Day 6 Sala’s Camp Masai Mara

We woke up this morning and had our last breakfast at Arijiju. We sat on the rooftop and were all so sad we were leaving.

Our guide, Paulo, reminded us we still had more to experience. We had not been disappointed with any of the places we had been. We were on the plane in no time, heading for the Masai Mara.

As we drove from the airport to the camp, we ran across female lions sleeping on the side of the road.

We were staying at Sala’s Camp on the Masai Mara (Mara meaning river). The Masai Mara is the river the wildebeest cross as they migrate back and forth a few times a year. This year the migration patterns have changed because there is so much grass. They have had two years of drought, and the lack of water killed many animals. This year rain has been plentiful and the migration is slow to happen.

We arrived at Sala’s in the early afternoon. We sat on the edge of the river eating lunch and enjoying the beauty around us. The grass was high across the river and the river was full of life. We saw a crocodile as we crossed the bridge that connected the camp. Hippopotamus also live in this part of the river.

“Necessity is the mother of invention” holds true today, and especially in the bush of Africa. The deck along the river was wiped out in the rains earlier in the year. The camp had two months to rebuild this deck. Not only had the river taken the deck, but the dirt below. This deck is built on sea containers filled with rocks and welded together. It is a pretty magnificent piece of engineering.

We spent the afternoon relaxing in our tent. The tents are built on the river’s edge with a small swimming pool at the very edge of the river. The tents are interesting because they are made of canvas, but have real wood floors and glass doors.

We went for an afternoon game drive. We sat and observed the animals as we came across the different species.

We love watching the elephants. They are such interesting giants. Although they seem like gentle giants, they are very protective, and can be very dangerous.

We had a young elephant pretend that he was going to charge us. Those of us on the side of the truck with the elephant were a bit nervous. The guides knew he was a young elephant just playing, but we were concerned.

We followed this beautiful beast as he moved from spot to spot. He was near a pride of lioness and their cubs.

As we did with the lion, we sat and watched the lion cubs interact with each other. After they played a bit, they were back at their mother’s side, and in this case on her back.

The Kenyans love their sundowners (drinks at sunset). After watching the cubs play for a while, we were headed for a sundowner. We headed up a hill and saw the other trucks from our camp.

We were greeted with snacks and cocktails, and the most fantastic chuck wagon.

We enjoyed the views from the hilltop, and chatted with some of the other guests from the camp. We had a nice conversation with the man who built the chuck wagon. He was so happy to share the story of the car. He opened the bonnet, and showed us the modern motor he installed.

We headed back to camp and to our tents.

It was another great day in the bush.

Thank you Anastasia Africa for putting us at the rivers edge and for another fantastic day!