Day 1 story about Photography tour of Masai Mara, Kenya
It’s been 4 years since I started wildlife photography. But unfortunately never ventured any further than our weekend rendezvous to Bhandup pumping station, Palm Beach road, TS-Chanayak, Yeoor hills or at most SNGP. (I stay in Thane & these are popular birding destinations around). My hands were itching to explore the world outside of my comfort zone, may be a Tiger safari at Tadoba, Bandavgarh or any other reserve to help sooth my alter ego.
After all what a worth is a “wildlife enthusiast” without a single tiger safari to his credit.
Somebody has rightly said “Agar kisi cheez ko dil se chaaho to puri kayanat usey tumse milane ki koshish mein lag jaati hai”. One fine morning I got a call from my sister who is settled in Dubai for a family vacation and guess where? Kenya! Masai Mara the land of the Savannah and home to the Big Five (Lion, Elephant, Rhinoceros, Buffalo & Leopard)
The itinerary was rolled out from 15 – 19th Aug16. I packed my camera equipment -Nikon D750, D5200, 24-120 Nikon, Tamron 150-600 mm, battery backup, memory cards and my vanguard tripod. 15 kgs of Loewpro-350 to be carried a thousand miles but I was sure it would be worth it.
There is always a debate on equipment to carry on such an photo expedition. There is something known as ideal equipment (best in class) which obviously would increase your budget and other is make best use of what you have kind. It’s a topic which warrants a separate discussion, but in my experience, I was more than satisfied with what I carried and never felt any need or missed anything fancy.
On 14th Aug16 I took the morning Ethiopian airlines flight (1 stop) from Mumbai to Nairobi. A few hours stop over at Addis Abbaba was nothing compared to a handful grands I saved of my hard earned money. I reached Nairobi ( Jomo Kenyatta International Airport) same evening as my sister, brother-in-law along with their 8 year old son reached Nairobi from Dubai. We stayed put at Kempinski Vila Rosa for the night.
The next morning we took a flight from Nairobi’s-Wilson airport to Masai Mara instead of the treacherous 6-8 hrs road drive. Flying in the 12 seater ATR was an experience in itself. We were seated just behind the pilot and could see all the electronic consoles and pilot maneuvers. Though noisy it was fun. We landed in the next 45 min. at a makeshift airstrip in Masai Mara with Bernard our driver guide for the next 3 days waiting for our arrival under a solitary tree in the vast expanse. We got on to the giant 8 seater Land Cruiser to proceed to Kempinski Olare Mara (Luxury tents) about 40 mins drive from there.
And voila! The wildlife expedition had already begun enroute to the Kempinski Tents. Gazzles where the first animals we spotted followed by Impalas, Wilde beasts, Wild buffalos and they were like…everywhere. Problems of plenty I say. Bernard would make sure to park the car at the right angle to help me get the most flattering picture. I could gauge that he was a pro and I was really excited for things to come in days ahead. By the time we reached our camp site the other animals we came across where African Elephants, Ostriches, Warthogs, Hippos and a lazy Leopard (he was fast asleep) in a trench just near the camp site. Bernard promised to check him out during our evening safari.
At the gates of the Kempinski camp we were welcomed in the Masai tradition with dance and songs. After a refreshing glass of tomato juice (organically grown at the camp site) we were escorted to our tent. Luxury was an understatement when we saw the big tent, decked with all the essentials and a viewing deck opening to the nearby river with herds of Hippos in it was just amazing. Since our tent was some distance away from the main reception/dining area we were advised to call for escort while moving around especially after evening as a precaution from the lurking wild animals around.
After the lunch I decided to explore the camp site because I had noticed some bird activity through the corner of my eye and I was not wrong. Afternoon birding in the camp site was quite rewarding with spotting & ample photo opportunities of the avian species woodpecker, magpie,
Bernard was there sharp 4p.m. for the evening game drive. Shortly into the drive our road was blocked by herd of giant elephants. Needless to say the right to way is of animals and we waited patiently for the herd to move away and they did it at their own pace. Except for one big inquisitive tusker who came too close for comfort. All this while I was clicking to glory and got some amazing snaps of the beast at close quarters.
We then decided to check on the leopard in the trench but as I said the lazy bugger was still sleeping. May be it had a heavy meal. In the meanwhile Bernard got a radio message about a pride of lions nearby and we started moving towards that location. Suddenly we were in the lion territory with the entire pride spread around resting in the evening glory. There was a lion couple just a few meters in front of us who was engaged in a courtship.
We started driving towards it, always careful to not disturb them and parked at some distance. It was pin drop silence and even my shutter release sound was thunderous in the situation. It was humbling experience to see these beautiful beast at such close quarters. By the time we reached our camp it was already past 7 p.m… We had our dinner and asked the staff to escort us to our tent as advised. Was off to bed with the anticipation of the next day line-up, Hot air balloon with bush breakfast …….
We started driving towards it, always careful to not disturb them and parked at some distance. It was pin drop silence and even my shutter release sound was thunderous in the situation. It was humbling experience to see these beautiful beast at such close quarters. By the time we reached our camp it was already past 7 p.m… We had our dinner and asked the staff to escort us to our tent as advised. Was off to bed with the anticipation of the next day line-up, Hot air balloon with bush breakfast …….
Stay tuned for the day 2 at Masai Mara (Hot air balloon and different perspective of the Savannahs from up-up and above…
Photography tour of Masai Mara, Kenya
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