The Great Migration Safari 2012: Day 9

Our final morning drive proved to be as productive as the rest of the safari.  Great sightings of two large male lions, two male cheetah on a fresh wildebeest kill, a baby giraffe and a troop of baboons giving us a show to remember – all topped off by mating ostriches!

Major sightings of the day:

  • Herd of elephants
  • Lions, 2 sightings (3 cubs and 2 large males)
  • 2 male cheetah, with fresh wildebeest kill
  • Giraffe and baby
  • Mating ostriches
  • Olive baboons, jumping over a stream
  • Eland

The Great Migration Safari 2012: Day 8

A hunting leopard and her cub started off our last full day in the beautiful Masai Mara, and even though we spent a good hour watching the attempted hunt, the river crossings again came to the fore.  Madness for close to two hours! We had some more good luck with another monster crocodile adding some flavour to the mix, and clicked away as one of the more unorthodox crossings unfolded in front of us.  Add all the general game and the couple of lion sightings we photographed, and it made for what is often referred to as a great day!

Major sightings of the day:

  • Leopard and cub, hunting wildebeest
  • Lions, 2 sightings, both with cubs
  • River crossings, up to 20 000 wildebeest and many zebra with 2 crocodile kills
  • Elephants
  • Giraffe
  • Large herd of buffalo
  • Warthog, many with piglets
  • Topi, many with new day old calves

The Great Migration Safari 2012: Day 7

Day 7 was a day that involved a little bit of everything.  The birds started us off, with great sightings of an African Harrier Hawk and a Long Crested Eagle.  The large pride of lions we saw the previous day showed themselves, and introduced us to their newest members of the pride, four two month old cubs.  Elephants and giraffes were in abundance, as well as a great sighting of a clan of six hyaenas.

Major sightings of the day:

  • Lions, two prides – one pride with four two month old cubs
  • Cheetah
  • Herds of elephants
  • Herds of buffalo
  • Many great bird sightings
  • Hyaena clan
  • Giraffe

The Great Migration Safari 2012: Day 6

Another magic day!  An early morning leopard started us off, plenty of crossings (with 2 crocodile kills adding to the  chaos), and a fantastic experience in a hot air balloon, which gave us a great new perspective over the Masai Mara.  Some new species of antelope for the Safari didn’t hurt either…

Major sightings of the day:

  • Several crossings, with 2 crocodile kills
  • Herds of elephants
  • 2 lion sightings, including the huge pride of 19 lions
  • Leopard
  • Large herds of buffalo
  • Defassa waterbuck
  • Giraffe

The Great Migration Safari 2012: Day 5

Lions, cheetahs, leopards and even a black rhino – it was a great day on Safari, not forgetting, of course, all the other animals that made an appearance and kept our cameras clicking.  A special sighting of a herd of relaxed eland made for some great portraits and the elephants never disappoint, but the sighting of the day was split between two very playful cheetah cubs, and some

Major sightings of the day:

  • Lions ( 3 different prides, all with cubs)
  • Cheetah and 2 cubs
  • Black rhino and calf
  • Leopard
  • Elephants
  • Buffalos
  • Elands
  • Hyaenas (9 in one clan)
  • Topis with lots of calves
  • Wildebeest herds