Visual Highlights – Safari – Maasai Mara, Kenya

One of my favorite experiences while in Kenya was going on safari. The Maasai Mara National Reserve is part of the Narok region, where WE Villages works. During my trip with Me to We, we departed early one morning and headed into the reserve.

The reserve has a diverse population of resident game, and is home to the African Big Five: lions, leopards, elephants, buffalo, and rhinos. During this Safari, I was lucky see four out of five! The elusive leopard was the only one we missed.

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Sunrise over the Mara #tbt #vscocam #vsco

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Elephants

Once on the reserve, we were greeted by a parade of elephants. Typically, the elephants take refuge from the sweltering sun in the trees. There was rain the previous day, so the elephants were out enjoying the cool, moist ground.

There were 100+ elephants on the horizon, hanging out and enjoying the nice day.

Traffic jam!


Lions!

The Land Rover drivers have walkie-talkies to communicate where the rare animals are. We rushed over to an area where lions had just finished a meal. As we rolled up, we saw a male lion walking away in the distance.

Maasai Mara Lion
Lion! Shot on my Sony RX-100 through a pair of binoculars

Near the dead carcass, this adolescent lion was hiding in the bushes, taking a rest post-meal. You can see the swarms of flies enjoying their lunch on his face.


Rhinos!

After spending the day cruising through the park, we headed back to camp. Β I was taking a nap when we came to an abrupt stop. Ryan told me to grab my camera and get out of the car. All of the sudden, there were guys with guns escorting me up a hill. After a few minutes, we stopped and the guard tapped me on the shoulder and pointed to a bush. Behind it was something I was not expecting: a rhino!

Queen Elizabeth and Kofi Annan are white rhinos from South Africa who live at the Ol Chorro Conservancy. They are protected from poachers by up to 10 armed guards 24 hours a day, living peacefully on the hillside.

African Rhinos Queen Elizabeth and Kofi Ann
Selfie with Queen Elizabeth and Kofi Ann

These giraffes were not on the reserve, but were along the road on our way back from a day out at a village.

Zebras spotted on the way to camp.

One of the essential things to do post-safari is pop the top on the Land Rover and enjoy ice cold Tusker Lagers.

Read more about my trip to Kenya with Me to We, or the time I spent in Zanzibar, Tanzania for vacation after!


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