Kicheche Mara and Valley

[madaboutcheetah]

That evening the group managed to set up a laptop with the manager’s dongle to stream TV over the internet. They were determined to get up at 2am to watch the superbowl. As there was no power in the tent and a laptop battery was unlikely to last the duration of the match, they were planning to call the askaris on the radios in the rooms to take them up to the main area at 2am. Great, I thought. I already knew that they were loud enough for their voices to carry to my tent from the main area, as they had mostly spent siesta time up there. Fortunately in the end there were too many elephants around at 2am and it was too dangerous. Or so they were told.

 

 

haha ...... too funny. If ever, my Eagles make another Superbowl (as I tend to think, this is the year!!!) ....... I shall ensure safari only after the superbowl.

[stokeygirl]

I liked Kicheche a lot. I did consider Mara Plains but it is significantly more expensive- approx $650 per night vs $450, and Kicheche don't charge single supplements.

 

I would definitely consider going back and trying Kicheche Bush, which is in Olare Orok. Maybe in combination with Laikipia (like pault did).

[madaboutcheetah]

I liked Kicheche a lot. I did consider Mara Plains but it is significantly more expensive- approx $650 per night vs $450, and Kicheche don't charge single supplements.

 

I would definitely consider going back and trying Kicheche Bush, which is in Olare Orok. Maybe in combination with Laikipia (like pault did).

 

 

Mara Plains were running a stay 7, Pay 6 offer.

 

They might get significantly more expensive after they re-do their camp.

Edited March 6, 2012 by madaboutcheetah

[pault]

I liked Kicheche a lot. I did consider Mara Plains but it is significantly more expensive- approx $650 per night vs $450, and Kicheche don't charge single supplements.I would definitely consider going back and trying Kicheche Bush, which is in Olare Orok. Maybe in combination with Laikipia (like pault did).

Mara Plains were running a stay 7, Pay 6 offer.They might get significantly more expensive after they re-do their camp.

 

Or after your glowing reports!

 

There have been minor good deals available this year. Nothing spectacular but they keep on coming.

 

Actually, Kicheche do have single supplements during peak season. I have a strong feeling that they are negotiable even then if you are longstay/repeat/booked through certain companies, etc... at the beginning and end of the season you maybe only need to say "please" .... but they are there.

Edited March 6, 2012 by pault

[stokeygirl]

You are right, they do have single supplements mid July to end October. That's still better than most places though!

[Leely]

Great photos from what sounds like a great trip. Thanks for your candor about Naboisho (at this point--like you, I'm sure it will pick up soon). I love Kicheche based on my experience at Bush Camp. I'm another one who would like to copy pault's trip.

 

/my posts have become much more staccato since I started using an iPad. Sorry, gang!

[pault]

The set needs completing, stokeygirl. Still one to go - and the most interesting one.

 

By the way, where did most of the Kicheche Mara drives head from the new site? North towards their old areas or other directions?

[stokeygirl]

The set needs completing, stokeygirl. Still one to go - and the most interesting one.

 

By the way, where did most of the Kicheche Mara drives head from the new site? North towards their old areas or other directions?

 

Sorry, it's been a bit slow going I know. Should have time this weekend to get a chunk more out of the way. It will get quicker when we get to Valley as there aren't as many photos and we didn't see as much.

 

Which direction did we go? I don't know, my sense of direction is rubbish but I don't think it was towards their old areas.

 

By the way, due to a change in job and extra time off coming my way, I've been able to book myself 8 nights at Kwihala in June.

[pault]

The set needs completing, stokeygirl. Still one to go - and the most interesting one.By the way, where did most of the Kicheche Mara drives head from the new site? North towards their old areas or other directions?

Sorry, it's been a bit slow going I know. Should have time this weekend to get a chunk more out of the way. It will get quicker when we get to Valley as there aren't as many photos and we didn't see as much.Which direction did we go? I don't know, my sense of direction is rubbish but I don't think it was towards their old areas.By the way, due to a change in job and extra time off coming my way, I've been able to book myself 8 nights at Kwihala in June.

