Ewaso Nyiro River Archives - Mammoth Safaris

Dawn & Dusk #Whyilovekenya

Recently I spent some time on safari in the Masai Mara and Laikipia. Days were warm and dry, especially in southern Laikipia, so I made the most of my favourite times of day…dawn and dusk. Although I never got the ‘Golden Hour’ everyday, I was treated to some classic safari moments. Couple this with some excellent walking at Ol Pejeta and the low numbers of tourists in Kenya at this time of year, I can safely say January is a great time to be in Kenya if you aren’t really looking for wildebeest! #Whyilovekenya

The excitement builds as we are nearly ready to board the Governor’s Balloon for our morning floating over the majestic Masai Mara.

What an incredible way to start my day – sunrise over the Mara.

One of the dreamy scenes that unfolded on the balloon ride, just after floating over a pride of lions!

The chance to photograph this iconic mountain in a different mood each day is my motivation for rising early.

The almost milky late afternoon light on Ol Pejeta provided a fun opportunity to capture the top f the Aberdares as backdrop to the zebras and elephants

Some patience before sunset was rewarded when a young male Grant’s Gazelle decided to put in a big effort to court a female.

This cute bushbaby can be tricky to photograph in the thorn trees with no natural light. I spotted this one in silhouette as it emerged just minutes after sunset.

A Kenyan dawn…

At the Foot of Mount Kenya

I just wanted to share a few shots from a very recent trip to the Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya – a perfect end to 2013. With huge views over the plains to Mount Kenya and straddling the Equator, its location is superb. I was not quite sure what to expect when I went, but was blown away by the people, landscape and the game. All the plains were packed with a great variety, most notably the endangered Grevy’s Zebra, ‘Jackson’s’ Hartebeest, Grant’s Gazelle and the exquisite Reticulated Giraffe. The marsh was always full of elephants, we saw lions daily and were also treated to a sighting of a pack of African Wild Dog that recently denned there. The birding was very good as we saw three species of harriers, African Cuckoo-hawk, Hunter’s Sunbird, loads of Tree Pipits in the woodland and a Jackson’s Widowbird lek (male display arena) – loads of classic East African birds. I did some lovely bush walks viewing elephants, buffalo and rhino on foot. I also visited the Northern White Rhino boma (where basically the last 3 of this subspecies that remain on the planet now live – very sad in fact). At every turn there was something new and I took great pleasure in seeing the herds of indigenous cattle that are used to graze the lush red grass grasslands in parts of the reserve. All in all a wonderful experience – can’t wait to be back again later this year. (Alastair).