Kenya 2023: Chapter 16 – The Mara River

The rest of the morning and early afternoon were, by our new standards, uneventful. We continued west as the day got hot. The only sounds around us were the cries of wattled lapwings startled by our passage, the rustle of the grass in the wind, the big diesel engine, and the squeaking of the canopy. This is typical of a safari. You may have hours of limited sightings, no action, and then BAM, you’re in the thick of it again with an animal on the hunt or getting stuck in the mud. We were in the doldrums again.

Lunch was on an overlook along the Mara River, one of the key crossing points of the Great Migration. We were hoping to see thousands of animals fording the river, lions in waiting on the other bank, but it was not meant to be. For now, lazy hippos and Nile crocodiles blended in with the smooth, black rocks in the river and the rocky banks. The chortling of the hippos echoed off the river walls. A handful of vervet monkeys and Egyptian geese crossed our path.

 Vervet monkey on the bank of the Mara River

The Mara was a completely different ecosystem on this visit. It was quieter, but busier with people hoping to catch the migration.

As we ate our meals, Lenny told us about his education to become a guide and where he had worked prior to joining Gamewatchers five years ago. He likes birds the best, and to Ed’s dismay, found the parts about rocks to be boring.

After lunch, we made it to the Shetani Lugga (Devil in Swahili), turned around and headed to a sighting of a lioness. She was sleeping in the shade of a bush. After leaving her, we spotted our first lilac-breasted roller, an absolutely gorgeous purple, teal, and blue bird about the size of a robin. Our first sighting was not great, as the bird was at a distance, but  subsequent viewings made it one of our favorites.

 First sighting of a lilac-breasted roller.