We went far this morning looking for lions. There were a couple of them in the huge planes area south of Mara’s Keekorok but no big males. As we drove along the river I saw some wildebeest with that ‘vibe’ and told Othmani there was a crossing somewhere. We looked at the river and there they were, all of them swimming to beat the near bank! We got lined up in time to get the last few hundred as the crossing ended. Crossing number four! For the rest of the morning we did a nice job with zebras, topi, and even eland. I have a few new wide angle shots of animals in the planes from the lower window that I like. It’s not my usual style so that’s maybe why I like it.
The afternoon game drive to Cheetah Valley was all golden grass with ridges lined with acacia trees. It could be the prettiest place I’ve ever photographed. There were wildebeest everywhere and three cheetah brothers. When we got there they had just finished rest time and were stretching, yawning and drinking from a small stream. That’s when they went hunting. They just walked through the herds like it was no big deal at all as the wildebeest shifted positions, keeping an eye on the three cats. We moved out of the herds and kept them between us and the approaching cheetahs. Just when we got into position, they all charged at once into the main herd. They were chasing wildebeest back and forth right in front of us. It was as exciting as anything I’ve ever seen. It was a huge challenge picking the spots between the wildebeest to photograph the flying cats. I feel like we just nailed it. Dennis got a shot of one of the cheetahs on a wildebeest’s back! Othmani said that was his favorite part of the trip — the action!
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