My sister lives in Kenya and it was time to visit her and go on safari. She has a good friend, Jennifer Ratcliff, who owns Jmar Safaris Duma Camp in the Masai Mara and made arrangements for my first Safari. My brother-in-law is a commercial pilot and he flew us to the Mara, as it is known to the locals. If you are going to the Mara, I really recommend going there with a private plane. We got to see this part of Kenya in a totally different way; the Rift Valley, herds of antelope and families of elephants, to name a few, on the way to the camp.
We arrived at the Masai Mara. We were picked up by Jennifer's driver and off we went to her camp. The road there was nothing short of incredible; meaning, there really aren't any roads, just open spaces, hills and valleys, streams to cross, rocks to climb and unbelievable scenery. Our driver was to be our guide while staying at the Duma Camp and our second guide was the "spotter". Both are highly trained, well mannered, and very knowledgeable. Their job was to point out the various animals we saw and teach us about the habits of both the animals and the Masai people who live in the Masai Mara. The trip to the camp was about an hour or so, and the time flew by quickly.
At this point, I have to say, that we were apprehensive because we suddenly realized that we were in the heart of Mara and other camps, such as ours, were not within yelling distance.. Which truly is a good thing, but can be unsettling for city people. Our fears were quickly removed by Jennifer and her entire camp crew.
Jennifer greeted us, introduced us to her staff and gave us the "cook's" tour of the camp. Our private tent was marvelous. We had a private shower and facilities, huge beds, plenty of space to unpack and the tent had netting and lots of ventilation. It was actually modern! There are 6 private en suite tents in the camp, making it perfect for a group and the camp is geared for children too.
Here we were in the middle of nowhere and the setting was incredible.. We had arrived just in time for lunch.
This is one of common area tents where we could lounge, out of the sun, and still watch the animals parade by the camp...
Our guide, along with Jennifer, decided, after lunch, we should take a ride to see some of the nearby wildlife. We stopped at a nearby river where we saw and learned about Hippos. I never knew that they had to be in the water during the day to keep from getting horribly sunburned. I also didn't know that they travel for miles and miles every night feeding on grass. We loved watching them in the water, playing around with the baby Hippos, snorting or diving and in general keeping an eye on us.... What great fun...
That night, we had a terrific dinner, excellent food, drinks beforehand - including ice - We didn't expect Jennifer's camp to be so advanced and have all the comforts of home. Our view from the outside dining room included some Eland (a type of Antelope) roaming the plains in front of the camp and a spectacular sunset. Before we went to bed, Jennifer explained that her staff patrolled the camp all night long and if we needed anything to give a hoot! She explained that the staff are Masai and very capable hunters and guards besides being friendly and fun loving and attentive to our needs.
Here is a picture of two of our walking guides. One taught me how to use his bow and arrows. My My that bow was one tough puppy to load... He was incredibly accurate at great distances and explained that he used the bow to hunt for meat for his family. He told me quite a bit about his life, including a collective farm where he and other families grow vegetables for individual families
The next morning we were up bright and early for our first real safari. Our guide told us we were off to see a pride of lions, among other animals. These pictures tell the whole story for that day..
Sunrise in the MARA. The sky and clouds look as if you could reach out and touch them. I've never seen such a sky.
We traveled in a Range Rover, specifically outfitted for Kenya safaris. No MINI VANS for us. This was the real deal. We crossed many streams hunting for animals to view and photograph.
I took so many pictures of this family of lions, I couldn't possibly show them all. In the morning, we found this pride of lions resting and several babies nursing and other young ones playing and romping around. We were some distance away and just sat there and took the whole thing in.
At the end of the day, we returned at dusk and watched the Moms going out to hunt... There was one teenager, I assume, who really wanted to go with the Moms and hunt. It was really funny watching him trying to sneak out there with them, only to have the baby sitting Mom bring him back to the pride..... See the picture above, of the "babysitter" Mom off to fetch one of the kids...
We returned the next morning and watched one of the lions finishing up dinner from the night before... That is the backbone of an antelope that wrapped around her head....WOW
The ALPHA MALE at rest..
The subsequent days offered more opportunities to see Kenya's wildlife up close and personal...
Cheetah - lounging in the sun. Otherwise known as DUMA... which, by the way, is my grandmother name, the one that my grandchildren call me. I love the name.
There were three brothers together under a tree taking a snooze before going off at dusk to find their dinner.
I also made an, almost fatal mistake, and started to take photos from outside my window. A big No No in Safari land. The animals are somewhat accustomed to seeing the Range Rovers, but never put your hands out the window...
Elephants and their babies. They are the BEST... Watched baby elephants learn from Mom. I still can hardly believe how the babies walk in and out and between their Mom's legs and don't get caught or walked on. The mother's are so gentle. It's awesome to watch their management of the family.
One day we ran across another Land Rover who's driver told our driver about a Leopard nearby. You should have heard the directions given; bizarre to say the least. Example: Go to the top of the third hill on the right, take a left at the big tree and go awhile and watch for the small acacia tree on the second hill. There are no street signs in the Mara... Off we went... I have no idea how they found this guy!
Every day offered new opportunities to enjoy the Mara and the continuing efforts to protect the animals. Jennifer's Duma camp is committed to conservation and the care of the Masai Mara.
Battling for who is the best! Actually, I saw this going on several times. The boys were fighting over the gals. Just like home...
Cape Buffalo... They are the dumbest and the most dangerous beast around.... The roam the plains and come out of nowhere and won't hesitate to attack you.
We did picnic for lunch and we did it right out in the open so we had a 360 degree view and both our driver and the spotter were on watch the whole time. Lunch was delicious too.
Don't forget the birds of the Mara. Beautiful and Colorful too. Our guides knew each and every name of every single bird we saw.
Did you know that Zebras are brown too... I believe they are born with brown stripes then they change to black stripes as they get older. This is a young Zebra.
Got a photo of this Rhino - just tooling along...
I love Giraffes they are so regal and elegant.
Our Final night at JMAR Safaris' Duma Camp. We were really sad to have to leave, we could have stayed for another week easily and never gotten bored with our daily trips through the Masai Mara... Dinner was excellent, per usual. Then out of the darkness that settles quickly over the Mara, arrived all of the staff to give us a real taste of the native dances and we joined them too... The staff were so nice and provided nothing but the best care ... they were generous with the knowledge and we learned so much from all of them.... We danced the night away with them...
I'm attaching a link to JMAR Safaris Duma Camp ... If you go to Kenya, Contact my friend Jennifer...
http://jmarsafaris.com/
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