In Kenya, next to the Serengeti which is in the country of Tanzania, lies the Mara. In fact you cannot tell the difference between the two if you didn't know where the country's borders were. The Serengeti is ten times larger than the Mara, but they share the animals. There is a great crossing in July and August as the animals come up to the Mara to follow the rains. The animals (mostly wildebeests) then return to the Serengeti in October and November. Our trip to the Mara was somewhat quiet because the bulk of wildebeests and some of the zebra were down south in Tanzania, but nonetheless breathtaking.



We left for the Mara on Monday taking a small plane (12 seater) from Nairobi down to the park. We were greeted by our guide Reuben, a Masai, who then took us to the Intrepid Mara camp nearby. We stayed in a tent that gave the Grand America in Salt Lake a run for it's money. The lodging, the food, the service, and the scenery were so nice and the people so friendly. I know it was their job to take care of us, but the Masai are so fun to be around.



Our trip to the Mara lasted about 2 1/2 days. During that time we went on 5 game drives. We saw a leopard on the first day with a fresh kill. Leopards generally stay well hidden in the trees so we had to really sneak in to see this one. We got about 15 yards away from her. At one point we saw her bright yellow eyes looking straight at us. The next day we were off in a different direction. Within the first 30 minutes we happened upon a family of elephants with a new 2 week old baby. This has got to be the cutest thing I have ever seen. He was out running and bouncing around and looking at us with curious and unafraid eyes. A little later we came up to some lions. We drove right next to them. After watching them for just a few minutes the lions walked up to the jeep we were in and laid in the small amount of shade that it produced. The male lion's feet were actually under the jeep. As we looked over the edge of the jeep he looked straight up at us, just 2-3 feet away. Matt said that his heart skipped a beat. These animals are evidently pretty use to the jeeps and it appeared that they weren't too hungry at the time so they didn't seem to care about our curiosity.



Shortly after our encounter with the lions, we found a pack of hyenas fighting over and eating a fresh kill. Reuben told us that hyenas rarely eat their own kill and usually follow and steal something from the work of one of the large cats. It was then we found one of the most exciting things that second day, a group of three cheetahs known as the 'three brothers'. They are world famous. Cheetahs are generally solitary animals, but these three brothers will stay together for up to 8 years. Seeing them and getting close to them out in the open golden plains of the Mara was breathtaking indeed.



We saw so many animals up close. We were taken back by the experience and felt very grateful for it. Each day that we were at the Mara it rained in the evening. Reuben told us that it hadn't rained for 4 months so the Masai eagerly welcomed it. On the last day the roads became quite muddy and we got stuck after crossing a river and going up its bank. Mike and Matt got out and helped Reuben dig and push the jeep free. My job was to stand in the jeep and keep a look out for animals. We were within a few feet of a hippo path that led down to the river. Hippos are the number one killer of the Masai people. They don't eat them, they just have bad attitudes. There were also fresh leopard prints in the mud beside the jeep. All this made Mike a bit nervous. After about 30-40 minutes the jeep was set free of its trap and we were off to Lookout Mountain. As we came up the hill we turned to see a pride of lions not far from our crossing point, just on the other side. Good times. At Lookout Mountain we got a good view of the Serengeti and all the animals grazing on the plains. The air was pleasantly cool with a fresh clean smell. Another small pride of lions crossed our path looking for shade and totally unaffected by our presence. Unfortunately due to the time we got stuck in the mud we did not have time to cross the Kenya/Tanzania border to actually stand in the Serengeti. But we did see it from a short distance. The Mara and Serengeti are pretty much the same, they just belong to different countries. This is a place that I would encourage anyone to come to if they ever had the opportunity. This whole experience has left us feeling humble and grateful and simply in awe.