly. Next task was to locate the teats and then to suckle. However, while the mother helped it locate them, it didn't quite have the balance for suckling yet. 

 

 

Oxpeckers were arriving in large numbers now. It was interesting to see how most first just perched on and started cleaning the mother before really getting down to their cleaning work the baby. She appears to be content to leave them, despite the large number. 

 

 

Having a pile of oxpeckers on its back didn't help baby's task of finding a teat and suckling any easier. As a result, it is possible baby learned how to shake off oxpeckers before it learned to suckle.The oxpeckers were doing it a favor though, cleaning up the leftover gunk. 

 

 

However, within 30 minutes it had learned to walk (kind of), deal with oxpeckers, find a teat and suckle. Pretty amazing.

 

As the light was fading (past six now and it was raining a bit) a male came along to look at and sniff the new baby. Of course it is unlikely to be the father and driven by curiosity rather than concern (I believe the herd leave the mother alone until the baby can get about a bit)...  but it was still a cute moment. 

 

 

I've never seen this before and was spellbound. I thought it was really special. However, when I asked our trainee, John, if he had seen this before, his answer was a shrug and "many times". Oh well... special to me. 

 

[Tom Kellie]

~ And special to most of us.

 

All of this is short story of intense clarity, thanks to your images.

 

The oxpeckers serving in the role of shepherds at an otherwise unattended birth.

 

Love that final image.

 

      Tom K.

[mpjjpm]

Thanks @pault, now I have a new item on my to-see list for my next safari. 

[pault]

After visiting the hyena den in the morning, Sammy decided that we had to go looking for a cheetah in the evening. It was a youngster, newly separated from her mother and had been spotted further north in the conservancy, on the Olare Motorogi side. While she would no longer be where she had been seen, Sammy either still felt he owed us a cheetah or was concerned Patrick and Clare Motorogi would put Mara North in the shade. He was right about the latter, 6-2 looks a lot better than 6-1. But really, I think it is the luck of the draw where the cheetahs tend to settle and where they might hunt in terms of whole conservancies. There wasn't really anything in Olare Motorogi that I noticed or that Patrick put forward which made things easier for them there. A month earlier or later and perhaps the 6-2 score would have been reversed.

 

That evening it was clear something had changed in the Conservancy. The zebras had been moving a lot in the past couple of days and it seemed at least some of them were moving away. We also realised why we hadn't been north yet - not only was there more sharing of the plains with humans and their cattle here - the grass was a little more cropped and there was very little wildlife around for the first half hour that we drove. We headed some way off the roads, which were generally in poor condition out here, and it was windy and a little wet. If this had been our first day and if we hadn't stayed way out in Lemek when Kicheche Mara was there we might have thought Mara North was in terminal decline. But it's actually fun (and beneficial) to visit these less-seen corners of the conservancies as you are usually completely alone out there and it helps to appreciate little things like the ground-dwelling birds (we even spent time with some Egyptian Geese) and you quickly focus more intently on common sightings such as baboons, giraffes or zebras. We've had some fantastic one-off sightings in such spots too.

 

What are you doing out here?

 

But we were here to look for cheetah (the one seen and any others who might be about - you can see for a long, long way on these plains with the shorter grass and Sammy and John were taking advantage of this to scan for something interesting every 10 minutes or so. We didn't find anything and so soon enough we came to a more wooded area, where another two vehicles from other camps were already scouting for the cheetah. We found her pretty quickly. I have no idea if the other vehicles saw her too at that time as we were not all together. We never really came together either, as the luggas scarring the land had very limited crossing points.

 

She was just walking in the light rain. I thought she was scanning for prey but Sammy said more likely she was still looking for her mother.

 

 

She came across a herd of eland, which gathered close together to face her off. Nervously and childishly, she ran a couple of steps at them, sending the herd running. But then of course the eland regathered and came back at the cheetah, sending her running. Unfortunately this happened while we were still stopped for watching her walk by and it was a bit far (and fast) to photograph successfully, Plus, she started running for it while the eland were still some way away. It was also quite dark and not really time for action shots.

 

Bullied by eland, and when we caught up to her, things got worse. A warthog and two of its young were there and not pleased to see her. End result was a second chasing and retreat from the warthogs. 

 

Cornered - but they did relent and let her go - trotting on their way.

 

 

Then a hyena showed up, forcing another retreat - although the hyena just wanted to know if she had a kill and walked on when she didn't. Funnily enough, the hyena was the only one she didn't run from.

