I am leaving today to meet up with my co-leader Paul McKenzie to conduct another African Safari in the Maasai Mara National Reserve. The Mara is an area of preserved savannah wilderness in southwestern Kenya, along the Tanzanian border.
Many folks feel that there is only one time to visit the Mara and that is during the migration. But what many don’t know is that there can be a crossing at any time and the numbers can be epic! If it rains in Tanzania the Wildebeest line up to cross over into Tanzania, and vice versa.
During September we usually miss out on most of the crowds. At some of the crossings, during migration period especially, the overwhelming number of tourists looking to watch this event is overwhelming. Getting a viewing spot takes careful planning and maneuvering to get a small viewing window. I much prefer the less crowded version of this epic event. I am curious if there will be crowds now because of Covid--probably not.
I’ll be home by October 3rd, if all goes well. If you sign up for a workshop or have a question I should still be able to stay in touch as we have added wifi to our safari vehicles. I’ll be bringing my Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless Digital Camera as my main camera body and I plan on using the Sony FE 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3 G OSS Lens as well as a wide variety of others…. The 200-600mm lens is a perfect choice because it gives me so much flexibility with my focal length. Since I am using the A1 (around 50 megapixels) I will be able to use the internal crop (APSc),and still retain about 21mp if needed. That’s a big help in the field because I won’t have to deal with a teleconverter and taking it off and on. I also truly love the internal zoom on the 200-600.
Also, in case you were wondering. I am fully vaccinated, I just passed a PCR Covid test and I will be retested at camp. We paid to have all of our drivers and guides tested before we come. I plan on wearing a good mask on the plane, using hand sanitizer (often) and avoiding any crowds. Stay safe out there wherever you are, going to the grocery store can be just as scary!!
After a crossing, when the dust started to settle.
