Rekero News Archive 2005

 Rekero Camp Early October News

from Rainee Beaton

I woke up this morning to the sound of birdsong as the dawn broke, then a lion roared in the distance after a night's hunting and light started streaming through the tent flaps - that soft, translucent light of the early morning before the sun is too high in the sky.

I hear very often from our guests that there is something about Africa that brings you back again and again. No-one can ever put their finger on exactly what that something is but there are always moments and experiences that move you and that will stay with you for ever. We live here and it doesn't matter how long you live in the bush, we never tire of the power and beauty that surrounds us.

Suddenly another sound - that of our 6 month old son, Charlie, demanding his breakfast. I spring into action. For those of you who have already met Charlie and have been asking after him, he is doing very well thank you and weighs in at over 10 kgs now. He is becoming quite noisy with weird and wonderful sounds coming out of his mouth and he continues to create smiles and laughter amongst our staff and guests.

We have had quite a bit of rain in August and into September which is keeping the plains very green and the wild flowers blooming. The storm clouds have been building up in the afternoons, creating dramatic skies together with bright red sunsets. The Mara is a Garden of Eden at the moment with everything flourishing. There are lots of baby animals and many of our guests have witnessed births, mainly of Thomson's gazelles and Topi. Lions and hyenas are as fat as butter while they feast daily, with wildebeest being the main food on the menu. We have lion and cheetah cubs nearby with, hopefully, more cheetah cubs on the way as a couple of pregnant females have been spotted recently.

A lot of giraffe and elephant, all with young, are around camp particularly in the afternoons as we sip our tea. The wildebeest and zebra crossings at lunchtime have been fun to watch as the river is quite high at the moment and they have to swim rather than totter across the rocks. A Goliath Heron has made himself at home in one of the pools in front of camp, standing like a statue for hours on end and Brown Parrots, African Blue Flycatchers and a Woodland Kingfisher are with us over breakfast most mornings, not to mention the Egyptian Geese who let everyone know of their presence.

A dramatic scenario unfolded at breakfast time this morning when two young male lions were spotted heading for the spot in the river where the wildebeest cross. Breakfast was forgotten as guests positioned themselves for a good view of events. The two young males crossed the river followed closely by three large, fully mature male lions who from time to time were uttering earth-shaking roars and venting their fury at this invasion of their territory. The two young interlopers were chased for a long way and the chase went along the other side of the river, opposite the guest tents until the young males were out of sight. Eventually one of the big males returned and joined the other two males who had been in pursuit but had rather run out of steam and let their colleague go the extra mile or so. All three of them then slowly disappeared over the horizon to rejoin the pride they'd had to expend so much energy in protecting.

Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of you who have returned to Rekero Camp this season so far. It is so wonderful for us and the whole team to see people coming back, some for their 5 th or 6 th return visit and who become part of the family. The guides also enjoy seeing familiar faces and have usually developed a special bond with their guests. We look forward to seeing you all again and to meeting all of you who are due to come for the first time.

Thank you to everyone who returns to Africa because you are helping tourism and all the businesses and industries that support tourism create jobs and livelihoods for people who really depend on them.

Rekero Camp News, September 2005

The Migration is still very much upon us. We’ve had some great crossings on the Talek below camp, quite often when we’ve been sitting having breakfast or lunch. Meals are put on hold as camera and binoculars are found and everyone holds their breath to see if the animals will make it or not. We have had a lot of unseasonal rain over the last month, which has slowed the wildebeests’ progress. There are huge numbers around us but very dispersed with larger groups towards the Tanzanian border, making their way slowly north towards camp. We’re lucky to have such a good base from which to watch it all happening from.

One of the few black rhinos in the Mara has been sighted regularly towards Lookout Hill- an exciting and impressive sight. This morning an old male was seen wandering through a large herd of wildebeest, which parted and kept a respectful distance. A mating pair was sighted south east of the camp, it would be fantastic to have a baby in the area.

In our last newsletter we thought we’d lost Brigadier, our resident buffalo, to old age. The good news is that he’s been spotted regularly near camp in the last few days, so it must have been another old boy. It’s nice the way they hang around in the same place, and unlike some of the typical lone males Brigadier seems to be quite friendly and good natured.