 

Oh great! Good for you. That'll be interesting to hear about.

[stokeygirl]

The next morning, we headed out with the idea to try and see the lions. We saw plenty of vultures in trees and went to investigate but couldn’t find any evidence of a kill. Then we came across a male lion who was looking pretty full.

 

 

He was on the move and we didn’t stay with him long but then quickly found the females and cubs.

 

The lions, especially the cubs, put on another entertaining display. With quite a few vehicles joining us it was quite a jostle for space when they were on the move.

 

At one point, George had gone around and managed to position us in a great spot when another vehicle pulled in behind us and we heard a scrape and an ominous loud hissing sound. They had hit one of the sharp granite rocks and one of their rear tyres was deflating fast. I was busy watching the lions, but when they moved into the bush I turned around to see their guides starting to change the tyre behind us. Another vehicle was also screening them from the lions’ view.

 

I thought I recognised one of the guys changing the tyre and thought- unlikely in Kenya, until I noticed the Kwando logo on his fleece. The logo on the vehicle was small but when I looked carefully it was Karen Blixen camp. This was one of the Kwando guides I had met at Kwara in December doing the reverse of their exchange. I waved, and he came over for a chat. His name was Lucas and he said the other guide Tom, who had previously guided me at Lagoon in 2010, was having a lie in this morning. Small world!

[stokeygirl]

Even after all the lions were out of sight, we remained to screen the Karen Blixen vehicle while they changed their tyre and then continued their drive. We soon stumbled across some giraffe with a small baby- the one we had seen newly born on my first drive. Good to see he was doing well- by now he was running around.

 

We then entered an area I recognised as “cheetah territory” and again, the mum and cub were not hard to locate- there was just the one vehicle parked by them this time. We pulled in and played cheetah tag as the other vehicle pulled out.

Despite yesterday’s meal she still perked up at the sight of a gazelle wandering past in the distance, but she wasn’t hungry enough for it to be worth the chase.

 

 

We left them and went to the river to watch hippos and have breakfast. After breakfast we went back to check on the cheetah via a group of 6 ostrich. It was pretty hot by this stage (11:30) so we headed back to camp, arriving about 12:15 for lunch at 1pm.

[stokeygirl]

In the afternoon, the managers Simon and Olivia joined me on the drive, and we quickly found the lions, in the same spot they’d been playing in the morning. Apparently the water here had a high salt content which they liked. When we approached them they were making feeding noises and we found they had made a kill. Unusual for the middle of the day until we found it was a stray cow- an easy target for the pride.

 

I didn’t take too many photos of the kill but at various points the lions got thirsty and went down to the pools of water to drink.

 

Lions really don't like to get their feet wet.......

 

 

Two of the males had turned up for the meal and were already lying under a bush with fat bellies, no doubt having had first pickings.

 

Eventually the males moved off and the rest of the pride went back to the kill for seconds, so we decided to leave. By this stage it was too late to go to leopard gorge so we went for a general drive around, found the baby giraffe again and had some sundowners.

[stokeygirl]

On my last morning, the plan was to leave at normal time, do a drive and have breakfast on the road as usual and end up at Valley Camp. When we left camp, we found the lions not far from their favourite spot and yesterday’s kill. At first they were mainly sleeping, even the cubs- obviously stuffed from yesterday. Then they got up and started moving. One of the females was alert to a hyena in the distance and stalked and chased it. As we were watching the pride moving towards the water, one of the males appeared on the road in front of the vehichle, walking towards us. He joined them and they all made their way down to the water to drink. As we were watching the male drinking, the rest of the pride moved away and when he left we followed him but lost him fairly quickly.

 

Quite a number of vehicles had joined and were mostly watching where the pride had moved to, but we decided it was time to leave and started our drive towards Naboisho Conservancy.

