It’s been a busy few months since I last wrote. Ninian did a whirlwind tour of the States, visiting both the east and west coasts, along with a first time visit to Hawaii. He returned very excited about our upcoming safaris. The first began the day after he got home. It was a three-week trip with a professional photographer, which meant early mornings and long days, but they had a wonderful time and Ninian has come back with many stories.

The first week of the safari was spent in Amboseli, which was still green and lush following the rainy season. The lake was dry and created the perfect stage for the huge herds of elephant which crossed at dawn every morning, as they headed for the swamps and a day of munching grass and immersing themselves in the cool water. Ninian said it was stunning to see about 200 or so elephant silently walking across the stark lakebed.

Ninian and his guest had a funny afternoon with an old bull elephant — a real old gentleman with enormous tusks. To escape the heat of the day they had retreated to the shade of a big acacia tree. As they sat and enjoyed their lunch they watched the elephant as he covered himself in cooling mud in a nearby waterhole. He then ambled over to join them in the shade. He soon fell asleep just inches from the car, snoring and swaying, occasionally bumping up against the car in his sleep. When he woke up he looked around and noticed his new friend the Land Cruiser. He reached out in greeting and gently touched and sniffed it with his trunk. Ninian felt very honoured to be treated like a fellow elephant.

The Mara was beautiful; following unusually heavy rain the grass was very long, making the rolling plains look like a big golden ocean, rippling in the breeze.

Last year I told you about a mother cheetah and her three cubs that Ninian had spent a lot of time with in the Mara. The cubs have all grown up now and are about to leave their mum. Last summer the cheetahs used his car as a mobile termite mound. They were quick to recognize it and once again clambered all over it, often using it for their daily ablutions (to put it politely). Consequently Ninian spent a good part of each day cleaning cheetah droppings off the car, the scent of which can be quiet powerful!

The next safari was in Tanzania and included Tarangire, Lake Manyara, Ngorongoro Crater and the Serengeti; they even managed to fit in a visit to Olduvai Gorge.

Ninian and his guests had a wonderful time in Tarangire, as the game had begun to migrate in from the Masai Steppes where they had spent the wet season. They are drawn to Tarangire for the permanent waters of the Tarangire River, which offers respite during the dry season. As always, the elephants were fantastic.

They were fortunate enough to catch the wildebeest migration in the western corridor of the Serengeti along the Grumeti River in Kirawira. To many, this is where the greatest migration action takes place. The Grumeti is home to some of the world’s biggest crocodiles, and the short visit from the migrating wildebeest provides them with most of their food for the year. On Ninian’s last day there the water levels in the Grumeti rose, fed by a storm far upstream. The crocs took advantage of the rising water to move into the pools they judged would most likely be used by the wildebeest as watering holes.

There is a wonderful documentary about the Grumeti River made by Survival Films called The Tides of Kirawira. It is beautifully filmed and captures the ebb and flow of life on the river. If you can get hold of a copy, it is well worth watching.

Ninian’s next safari starts in a few days time, so I’ll have more exciting stories for you next month. “Kwaheri” for now.

Lara
Nairobi, June 2004

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