Cat sightings have been very good of late. John and Anne Evans viewed nine different cheetah in their first couple of days around camp and two different leopard last Thursday. John Miller tallied up seventy four different lion in his week in the Mara.

A female cheetah with a month old cub has had regular Rekero visits and a male was seen looking disgruntled this morning as his hunting was disrupted by a troop of baboons. The wildebeest made matters worse by stalking him as he passed, then quickly fleeing when he turned to look! Dada has recently split from her eighteen month old cub and Kike has been hanging out on Rhino ridge. Sadly one of the two pregnant cheetah at Lookout Hill was seen this morning returning from the hunt to find her new born cub had been killed, there were lion close by, so it is thought by them. Let’s hope the other female has more success!

The Big Cat Leopard team all dropped in for breakfast last week so we got all the low down on how filming was going, with out giving too much away they were very excited to have filmed a great leopard kill….

Charlie Beaton, Gerard and Rainee’s smiley six-month-old son, continues to grow by the day. There are no shortage of nannies in camp- both with guests and staff, and he’s a huge hit with everyone. He is now sitting by himself, and it won’t be long before he’s mobile.

With all the best from us at Rekero Camp

Rekero Camp Migration Diary, early August 2005

The migration is well and truly here! We watched wildebeest crossing the river while we had tea a couple of days ago and different groups of guests have witnessed huge wildebeest and zebra crossings on the Mara River. Yesterday, while having lunch, Jackson suddenly leapt to his feet and shouted "crocodile eating a wildebeest. Quick!" By the time the rest of us had turned round there was only a splash as the victim was pulled under for the last time. This had been the first animal brave enough to chance it, and his friends decided it wasn't for them and turned round. Today though it really began in earnest and most of the staff were out on the lawn with binoculars as the new guests arrived. Bags were abandoned as they were hurried round to watch the stream of hundreds of migrating animals crossing below the lunch table. A troop of baboons had positioned themselves on the rocks up stream of the crossing, bearing an uncanny resemblance to all of us assembled for the show.

In camp the afternoon volleyball continues to be as popular with staff and guests as ever. We should organise a tournament at some point- there are some very good players and the staff are usually at an advantage for not having eaten or drunk as much at lunch time. It's always too good to resist though.

Jimmy and Daniel have been leading the way with entertaining the children we've had in camp recently; plenty of bow and arrow making followed by competitions on the lawn. Rakita's fire sticks have also been very popular, with some blistered hands from enthusiastic rubbing, there have been a few good fires without matches!

Last night an old bull buffalo died just outside camp, and we think it might have been Brigadier, who's been our resident buffalo for some time. After dinner as we were sitting round the fire we saw about 20 hyenas crossing the river, just at the point that the wildebeest had earlier. A very noisy feeding frenzy ensued and kept us all entertained as we were safely tucked up in our tents.

More news on the migration and other sightings soon.

From all at Rekero Camp

Rekero Camp Newsletter - February 05

The last couple of weeks at Rekero Camp have been a feast of wildlife. The great excitement has been regular sightings of rhino. These are the last remaining populations of indigenous rhino in a game reserve in Kenya. It is the most incredible sight to be able to watch this ancient animal wandering around in its short sighted fashion in a place where it has lived for millenia. We have being seeing 2 males between Ol Kej Ronkai and the aptly named Poachers Lookout. Amazingly we had a mother and calf within a couple of hundred of metres of camp.

Where we are in the heart of the Mara there are overlapring terriorities of 3 large prides of lion. The Ol Keju Rongai pride which lives on the south side of the Talek consists of 2 mature males, 4 lionesses, 6 sub-adults and up to 2 cubs of different sizes. The two prides on our side of the Talek - Camp Pride ( 8 lioness's there 12 cubs of various ages and 2 mature males ) and Paradise Pride ( 13 lions ) - are served by the same males as Camp Pride. A new lioness has appeared with to 2 cubs aged about 6 months.

Although traditionally a lean time for the big cats our 3 three resident prides are all in fine form with full bellies and we hope the cubs can get through this period.

