Masai Mara, Nairobi - Kenya & UK

In shock we called first Pete's brother and then his sister from the Sat phone. They confirmed what we had feared most since Mum had the stroke that over the last few days she had started to have serious problems swallowing until in the end she refused all food and drink and this in turn had a knock on effect of preventing them from administering her medication.

The last 24 hours had been very traumatic as they had battled to try and get her to eat and drink but to no avail, in the end we were glad we had not been there to witness it all as at least we could remember her as we last saw her in July.

It was very surreal talking from the middle of the Kenyan bush about funeral arrangements in the UK. We explained that we were a full days drive from Nairobi and civilisation so it was very hard for us to know when or if we could get back to the UK. We asked that they hold off on any decisions until the morning when we hoped we could access the Internet from the Mara Serena and checkout the flight situation from Nairobi to London.

The group who had arrived while we were out were French and whilst the others prepared dinner one of them proceeded to start playing his guitar and singing, not loud but who brings a guitar to the bush and why do they think everyone else wishes to listen to them! Normally we would have asked them to keep it down but we were too shell shocked to bother so we sat for a while trying to listen to Lions calling in the distance and toasted Molls memory before going to bed, it was our first night back in the ground tent after six months break but it was not as auspicious as we had expected.

Next morning with Pete still full of cold we headed to the Serena to see if we could use their Internet access. In a way we were lucky as the Mara is the only national park or game reserve we know off where this is even possible. After explaining the situation they kindly allowed us use of a terminal and checking flights we found the earliest we could get out of Nairobi was on Friday, five days from now.

Before booking we phoned Pauline, Pete's Sister to let her know the situation and to ask if they could delay the funeral until the following Monday, one week from now, she would talk to Mike Pete's brother and the funeral director and we would call later to check if it was ok.

Next was a call to Fee & Jeff to warn them we would be coming back much earlier than expected. We had left our car with them expecting we would not be back until January or February so had declared it SORN so it had no tax disc, could they get it re taxed? However, good friends that they are they insisted we use one of their cars instead and of course a bed for a night or two both of which we were very grateful for.

Next was Effjie at Indaba in Nairobi to book a bed for Thursday night and to ask if we could leave Rupert in their care while we were in the UK, no problem on both counts. Our last call was to our travel insurer to alert them to the situation and to see if we would be covered for the air fares, the guy we spoke to was sympathetic but wouldn't make any commitment not that would change anything we would be going back regardless.

It was gone midday by the time we had everything in place and had booked the flights, we had been in the Mara less than 36 hours but there was nothing more we could do now except try and make the most of what time we had left.

On our last visit the weather had been so bad that we had been unable to get to the Mara river as all the tracks were nigh on impassable in the black cotton soil and the heavy rain, now at least we could explore in the dry. Sue made some sandwiches and we drove down to the river to have lunch, once there it was clear the Mara river crocs had had the same idea.

We were watching a couple of big ones basking in the sun on the opposite bank when a herd of Wildebeest and Zebra began to gather just a little further down river, would they attempt to cross with the crocs that close, that was the question? 

Suddenly four Zebra made a break for it and started to swim across to our side, immediately a flotilla of Crocs made to head them off. Sadly a young foal did not make it across in time and went under, in a matter of seconds it was all over, it resurfaced  surrounded by Crocs of all shapes and sizes, a feeding frenzy ensued.

One enormous Croc broke away with a leg in it's mouth, although the foal was small the croc was struggling to swallow the leg whole, hoof and all, meanwhile the other Zebra's had reached the bank safely and immediately started to graze as if nothing had happened, such is life.  

We got back to camp at 6.30pm, the French had thankfully gone but two other vehicles had arrived to take their place, we just hoped there wasn't a guitarist amongst them! After lighting the fire we had a shower using our solar shower which was still warm, the new shower cubicle was certainly coming in handy and although the new people were quiet and went to bed early we decided if we ever came back to the Mara we would pay the extra for a special campsite.

