Masai Mara
Masai Mara is Kenya's national reserve in the southwestern part of the country. It was founded in 1961 on an area of 1,510 km2. The name of the reserve arose from the local captivity - Masai, as well as the Mara River, flowing throughout the park.
The reserve borders on the national parks of Serengeti and is actually a continuation of it. Masai Mara runs an animal migration route in September-October. During the migration, almost one and a half million antelopes pass through the park. The reserve is located on a huge East African rift system, spread from South Africa to the waters of the Red Sea. Herbal savannahs with acacia forests predominate in the terrain. In the west of the park there are swamps, because of which many animals for a watering hole are pulled here. In this part, tourists are practically not due to remoteness, the eastern part is located 220 km from the city of Nairobi and is visited by most travelers.
In the Masai-Mara Nature Reserve, all representatives of the Big Five live, consisting of rhinos, elephants, leopards, buffaloes, as well as lions, which live in large numbers here. Hippos live in large groups in the Talok and Tara rivers, and in the park you can meet cheetahs who are threatened with extinction, as tourists prevent them from hunting during the day.
A significant part of the animal world of Masai Mara is made up of wildebeest antelopes. Every year in July, antelopes go north in search of food, and in October, with the advent of the rainy season, they return south. In addition to antelope, wildebeest in the reserve can be met by the gazelle of Grant and Thomson, topi, impala, miniature dicdik antelope. Also, huge herds of zebras roam here, 2 species of giraffes are found. Ornithofauna, numbering 450 representatives of the birds, is no less rich.
The reserve is managed by the Government of Kenya. To prevent the destruction of animals, several units are located in the park to fight poachers.
Masai Mara can be reached by car from Nairobi or Narok or by a light motor plane, since the reserve has landing strips. To choose from travelers are bungalows, loggias, campsites. Outside the territory of hotels, you can only move by car, accompanied by a driver. Those who want to see everything and immediately should take advantage of the tour in a balloon.
