Monthly Archives: October 2018
Masai Giraffe: Crescent Island
Masai Giraffe, Crescent Island, Lake Naivasha, Kenya
A young Masai Giraffe apparently bending down to look in the windows of our Safari Van as we passed, on our way back from Crescent Island on Lake Naivasha in Kenya’s Rift Valley. Crescent Island is where the non-predictor scenes in Out of Africa were filmed. They brought in the animals and let them loose what was then an island. Of course they also built a causeway to bring the gear in, and the animals have spread to the adjacent shore of the lake, especially the Giraffes. The whole area is operated as a private reserve now, and you can actually get out and walk among the animals, for a unique experience of African wildlife. Sony RX10iv at around 280mm equivalent. Program mode. Processed in Polarr.
On Safari: Kenya
The book. It is a big file. It will take several moments to load. Use the controls in the top or bottom bar to scroll through the pages. In true book fashion, the inside of the cover is blank. Just press on. 🙂
Handsome Zebra, Lake Nakuru
Lake Nakuru National Reserve, Kenya
At the end of a full day in Lake Nakuru National Reserve, as we were headed out, we came up on a small group of Zebras standing in light forest. This handsome young lady (I think, lady that is, handsome is for sure) was standing right by the side of the road, up on a little rise, just perfectly posed, so of course we had to stop for photos. Every Zebra’s pattern is, or so Zebra folk say, totally unique, in much the same way our finger prints are. This one has, I think, particularly fine patterns on her legs. Sony RX10iv at about 80mm equivalent. Program mode. Processed in Polarr.
Hippos in the Mara River
Mara River, Masai Mara, Kenya
John, our pilot on our Kenya Safari, was under the mistaken impression that we only had one day in the Masai Mara, so he adopted a “see everything” policy that took us from the north east corner of the reserve all the way to the Mara River in the south. The Mara is famous for its Wildebeest crossings during migration. We were there at the right time, but the water was too high. Still there are Hippopotamuses and Crocodiles…both of which we did see. These photos were taken from the bluff on the north side of the river, looking down. Sony RX10iv at 600mm equivalent. Program mode. Processed in Polarr and assembled in FrameMagic. Note the Common Sandpiper (very much like our Spotted Sandpiper in both looks and behavior) on the back of the Hippo in the top image 🙂
More of Amboseli’s Elephants
Amboseli National Park, Kenya
We saw many elephants in Tsavo East National Park and many in Masai Mara, but by far the most in Amboseli. The well watered marshes and old lake bed are lush grazing for elephants. Sony RX10iv in Program mode. Various focal lengths. Processed in Polarr and assembled in ImgPlay.
Topi under an African Sun
Topi are another big boned African antelope species. We found these in the Masai Mara reserve. They are generally found in groups of up to 14…a dominant buck and his haram and children. They “rest” in a characteristic pose, with their noses on the ground supporting their heads and horns. The light of Equatorial Africa is always amazing. Sony RX10iv at about 32mm and 600mm equivalents. Program mode. Processed in Polarr. Panel assembled in FrameMagic.
Eastern Black and White Colobus Monkey
I was surprised, and delighted, to find a large family group of Eastern Black and White Colobus Monkeys on the grounds of Elsamere Lodge where we stayed on Lake Naivasha, in the Rift Valley of Kenya. The field guides I had studied before leaving home show the primate at higher elevations and in much more dense forest. (The Colobus has a limited range in the Masai Mara, mostly around Siana Springs Camp…not anywhere near where we were going.) It is a beautiful creature. From what I can find on-line the Colobus at Elsamere are natural residents and have been living there for several generations at least. Sony RX10iv at various focal lengths. Program mode. Processed in Polarr.Â
Yard Turkeys
Yesterday’s day poem was about the turkeys who came wandering through the yard in the morning rain.Â
Carol came in in the middle of my Qi Gong
this morning, me still in my bare feet, tee-shirt
and pajama pants, and announced that there
were six turkeys in the back yard. I grabbed
my camera. Turns out it was a hen and five
well grown poults, looking for sustenance
among the fallen leaves under our trees in
steady rain…making a short cut, maybe,
across our yard. I got a few shots from the
open deck door before they disappeared up
the alley between our house and the house
next door…not an alley proper of course but
the narrow area between our house and the
hedge, full of strawberry plants and sunflowers.
Eventually they came out onto the front lawn
and I could stand in the front door and photo-
graph them as they passed under our little
apple trees. Carol had to leave right then or
be late for a funeral, so she went out, and
of course they all took wing, the poults high
into the pines across the road and the hen
sailing down the road and across to the
woods at eye-level…which was all she could
manage in her mature dignity. Such a treat.
Making the most of a rainy morning. I got
back to my Qi Gong and the turkeys went
looking for sustenance in someone else’s
yard, or maybe the marshy edge of the wood.
What more can I say? Sony RX10iv at 600mm and 200mm. Program mode. Processed in Polarr and assembled as a video slideshow in ImgPlay.Â
Bustards and Baboons
Another Encounter story from Kenya. Wait for it to load and then page through using the controls in the bar at the top or bottom of the panel. You can expand it to full sceeen by touching the icon in either bar.
Tsavo East Lion Encounter
One of the most exciting encounters we have on our Kenya Safari. The PDF will take a moment to load. You can flip through it using the controls at the bottom or the top of the block.Â