We had to be up very early in the morning to get to the Serena by 5.30am for our balloon ride over the Mara. With all that had happened over the last 24 hours we had almost forgotten we had booked this and although Mum's death had left us deflated we decided she would have wanted us to continue as normal. 

That's why 5am found us climbing out of the tent while it was still pitch dark and the other campers were still tucked up fast asleep. We would get coffee at the Serena so thankfully all we had to do was get dressed and into Rupert as quietly as possible for the short drive to the lodge, piece of cake.

The track out of the public campsite is narrow, steep and heavily wooded, last year we had nearly slid sideways into a tree as we struggled in the black cotton soil, however, now it was dry so we should have no trouble this time round.

We had just started to climb the slope to the main road when without warning Rupert's lights went out leaving us totally blind, our first reaction was one of pure disbelief, then frustration, what is it with us and the Mara!

The Serena was close but we would still need lights to see where we were going as there could be game like Elephant on the road, however what could we do here right now? Even if we could see what we were doing we had no time to investigate the fault, if we failed to get to the Serena on time we were not sure we would get our money back which at USD 850 was not worth thinking about, plus we had to get back to Nairobi so we did not even have the ability to re-schedule.

In desperation I tried flashing the full beam and to our relief and surprise found it still worked, how I would have to find out later but at least for now we could get to the Serena so with the flasher held on we set off reaching the lodge just in time for a quick coffee before being whisked off to the balloon launch site.

We had expected the balloon to be close however it took about about 20 minutes to reach the site, dawn was approaching but it was still quite dark so we were a bit disappointed we hadn't encountered any game on the way but just as we alighted from the truck a lion started roaring very close by, go figure!

The ground crew were already busy getting everything ready, the balloon looked huge laid out on the ground as they blew cold air into it with big fans. Our pilot, JP, explained that once enough cold air was in the balloon then he would fire up the burners to heat it up which should then inflate it fully.

JP explained that once the balloon was up everyone would  board by climbing into the basket but if anyone thought they would find it hard to climb the basket sides then they could board now while the basket was on it's side. As the sides were about 4 or 5 foot high and not easy Sue and a couple of other girls opted to board now, which entailed lying on your back while holding on tightly as the basket righted itself.

In all there were 16 passengers plus JP and his wife Terilynn, who takes photo's and video's during the flight. Unfortunately the flight itself was marred by the cloudy conditions so we did not get a good sunrise. We had hoped we would fly over the river but instead we headed towards the escarpment and the border with Tanzania but as JP reminded us he can only go where the wind dictates.

However, unfortunately by now the great herds had moved away from the border on the move Northwards so although at times we flew quite low we didn't see the great spectacle we had hoped to see but that is the luck of the draw, balloon flights are just like game drives. We flew for about an hour and saw little except for a few Giraffe and a couple of Bat Eared Foxes who ran like hell at the noise of the burners, still the views were wonderful and it was very peaceful when we just drifted with the burners off.

All too soon it was time to land, JP explained that when the basket hits the ground it would be dragged on its side for quite a distance so we had to remove anything loose and get into the crash position. When we hit the ground there was a enormous bang and then we began bumping along for what seemed like ages but was probably less than a minute.

The basket was split into two which meant one half was on the bottom getting most of the crap thrown up as we were dragged along the ground and to make matters worse the bush had recently been burnt to encourage new growth so it was like being dragged over the remains of a bonfire, thankfully we were in the upper half but the ones on the bottom got out looking like chimney sweeps!

As soon as we landed we were whisked off for a short drive to our champagne breakfast on the plain, nearing the spot we came across a small pride of Lions and a short distance away the remains of last nights kill, a Wildebeest, with some Jackals and a load of Vultures now feasting on what was left.

As we tucked into the champagne and cooked breakfast an American woman asked Sue how we managed to wash in the bush, Sue explained about the solar shower which impressed her no end (well she was American) but also that many times we have to make do with a bowl wash at which she looked aghast. 