 

 

After the hyena left she walked on and we were able to stay with her for a little while, until she turned and started walking up a very rocky hill, where she seemed to be using the elevation to better look for her mother, rather than for identifying targets for hunting, despite looking rather thin 

 

 

This kind of terrain is incredibly difficult to drive on and takes forever so, since she was probably only going to find somewhere to rest for the night, we decided it wasn't worth the effort to follow her further and watched her climb the hill from the base.

 

 

When she got near the top, with only a silhouette clearly visible in the fast-fading light, another animal appeared. This one gathered no reaction from her other than watching and, once he had gone she disappeared over the hill and into a future that probably wasn't looking very bright to her right at that time. Hopefully she is a good hunter once she gets some suitable-sized prey (there must be a lot of rabbits hares (LOL) out there) and next time she features in a trip report here will be with cubs in tow. 

 

 

As usual we got back to camp rather late and had to be pretty quick to get to dinner - not because they insisted on a particular time but because we had again made a dinner date. As it turned out we couldn't honour that date as we were directed to the private dining tent (this should have been outside but the weather had made that impractical) where they served us champagne (the stuff from Champagne at Elewana). As a result I had a bit of. a hangover next morning, which was our last in camp.

 

But I will do one more post from Mara North to fill in the gaps.

Edited July 22, 2023 by pault

[Athene]

@pault Really enjoying this report - the photos are fantastic but the writing is even better. Very entertaining!

We stayed at Elephant Pepper in early September 2018 and enjoyed it a lot. Our guide was George who was great.

[pault]

Only really met one other guide there @Athenedriving us from the airstrip and he seemed very good too.

 

A few more things seen at Mara North (hippos too, but I said in response to Molly, with the water so high and the grass so plentiful the pictures aren't worth seeing).

 

The hippos were on a trip to have breakfast by the river, set up for the whole camp. We felt a bit lonely as tables were set up by vehicle so there was only us two at our table for eating. We were very sociable in camp though, so I don't think anybody thought we were being antisocial. It wasn't a very productive visit to the river but the breakfast tacos were nice.

 

Crocodiles at the river

 

 

Earlier that day we had gone to see what had become of the hippo carcass, since it was more or less on the way.

 

It was still giving, but not for much longer. This hooded vulture was the only one we saw in Mara North that I can think of. Maybe a couple flying high. And these are the only pied crows I can think of too. 

 

 

Helmeted guineafowl - at least they are still relatively common, although not easy to photograph with all the long grass around.

 

 

A Coke's hartebeest. Saw them most drives but usually in small numbers and many fewer times than the topis and wildebeest - as frequent as eland but in significantly smaller numbers.

 

 

Although common there were many fewer wildebeest than I would have expected. These two males were doing what we expected to see more of - battling for their tiny territories into which they would try to keep the females ensnared. It was that season (although towards the end) but the number of wildebeest migrating from the Loita Hills has fallen significantly due to fencing becoming more prevalent outside the Mara. They still migrate but not all can find a way through it seems. 

 

 

No such problems for the topis for whatever reason - possibly they can clear the fences or just come from different areas. There are so many residents anyway, I guess.

 

 

I think this is the main Cheli pride minus the breakaway group and the males - we popped in to see them on the way back from the cheetah. Of course staying at Elephant Pepper or similar area you would expect to see this pride the most but that's not the way it went this time. 

 

 

And a few more zebras to finish. 

 

 

 

Since this was the way things are done (even with a private vehicle it seems) we had breakfast in camp next day and would be picked up by Kicheche from there at around 11 am. Would have preferred to go out with breakfast and meet them halfway but my wife had been having eye problems so it wasn't actually a bad thing for her in this particular instance. To cut a long story short she had been short on cleaning solution for her contact lenses and hadn't brought spare contact lenses either. Reasons for this are not really important. Then she solved the lack of solution problem by dropping one of her lenses in the tent one evening. So she was switching between one eyed with contact lens and binoculars and glasses and it was not very comfortable. It kind of spoiled the mood a little throughout the trip, although she carried on fighting it and enjoyed herself as best she could. She'd be fine for most things but then her eyes would start smarting watering and she couldn't see very well for a while. Never seemed to cause issues when viewing cheetahs, oddly.  I would have suggested an eye patch, but suspected that would give her a headache or something while she adjusted. And maybe you need a monocular with an eyepatch? At Kicheche she got offered all sorts to help by other guests (always such a nice atmosphere there) but her contacts are special prescription so nothing could be done. Won't happen again and it's not really a potential lesson for others - just a really unlucky (and unnecessary) chain of events. 

 

And on we go to the finale at Kicheche Bush Camp. Still six more nights to go!

[offshorebirder]

That sequence of the newborn giraffe was amazing and super-special @pault    All the superlatives that leap to mind seem to fall flat.