Day 3 - Maasai Mara

---

We were up bright and early this morning and in the van by 6:00. The big cats are most active when it is cooler out so we were hoping to see them in action. Francis flipped on his radio to listen for any chatter. The guides help each other out by communicating where they see animals. Francis also has a cell phone that is constantly ringing. Not sure if that is wildlife related or personal.

We got some nice sunrise photos. I asked Francis to stop for some scenic shots and while taking those a hyena walked up the hill towards us looking very not satisfied with his night.

We saw a few more Hyenas and then came across two juvenile male Lions. They weren't active but they were out in the open and awake, which was nice. Francis taught us about the territories of Lions and how when the dominant male from one territory takes over the next the baby lions are killed and the juvenile males ousted. The dominant male keeps all the females. It is possible these two juveniles were on their own.

Next we came across some Jackels, another scavenger like the hyena but much much smaller, looking like a mangy 20-30 pound dog.

The airwaves on the radio lit up and Francis put the van in high gear. It is great that all the communication over the radio is in Swahili and Francis doesn't tell us where we are heading. The anticipation makes it so much fun.

We approached 2 other vans that were oddly not together. As we got closer we saw that there were two huge male lions laying 50 yards away from each other. They were absolutely magnificent as they proudly basked in the rising sun. We watched one lion for a bit and then the other. You could feel their presence. They clearly sit atop of the food chain.

One of the males got up and then the other. They made their way towards some bushes and playfully wrestled on their way. Is this real? Are we actually seeing all of this happen right in front of us? It felt surreal.

One of the males was a little bigger than the other and Francis told us they were father and son.

The lions nestled down under some bushes and would likely sleep there all day. No other vans would likely spot them and even if they did, they wouldn't be able to get close and would only find them sleeping.

In the remainder of our morning game drive we came across a poor baby Ostrich that had been separated from its parents. That poor little guy stood no chance on its own in this place. We also saw another (or the same?) Black Rhino. It really looks like a dinosaur. And then we saw a group of Baboons eating by the road. They really do resemble people.

Francis had talked to us a number of times about the amount of respect the Kenyan people have for their wildlife. There is no hunting allowed. If you don't raise it you don't kill it. Of course there are always bad actors so it isn't like no wildlife ever gets killed. But for the most part the people in Kenya seemingly place a much higher value on wildlife than even some of the strictest environmental groups in the US.

Francis talked about the Maasai people who live amongst the lions and don't try to kill them. He told a story of one time the Maasai did kill a lion or a couple lions who had killed some of their goats. The lions retaliated by killing 3 of the Maasai people. The lions seem to have an intelligence, understanding and revenge oriented mentality.

The conversation continued and Francis discussed the recent lion hunting situation in Zimbabwe where the American had lured a lion out of a national park to shoot it. Francis was clearly disgusted by the American. He was also upset with the corrupt Zimbabwe government that would allow something like this to happen.

The part of the story that we hadn't heard is what happened next. So the male Lion the American killed wasn't just any lion. He was a massive, old lion. The king of kings. There is also one other similar lion in that park. A week or so later that lion killed a person. That had never happened before and Francis attributed it to revenge. So not only did this magnificent lion unnecessarily lose its life, so did an innocent person.

After listening to Francis, learning more about the lions, and seeing them in real life it is hard not to also feel disgusted by the American.

This is in no way intended to absolve the Zimbabwe government nor the guide nor others involved. They are clearly at fault, but having never even been to Zimbabwe, it feels ignorant to make assumptions about the Zimbabweans motives and draw conclusions from those assumptions. I am, however, an American and I can understand American wealth.

The beer commercial slogan really sticks out in my head when thinking about this "with great beer comes great responsibility." In this case it is: with great wealth comes great responsibility. The guy may have had a permit, but a "permit" in Zimbabwe can be corrupt or valid or the many shades of gray in between. I think there is a big misconception from Americans that his "permit" resembled a legitimate hunting permit you would obtain in the US. He used the local corruption to his advantage and paid enough people to make his hunt happen. Does having a boatload of money mean whatever you do with it is right? And that if somebody accepts your money you are absolved of all responsibility? At what point do you have enough money and spend enough money that you no longer have a moral obligation to understand the difference between right and wrong?
.
The American Lion Hunter story is in such contrast to the American Cheetah Woman. As Americans we have incredible wealth. These stories and how we spend that wealth speaks volumes not only for who we are as individuals but also as Americans.

Wow, sorry, I'll step off the soapbox now. I didn't intend to get so sidetracked. Being here and seeing these magnificent creatures invokes a lot of emotion.

We were back at the lodge around 9 and weren't heading back to the park until 3 so we just relaxed, read, blogged, ate, napped. It was great. You would think we shouldn't be tired, after all we are being driven around all day. But in reality we are standing all day trying to keep our balance as the van bounces around the trails. With the van top popped up, you can stand and search for animals as you drive. You could elect to sit, but your visibility isn't as good, plus what is the fun in that?

When we loaded up at 3 we asked Francis to see if he could find us a Leopard. The Leopard, along with the Rhino, he told us, are the most difficult animals to see in the park. He took us down the same road we had gone down earlier that morning. The vegetation is more significant and more suitable to the Leopard who likes the forest more than the plains.

We didn't end up finding a Leopard. The evening drive was quite calm actually. We did see some baby Zebra, Buffalo, Warthog and Topi. And we also saw another new grazing animal, a Water Buck. The Water Buck shared a resemblance to a Caribou and they like wet, salty places.

It is hard to say we got skunked on that night drive because we still saw many animals and the scenery was beautiful. Francis turned the van off a few times and we really got to take in the peace and quiet.

We were back at the lodge at 6:30. Francis asked our plan for the morning and I said I wanted to do one more game drive before leaving Maasai Mara. He was good with that although you could see he was hoping we were ready to hit the road to Lake Naivasha. These days are long for him, so I understand, but we may never get back here again so we want to soak it all in as much as possible.

---

Comments

[anonymous]

Thanks Matt