Terilynn, JP's wife, happened to overhear and very kindly offered us hot showers back at their place in the Serena, we had forgotten to fill and put out our shower before leaving camp so we knew we would have no hot water when we eventually got back so we gratefully accepted her offer.

Just as we finished eating we suddenly noticed the Lions had moved to a nearby ridge to watch a herd of Wildebeest in the distance which made the others nervous so soon we were heading back to the Serena. Once there we picked up some towels from Rupert and went around to JP & Terilynn's have our showers and then a few beers, such a nice couple.

By now it was around 3.30pm so we made our farewells and headed down to the river for a game drive on our way back to camp. Within no time we came across a big herd of Wildebeest and Zebra looking to cross the river and very soon we were not to be disappointed as they began swimming.

While this time there were no crocs about the water was choppy and the current strong so one Wildebeest began to struggle and started to go under, each time it resurfaced you could see the panic it it's eyes, eventually it failed to come up again until we saw the body floating down river, sad but that's nature.

As we drove back to camp through the hills with Wildebeest everywhere, storm clouds were gathering so it was very atmospheric with the dark blue of the sky against the yellow of the grasses and although our thoughts were never far from events back home, it had been a good day.

The next day was our last before heading back to Nairobi so we planned to be out early for our morning game drive.  As we sat by the fire Sue caught a brief glimpse of an eye shining in the shadows but we heard and saw nothing more so we soon went to bed. At 4am we got out the tent to have wees, it was still pitch dark and it was silent but the sky was packed full of stars.

Two minutes after getting back in the tent we suddenly heard a low growl close by then a bit later a Leopard called so we guessed last nights eye belonged to him checking us out. We had yet to see a Leopard as the majority of the Mara is open plains so is not suited to them but we hoped this night visit might be an auspicious omen for the day ahead.

This trip had been so much better than last years we had decided to come back once we got back from the UK and try out one of the special campsites. Our first task therefore was to pop into the conservancy office near the Serena to check out site availability.

There are about half a dozen special camp sites in the Mara Triangle, all so well hidden that unless you happen upon one or are shown where they are you would not find them.  We ended up booking a site called Olkeju Rongai, it had only opened this year so not many people knew about it so it was not as heavily booked and we could get it for the second week in September.

It would cost an additional 7,500 Kshs above the normal park fees whether we stayed one night or a week, so we decided to make a week of it and just hoped the migration herds would still be around.

Happy that all was arranged we headed out to explore a bit more before leaving for Nairobi. We drove West towards towards Governors camp and the Oloololo gate, an area we had yet to explore. Governors is where the Big Cat Diary crew stay when they film the series so we were intrigued to see the area

As we headed away from the river we came across a large herd of Zebra blocking the track, slowly driving through them we suddenly noticed one had terrible wounds on its hindquarters where it looked like lions had jumped on it and tried to pull it down.

By the looks of the wound the attack had happened in the last 24 hours, the skin was torn apart revealing the muscles underneath. It looked very raw so the Zebra must have been in great pain and to make it worse it was plagued by flies and Ox peckers pecking away at the raw flesh. The only defence the poor Zebra had was to constantly flick his tail, we felt so sorry for him but there is no RSPCA out here only the laws of nature which dictates only the fittest survive. We noticed the Zebra was keeping his weight off the leg and limped when he walked so sadly it was probably only a matter of time before the Lions finished the job or infection set in.  

Carrying on we saw a variety of game from the plentiful Wildebeest to Impala plus one antelope you don't see that often,  the Topi. Once grouped with the very similar Southern Africa Tsessbe it is now considered a separate species. Ranging across East, Central & West Africa, Topi's have maybe the most expressive face of all the antelopes with beautiful eyes, although not in great numbers it was nice to see them. 

As we continued on our left ran the escarpment which borders Tanzania and the plains began to give way to more forested areas so we also started to see more Elephant. The Riverine forest was thick and the tracks through it to the river where still quite boggy so being a single vehicle we decided not to risk them opting instead to skirt the edge of the forest looking out for game.

