Safari – Kicheche Valley Camp & Kicheche Mara Camp – 8/27
This morning we departed camp with our new guide Richard and embarked on a game drive to our next destination the Kicheche Mara Camp. This morning we actually did see two dik diks. After driving around for a little while we stopped to have some breakfast. Breakfast definitely exceeded expectations as Richard set up a folding table and chairs and pulled several dishes out including homemade granola, scotch eggs, and a french press. We enjoyed our breakfast at the top of a hill and were able to overlook the beautiful scenery and watch the wildebeests frolic in the distance.
After breakfast we continued our game drive in the direction of Mara Camp. On our way, Richard noticed a Thompson’s gazelle that was laying down and saw that it was giving birth. We stopped to watch and even saw the gazelle try to take it’s first steps! We got a little too close at one point and that caused the momma to run away and the baby to flop down as a defense mechanism. It’s amazing that even at just seconds old that the baby new how to react. To keep on “baby” theme, we also saw a baby giraffe and it’s mother. We estimated that the giraffe was only a day and a half old as it still had it’s umbilical cord attached.
We made it to camp around 11:00 and explored our new digs, showered and rested up a little bit. This camp was positioned along the a river and just beyond the river buffalo and elephants were visible. This camp was a little more spread out and Jordan and Terri’s tent was at the outer edges which definitely amplified their paranoia.
At 4:00 we headed out on our second game drive of the day – our first in the Mara North Conservancy. Upon leaving the camp we quickly came across a few male buffalo hanging out across the river. We already had seen four times as many buffalo in the Mara North Conservancy than we saw in the Naboisho Conservancy and this was just an infinitesimal fraction of what was to come.
Tonight was a big lion night as we saw about 9 adult females and 10 cubs. The first two we saw were by themselves and they were a very depressing scene. One of the females had lost two litters of cubs to buffalos and other male lions and you could see just how heartbroken she was. Apparently, it is really difficult for a pride to survive if they don’t have a male lion. Afterwards we found a happier scene, as we came upon a group of lion cubs playing together as the mothers looked on. We stopped here to enjoy our Sundowner. This evenings Sundowner included popcorn as part of the snack and we joked that this was better than going to the movies!
While we looked on at the playful cubs, Richard explained to us the difference between male and female lions and how to distinguish them. Apparently males are a bit darker in color and have bigger heads. When they reach 5-6 months of age they can be distinguished by male’s larger foot sizes. They can also be differentiated by activity levels as the males are usually lazier. Ha!