[stokeygirl]

We stopped for an early breakfast,as we were going to drive through the Olare Orok Consevrancy where technically we were not supposed to be and George didn’t want to draw attention whilst in there by stopping. We needn’t have worried as we barely saw another vehicle or much of interest in the OOC. George phoned one of the guides from Kicheche Bush Camp to see if anything of interest was happening but they said it was quiet and so most vehicles had headed into the main reserve that day.

 

Naboisho seemed much more hilly and to have more bush, but with some open plains areas. It was pretty hot by the time we got in there but we saw many giraffe including a very young baby with its umbilical cord still hanging.

[stokeygirl]

I was welcomed at camp by Johanna. I had half an hour to settle into my beautiful room before lunch. Johanna had given me the choice of 2 rooms, room 3 closest to the main area or room 1 furthest away with the nicest view. I’d gone for room 1 and was immediately struck by how peaceful it was. Surely anywhere in the bush should be peaceful I thought, so what was different? Aaaah, it was the distant sound of 7 loud Americans that was missing.

The rooms at Valley Camp really were a cut above Mara Camp. Huge tents with wooden floors, nicely furnished and open to a wooden deck overlooking the valley. Water in the showers was on demand (no buckets!) and there was even an electrical socket in the room for charging. At lunch I found the food was similarly superior, although frankly a 3 course lunch is a bit much for me in the heat.

[stokeygirl]

At this stage, I stopped writing a daily account of sightings, as things slowed down a bit. There was one other couple in camp, and on my first drive I shared a vehicle with them. After that they were given their own vehicle and I was alone for a day and a half until I was joined by a single guy who was finishing up a trip of a few weeks doing more budget camping with a few days of comfort.

 

Although the predators were scarce, we still had some lovely sightings. Here's a selection from the first couple of days.

 

 

We saw a lovely group of 6 bat eared foxes which were, as usual, very good at running away-

 

I spent some time watching a couple of Thompson's gazelles having an epic battle-

 

We saw one lone lioness-

 

 

There was plenty of plains game around-

 

We found some tawny eagles finishing off an impala kill- possibly leopard or lions-

 

 

Elephants coming up from drinking in the river-

 

Giraffes were fast becoming the suprise stars of my trip, with this lovely one drinking in the same spot- he became visible when the elephants moved out of the way-

 

 

A very cute baby elephant just getting the hang of using his trunk-

 

 

One from the same group-

[pault]

The tiny giraffe with mother is great - unless it's a very tall mother, I've never seen one quite that small. Some great-looking lion viewing too. Long grass in a lot of these - not surprising I suppose.

 

I am surprised they were concerned about traversing Olare Orok; even if they are a lot stricter than they were before about that with the opening of a fourth camp, I'd have expected Kicheche to be able to negotiate traversing rights to Naboisho. Or is going through Olare Orok actually a bit of an unnecessary, "scenic" detour?

 

That's not all from Naboisho, is it?

[Jochen]

Fantastic read! I truly enjoyed this.

[stokeygirl]

There is a bit more to go, although the next day I went into the main reserve- lots of photos from that day, hence the pause. On the final morning in Naboisho, we had a great sighting of lions with a wildebeest kill.

 

As I said, Naboisho was a bit on the quiet side in terms of cats. Only 3 lion sightings in 3 days (I was there for 4 but spent one day in the reserve), and one of those was at such a distance I didn't get any decent photos.

 

There were plenty of lions around- we heard them every single night. But George, my guide from Mara who drove me there, said the lions are used to having to steer clear of humans so they "head for the hills" very early in the morning. He knows the area (as do many of the guides round there) because there is a guiding school there where most of the guides in the area did their training.

[Sangeeta]

Great report, Stokeygirl, though you'll barely have time to finish this one up before heading back to Bots!!

 

I really enjoy your photo series. Loved the leopards last time and the giraffes are the stars of this one. Lovely report!

[Duma Tau]

Great summary Stokeygirl ... I'm headed to kicheche laikipia in early July of this year. Thanks for posting. DId you get any photos of the Land Rovers you rode in? What size of lens did you take with you? 200-400mm? 600mm?