This next stop in our “Our world is awesome series” is at The Maasai Mara. As I shared in last week’s post about the Serengeti, the Maasai Mara park is a smaller part of the broader Serengeti ecosystem that is located within the Kenya border. The stones below are the only separation between these parks.
The story behind this separation is interesting. Tanzanian officials chose to shut the route with passport control inside the parks down in 1977. The story that the locals tell is that the Tanzanian Prime Minister of the time believed that they had a better shot of getting tourists to see other parts of Tanzania by forcing them outside the park. The official story is around environmental protection and ecosystem management.
Regardless, even though there exists a route from within the park, you have to take a day trip to get from one park to the other.
There are noticeable differences on either ends of this journey. As the northern end of The Serengeti ecosystem, The Maasai Mara is more hilly and greener. It felt more lush and seemed to pack a higher density of wildlife. It was also a smoother experience with better gravel roads within the park – the Serengeti felt more rugged. Both parks were well-maintained with diligent rangers. However, there was a perceptible difference in how tourists were dealt with around the parks, in border control, etc. – Tanzania felt a more tourist-friendly in the sense that we didn’t need to watch for being taken for a ride. Finally, the diligence of the folks maintaining the bathrooms in the Serengeti was awe-inspiring. A true example of doing small things with extraordinary care.
Diatribe on differences aside, let’s get back to the park. “Maasai” is homage to the Maasai tribe who live in these lands. “Mara” means spotted – capturing the area’s distinctive look with sweeping plains dotted by Umbrella Acacia trees like the one below.
Giraffes love these Acacia trees and the Acacia trees communicate with each others to save each other.
A massive old tusker.
One of the terms used in these parks is “The Big 5.” Sadly, this is the name of 5 animals who were poached/hunted to near extinction. The Big 5 include the lion, the leopard, the elephant, the buffalo (below), and the rhino.
Of the big 5, the two-horned Rhino remains endangered. All the rhinos in the Serengeti are in one conservation area. And we were fortunate to see one of the few rhinos grazing in the Mara triangle – a mom with her baby.
One of the highlights of our time in the Maasai Mara was seeing a leopard in close range.
The most famous spectacle in the park is when the Great Migration crosses the Mara river. At this spot, hundreds of thousands of wildebeest and zebra make it to the other side of this narrow crossing to eat the fresh grass. It is an annual bonanza for these crocodiles.
They might look motionless and disinterested. But we saw them spring quickly to action as soon as a few zebra came over to drink some water. We were too early for the crossing – but the various documentaries we’ve seen make it one of those sights I hope we’ll be able to come back for.
That’s the thing about these iconic National parks (in Africa and otherwise). They play with your sense of time. Time manages to both stand still and fly by in these parks. On another dimension, you see all these impressive predators and prey who’ve passed on wisdom over generations – always seeking a way to survive.
It is easy to come to parks like this and just “check the box” on animals you’d like to see or take a photo of. But the more you do the opposite – simply immerse yourself in the ecosystem, the more you come face to face with the sheer magnificence of these ecosystems – how little we understand and how much more we have to learn.
And you’re left just wishing for a little more time.
Maybe next time – you think.
And then you leave hoping there will be a next time.
(“Our World is Awesome” series: Ngorongoro Crater, Grand Teton NP, Yellowstone NP, Grand Canyon NP, Lauterbrunnen Valley, Tarangire NP, Serengeti NP)
