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MAASAI MARA NATIONAL RESERVE is
situated to the west of Nairobi, on Tanzania's northern border. This 1,812
squab kms (700 sq. miles) Reserve is the northern extension of the larger
Serengeti National Park - a massive 56,000 sq. Kms (5,600 sq. miles).
The Maasai Mara offers
wonderful scenery and an abundance of big game. It is perhaps the only
region left in Kenya where the visitor may see animals in the same
super-abundance as existed a century ago. It is a reserve of breathtaking
vistas, panoramas of vast rolling plains, hills and woodland groves, well
watered by the lovely Mara River which bisects the Reserve from north to
south. The Mara is home to the largest population of lions in Kenya, these
magnificent beasts spending most of the day sleeping in the shade of
acacia trees. Vast herds of buffalo, zebra and wildebeest roam the plains.
Impala, gazelle, giraffe and hartebeest grace the landscape, the cautious
topi may also be seen standing sentinel on earth mounds on constant
look-out for predators. The waters of the Mara River are home to
crocodiles and pools of hippo, the acacia woodlands and riverine forests
favoured by leopard and elephant, and the open savannah and dry bush areas
host to the plains game and their attendant predators such as lion,
cheetah, hyena and jackal.
The birdlife of the Mara
is as profuse as the animal life. On the open plains there is a variety of
bustards and ground hornbills. Birds of prey are abundant - no less than
53 species have been recorded, including the magnificent Bateleur eagle.
In the sky there are always opportunistic vultures circling and waiting in
anticipation, and distinctive secretary birds are a common sight as they
stalk sedately over the open plains.
But all this richness is
secondary to the Mara's main attraction - the annual migration which takes
place every year between July and September. Over a million wildebeest and
thousands of zebra trek from the southern plains of the Serengeti,
following the rains, in search of fresh grasslands. The most visual image
of this spectacle is the crossing of the Mara River - when the great herds
surge forward, hurling themselves mindlessly down the river banks,
seemingly oblivious to the dangers below.
Visitors staying in the
Mara can enjoy the thrills of an early morning hot-air balloon safari -
drifting over the awakening plains offers an unusual and unforgettable
experience. On landing, the accompanying ground crew offer a celebratory
glass of champagne, and breakfast cooked on the balloon burners and served
in the bush in true safari style.
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