Adventure Africa Holidays is a specialist tour operator with
its office headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya but operating
throughout East Africa. We offer Safaris to Masai Mara National Reserve, Kenya Masai Mara Game Reserve, Kenya Masai Mara Park, Masai Mara Safaris, Maasai Mara Kenya.
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Masai Mara
National Reserve, Kenya
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Masai Mara National Reserve Background Information:
The Masai Mara is one of the best known and most
popular reserves in the whole of Africa. At times and
in certain places it can get a little overrun with
tourist minibuses, but there is something so special
about it that it tempts you back time and again.
Seasoned safari travellers, travel writers,
documentary makers and researchers often admit that
the Masai Mara is one of their favourite places. So
why is that? Perhaps it is because of the 'big skies',
the open savannahs, the romance of films like 'Out of
Africa' and certainly because of the annual wildebeest
migration, the density of game, the variety of
birdlife and the chance of a hot air balloon ride.
Also because of the tall red-robed Masai people whose
lifestyle is completely at odds with western
practices, and from whom one learns to question
certain western values.
A combination of all these things plus something to do
with the spirit of the place - which is hard to put
into words - is what attracts people to the Mara over
and over.
The
Masai Mara lies in the Great Rift Valley, which is
a fault line some 3,500 miles (5,600km) long, from
Ethiopia's Red Sea through Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi and
into Mozambique. Here the valley is wide and a
towering escarpment can be seen in the hazy distance.
Most of the game viewing activities occur on the
valley floor, but some lodges conduct walking tours
outside the park boundaries in the hills of the Oloololo Escarpment. The animals are also at liberty
to move outside the park into huge areas known as
'dispersal areas'. There can be as much wildlife
roaming outside the park as inside. Many Masai
villages are located in the 'dispersal areas' and they
have, over centuries, developed a synergetic
relationship with the wildlife.
There are four main types of topography in the Mara:
Ngama Hills to the east with sandy soil and leafy
bushes liked by black rhino; Oloololo Escarpment
forming the western boundary and rising to a
magnificent plateau; Mara Triangle bordering the Mara
River with lush grassland and acacia woodlands
supporting masses of game especially migrating
wildebeest; Central Plains forming the largest part of
the reserve, with scattered bushes and boulders on
rolling grasslands favoured by the plains game.
Animals and Birds in Masai
Mara:
In a short stay during the wildebeest migration you
could see thousands of animals, at other times there
are still hundreds. The plains are full of wildebeest,
zebra, impala, topi, giraffe, Thomson's gazelle. Also
regularly seen are leopards, lions, hyenas, cheetah,
jackal and bat-eared foxes. Black rhino are a little
shy and hard to spot but are often seen at a distance.
Hippos are abundant in the Mara River as are very
large Nile crocodiles, who lay in wait for a meal as
the wildebeest cross on their annual quest to find new
pastures.
Every July (or sometimes August), the wildebeest
travel over 600 miles (960km) from Tanzania's
Serengeti plains, northwards to the Masai Mara and the
Mara River is the final obstacle. In October or
November, once they have feasted and the grass has all
but gone, they turn around and go back the other way.
The Mara birds come in every size and colour including
common but beautiful ones like the lilac breasted
roller and plenty of large species like eagles,
vultures and storks. There are 53 different birds of
prey.
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Masai Mara Season:
Altitude is 4,875-7,052 feet (1,500-2,170 metres)
above sea level, which yields a climate somewhat
milder and damper than other regions. The daytime
rarely exceeds 85°F (30°C) during the day and hardly
ever drops below 60°F (15°C) at night.
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Rainy Season:
It rains in April and May and again in November and
this can cause some areas of the Mara to be
inaccessible due to the sticky 'black cotton' mud.
Dry Season:
July to October is dry and the grass is long and lush
after the rains. This is a good time to come and see
the huge herds of migratory herbivores.
Hottest time:
The warmest time of year is December and January.
Coldest Time:
June and July are the coldest months.
