Being techno savvy SV people, we find real time reports online of the wildebeest migration on the Mara River. I share this with our driver suggesting we head there first thing tomorrow. But the Maasai use their senses not the WWW and he tells me not to believe what I read online, that the wildebeest could be there one day and not the next . So while in Africa, do as … and we acquiesce in following his plan to game drive all day driving north and seeing what we see, and not go with expectations.
Today starts out beautifully as we leave early on a game drive while the weather is cool. Almost immediately we see herds of zebras and wildebeest traveling in lines that stretch for miles. As they cross in front of us, the herds become a mass of thundering hooves and clouds of dust as they rn off to our right; this is the Great Migration as animals move southward through the Serengeti. Most photos of migrating wildebeest are taken as they cross the Mara River near Kenya, but what happens to them after this crossing? They continue their journey southwestward through the Grumeti Reserve, reaching the south Serengeti by November, where they feed on grasses rich in protein and calcium, preparing for breeding season in Feb. before repeating their migration northward. Their annual round trip trek is approximately 1,300 miles. For us, it is a spectacular sight.
Several safari cars alert us to a sighting. This time it is a cheetah with fresh kill, a gazelle. Gazelles live in the grasslands; impalas in the woodlands.
A family of elephants tries to push a few trees over, a giraffe stands alone in the field and we visit a hippo pool. The hippos bob up and down, their noses sticking out of the water, sending sprays of muddy water with their tails- suddenly there is a huge commotion as a crocodile grabs the back of one, trying to get to the baby hippo. Seconds later, all is calm again.
In the parking lot, our driver learns that one of the 2 national park gas stations has suddenly stopped taking cash. We offer to charge the gas purchase and he suggests we rush to fill up in case they run out of gas, which would be “very bad”. He has 1/2 tank and we are to be in North Serengeti tomorrow. Along the way, he stops another driver and we see grim faces. The stations are out of gas, he learns- we check this out ourselves and indeed, the “government” as he states, has not delivered gas and they have been out for 3 days. In typical African communication, no one knows why or when it will be delivered. Only by word of mouth are drivers finding out. Many are driving around and around, oblivious to tge fact they will not be able to fill up. We may have enough to get north but not enough for our driver to return after we fly out of Kogatende, which has no gas station. What to do???!!!
His plan is to go to the park headquarters to get permission to exit the park tomorrow, get gas in the next town, then reenter north. Permission is necessary because only one entry and one exit is allowed per visit, in our case over 5 days. An hour later he returns with the paperwork, confident that all is well. Turns out this is a faster way to get to the Mara River, which typically is not possible because of entry/exit restrictions. He smiles at me and says we will go to the Mara River in the morning after all!