A new camp record of seeing 18 different cheetah seen over a period of 5 days speaks for itself, and although its tree climbing cousin the leopard has been much more elusive we have still seen regular sightings of Bella. She is now probably one of the most famous cats in the world thanks to the Big Cat Diary along with her cub which we have named Sanguya, which means "necklace" in Maasai.

At the beginning of February we had the most furious storms with spectacular thunder and lightning all around, and we watched the Talek come up by the hour - changing from a trickle of pools to a huge torrent, with even the pods of hippo moving to the banks for safety. The thunderclouds which rose thousands of feet made for the most dramatic evening skies and for a couple of days we couldn't cross the Olare Orok or Talek rivers so had to make use of the Musiara airstrip. The birdlife at this time of year is just spectacular all the long-tailed Widow birds are doing the bush pogo by jumping up and down repeatedly on the same spot in the hope of attracting as many females as possible (as well as our enthusiastic birders). Camp is full of Weavers and Whydahs chasing away all the Cuckoos which are hoping to pass the time- consuming task of raising their young on to another bird. With the rains the elephant numbers seemed to have grown and every where you look there seems to be a family herd making their way slowly across the plains, munching on all the tall grass.

We look forward to sending the next installment of bush habari from the Mara.

Rekero Camp & A Walk Across The Maasai Mara

New for 2005:
A 6-night package combining 3 nights walking and flycamping with 3
nights at Rekero Camp For a minimum of 2 to a maximum of 6 eople in one party. According to availability from June to October.

The 3 nights flycamping in a very comfortable, mobile, tented camp will enable you to walk out from your own private and exclusive camp and into camp again in a new location each day. We walk in an extensive area of about two hundred thousand hectares known as the Loita Plains, just outside the Mara Reserve itself; you are unlikely to see another person during your walk here. By moving every day, you can walk for a couple of hours in the morning (depending on what we see along the way), and walk again in the evening or go for a game drive in the area to get the best of the game viewing. Our destination on this walk is Rekero Camp which is set in one of the most spectacular parts of the Mara Game Reserve; after 3 days we will meet up with the Rekero team on the edge of the game reserve, and from there you will spend 3 nights in the heart of the some of the most incredible game viewing on offer in Africa today.

This safari is ideal for the more adventurous, or those who want to try something a little different; the combination of being out walking and staying in the best camp in the Maasai Mara is simply the best way to see, and feel, Africa.

General Information
The idea behind walking on safari in a wilderness area is to gain a
much more intimate, comprehensive, and intense experience of the land and the animals. The animals we come across will be going about their daily business of survival undisturbed. Walking in a small group of people is a far less intrusive way to encounter game, their tracks, sounds, scents, their relationships to each other and the ever-changing environment, than driving through the bush in a 4WD vehicle. While walking, one senses that they are all around, and though close sightings of larger animals can be much harder won on foot, the rewards are far greater when we are able to find and observe them quietly feeding, sleeping, playing or hunting entirely unaware of our presence. Walking enables one to experience the environment – the birdsong, animal calls, smell of plants and flowers – in the same way as the animals; we are on their level. The area in which we walk is huge; therefore it is very unusual for us to come across any other people at all.

The days are ruled by the nature of the area where we are – walking is done in the cooler mornings and late afternoons, with time for resting and observation in the middle of the day when it is hotter.

Location
Our walks are in an area next to the Maasai Mara Game Reserve itself. As we are so near the Reserve, there is a wealth of all kinds of flora and fauna, including incredible birdlife. The scenery we walk in is a mixture of huge rolling plains, perennial springs, acacia valleys and quartzite hills, situated between the Loita Hills and Maasai Mara. The altitude goes from 4500ft above sea level to the top of the Bardamat Hills which rise up to 7000 ft.

The plains consist mainly of red oat grass and the hills are covered by types of commiphora trees and many different types of acacias. The local Maasai are from the Purko clan; there are seven different clans of Maasai in East Africa. Also in this area are the last remnants of the Laikipiak Maasai who were scattered by tribal warfare at the
beginning of last century. This tribe became known as the Ndorobo, who do not keep any livestock so became hunter/gathers (they still hunt with a bow and arrow) and honey hunters – similar to the Bushmen of South Africa in many ways.