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Masai Mara Access:
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Road: It takes
approximately 5 hrs by road from Nairobi to reach
Masai Mara
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Air: Serviced
by local flights (AirKenya, Safarilink &
Mombasa Air Services) taking approximately 45 minutes
from Nairobi. Charter flights are also available.
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Masai Mara Activities:
-Wildebeest Migration
-Hot Air Ballooning
-Huge savannahs of golden grasslands
-Big skies
-Rift Valley escarpment
-Lion sightings
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-Local Maasai Culture
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Masai Mara Lodges & Tented Camps:
- Masai Mara has a
variety of accommodations ranging from luxury lodges
and private camps to budget camps. Lodges available
include: Mara Serena Lodge, Keekorok Lodge, Mara Simba
Lodge, Mara Sopa Lodge, Sarova Mara Tented Camp,
Governors Camp/s, Kichwa Tembo Camp, Mara Intrepids,
Mara Safari Club, Fig Tree Camp, Ilkeliani Camp,
Sekenani Camp, Mpata Safari Club amongst many others.
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Masai Mara Wildebeest Migration Overview:
May & June
In late May, the herds leave the Western Corridor for
the northern Serengeti plains and woodlands. The
fresh, tender and mineral-rich pastures on the other
side of the humans' border, in Masai Mara, are the
irresistible bait for the animals to finally invade
the Kenyan reserve, an event which usually starts in
late June to early July. The troops coming from the
south meet here another migratory contingent: the
resident wildebeest herds of the Mara region. These
animals reside in the Loita Plains and Hills,
northeast of the Mara, until the dry season brings the
tougher days and it is time to seek the evergreen Mara
basin.
July to October
Throughout the month of July, the herds cross the Sand
River, a mostly dry tributary of the Mara which
roughly follows the boundary line between Kenya and
Tanzania. The parade takes the eastern sector of
Masai
Mara, surrounding the Keekorok Lodge area. The trek
follows westward, leading the herds to face the major
challenge along their quest: crossing the Mara river
and frequently also its tributary, the Talek. By then,
the rains at the Mau Escarpment, where the Mara rises,
have fed the stream to its highest levels.
The steep banks are populated with trunk-looking
basking crocodiles that seem almost to be expecting
their annual banquet. The operation of fording the
river is the most delicate along the migration, and as
such seems to plunge the gnus in a state of anxiety
that only relieves when the whole herd has crossed.
The trekkers walk along the left (eastern) bank of the
Mara River looking for a suitable point to cross. There are
plenty of preferred crossings along the course, which
are easily identifiable by the lack of vegetation, the
depressed slopes and the deep grooves carved by the
animals' hooves. These are the most secure places to
ford the river, those that ensure a minimal mortality.
Nonetheless, the apparent programming of the whole
process sometimes seems to collapse, and the nervous
herds occasionally choose places where the banks are
too steep and many of the animals break their legs
down the cliff or fall flat into the waters. The herds
gather at the suitable points and wander around
nervously, their grunts sounding loud in the air.
Eventually, one animal takes the lead and approaches
the rim, scanning the opposite edge to analyze if any
danger awaits after the crossing. When it finally
dives into the stream, this seems to haul the rest of
the herd. More animals follow in a single line across
the river, while the lagged ones throw themselves
towards the stream until the rearguard pushes the
troops to a frantic race that ends up with some
animals trampled to death, lying aside the course.
Along the boreal summer, the crossings repeat over and
over, and the survivors graze peacefully on the Mara
Triangle grasslands unless disturbed by the
early-morning and late-evening hunts of lion and
cheetah, the latter preying on the calves.
By October, the rains are heading south back to the
Serengeti. This is when the pace of the march
reverses, bringing the herds to face once more the
quest for the southern grasslands. The rite of
fording the river is again part of nature's call. In
the last days of October, the migration heads
towards the vast plains of the southern Serengeti,
where a new generation of calves will be born to
start the cycle of life all over again. Normally the
route is down the eastern side and the pace is fast.
Quite often a million animals can be seen stretched
out:Masai
Mara Safari.
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