Crossing a small river/stream we came across a big track on our right leading down to the river which we soon discovered was the entrance into Governor's camp. The camp is synonymous with African safaris and very upmarket so we didn't think they would appreciate a private vehicle with two scruffy scousers pitching up and spoiling their rural idyll!

We had been driving in the hope of seeing a Leopard but at this time of day that was a big ask however incredibly just after passing Governors we spotted one lying under a bush on the edge of the undergrowth calmly surveying the open ground towards the escarpment - we couldn't believe our luck.

It was mid afternoon so the exclusive camps and lodges were still sleeping off their lunches which meant we had the Leopard  all to ourselves. The Big Cat Diary features a Leopard called Bella and as we were so close to Governors were the crew stay we wondered if this could be her?

We were about 50 metres away and although she looked  very relaxed we knew if we went any  closer she was likely to slink off into the thick undergrowth where we could not follow so we had to make do with shots using the super telephoto at it's limit.

As we watched three Topi came into view moving towards the Leopards hiding place, at first she took no notice until they got to just a few yards away when she got down as if to attack. An adult Topi is probably just two big for a Leopard to take on but we could see from her constantly twitching tail that she was thinking about it.

The Topi moved on but then suddenly a Warthog appeared,  now this was more like it. We held our breath as the Warthog  got closer and the Leopard got ready to pounce but at the last minute the Warthog sensed the Leopard was there and bolted into the bush. The Leopard looked totally frustrated and soon after moved off out of sight , unfortunately that was the last we saw of her so we never found out if she was successful or not.

All this time no other vehicles came by so we had the Leopard to ourselves, what a great way to end our stay in the Mara. We  wandered on into the 'Marsh' area where we supposed the filming of the Marsh Pride in the Big Cat Diary took place.

Tracks were everywhere criss crossing like crazy so it was like a maze, we had heard that recently a couple had got lost for four days triggering a search operation by the authorities. It sounded far fetched as in the Mara sooner or later you would see another vehicle or find a major track but it is easy to get disorientated so need a good sense of direction or use GPS.    

It was getting close to Sunset so we headed back to camp looking forward to a hot shower, at least this time we  had remembered to fill it and put it out in the Sun before we left this morning. As soon as we arrived in camp I went over to pick the shower bag off the ground and discovered it was empty, a corner had been nibbled by something and all the water had seeped out so there would be no showers tonight, ironic really after what happened yesterday at the balloon breakfast.

That last night we had a good fire, a few G&T's before supper then a sponge bob bowl wash, felt fresher but not as good as a hot shower! To bed before midnight we have a very early start tomorrow and a long drive back to Nairobi.

The drive back to Nairobi was uneventful, the worse bit being once again the ongoing road building (or lack of it) on the road to Narok and beyond. Arriving in Nairobi at 4pm our first stop before going to Indaba was Nakumatt Mega to buy two bags for our flight back to the UK tomorrow. We had left the bags we flew out with at Taffy's in Malawi not expecting we would need them till we returned to the UK next February so now we had nothing to carry our stuff in.  

Thankfully we reached Indaba while there was still some daylight, we hadn't had the chance to fix the problem with Rupert's lights but that would have to await till our return. We were knackered after the journey so we had supper, a shower and then went to bed, tomorrow would be another long day.

Up at 8am we spent the day packing for our flight, we would take the opportunity to free up more space in Rupert by taking back more stuff we no longer wanted or needed in Africa, the downside being Sue had packed this stuff so well in Rupert that it was buried way down in the gunnels .

Our flight was due to take off just before midnight so at least we had the day to get sorted, even so before we knew it it was time to park Rupert at the rear of the property for his weeks stay at Indaba then get showered before the driver took us to the airport. 

The flight was a good one and at 6.25am we arrived back to a grey English morning, it was exactly one month to the day since we had left the UK to come back to Africa!