This particular area is perfect for walking: open plains are mixed with
bush areas and taller trees surround areas of springs and seasonal
water. There are hardly any roads, mainly just animal tracks that lead down to a waterhole, spring or salt lick area.

What To Expect Whilst Walking
There is no typical day on a walking safari; the day is always certain
to be interesting and we will stop as necessary for game viewing/shade. We will walk with expert local Ndorobo trackers, and your guide will carry a heavy-calibre rifle, first-aid kit and radio.

The Day
A day's walking begins with the sound of hot water being poured into a canvas sink next to your tent just before sunrise, with tea, coffee and a light breakfast by the fire. Once water bottles are filled, we will
leave camp to explore the expanses of stunning grass plains between the acacia tree valleys and rocky quartzite outcrops.

The terrain is varied and consequently we can expect to see an exciting variety of game. By following them, we can observe the entire interrelated spectrum of wildlife from dung beetle to elephant. This area is also a spill-over for the wildebeest migration, zebra, topi,
hartebeest, waterbuck, bushbuck, eland, Grants’ and Thomsons’ gazelle, impala, and many others species from the Maasai Mara as well as the residential game. We have bird and mammal books for reference.

Walking during the cooler times of day, we can generally cover between 5 to 8 miles per day, depending on what we stop to observe. Or, we might set off just before dawn, and come back for a full cooked breakfast/brunch. The location for lunch might be next to a water hole or stream, or under a shady umbrella thorn acacia tree. After a rest for a few hours in the heat of the day, we will walk on again into camp, which will have been set up and prepared for us in advance. We can game drive out from camp in the evenings, to see more of the area and get closer to the animals. Night game drives are possible from our mobile camp, although not inside the Mara Reserve itself.

This is undoubtedly some of the most stunning walking country in the whole of Africa; the local Maasai culture, combined with the
exceptional fauna and flora are unbeatable to observe on foot.

The Accommodation
Accommodation is in comfortable, walk-in insect-proof tents,
custom-made for our walking safaris. They are bush-green, with large mesh windows on all sides for maximum viewing; all sides also have flaps that can be completely closed if necessary. The mesh roof part (to see the night sky) can also be covered with a flysheet if rain looks likely. Comfortable bedrolls with mattresses, cotton sheets and warm blankets (with hot water bottles when necessary) on a sheepskin carpet make up the sleeping arrangements. Torches are provided in the tents.

Please let us know any special dietary requirements in advance; the
meals prepared will encompass all kinds of salads, fruit, vegetarian
and meat dishes and the delicious bread is made in camp daily. Drinks are mineral water, cordials and specific wines and spirits are taken on request.

Wash towels and soap are provided. Washing facilities consist of hot traditional safari bucket showers, washstands with basins and a short drop toilet tent.

The temperature in the Maasai Mara rarely falls below 22C; it can get hot in the middle of the day. Nights are cool but can be cold; July
particularly can be breezy, falling to around 15C.

Itineraries
Itineraries can be tailor-made upon request for specific times and/or
special interests. Special interest groups for flora, fauna, ornithology and culture are welcome.

What To Bring
* Binoculars – 1 pair per person; to fully appreciate these walking
safaris binoculars are essential
* Clothing – 2/3 sets of neutral-coloured shorts/trousers/shirts and a
long pair of trousers, for the evening
* Warm jacket/jumper for evening, with lightweight waterproof jacket
depending on time of year
* 1 pair of comfortable walking shoes/boots. You can use thorn-proof
walking sandals (eg. Tevas) if you prefer, and a pair of shoes for
around camp in the morning/evening
* Sun protection (full-brimmed hat, sunglasses and high factor sun
cream – we recommend the UK Tesco’s range, and also P20)
* Insect repellent with DEET
* Torch/head torch (Petzl are good) + spare batteries
* A small day pack to carry your water bottle, sunscreen and personal items whilst walking
* Camera with zoom lens, and lots of film/digital storage
* Any medication or similar personal items needed for at least the
duration of the walk
* We recommend full insurance cover and local flying doctor cover can also be arranged as required (AMREF)
* We are not in a malarial area, but if you are visiting other areas
then we suggest you continue with your medication as directed.