INTRODUCTION
Through our journey of the world we have visited a number of beautiful places of this beautiful world. These places are beautiful and some are very beautiful and adventurous at the same time. But we have not visited the places much, which are beautiful, adventurous and horrifying at one moment of time. So why not have a visit of such place today? Be more careful because today we are going to visit Massai Mara National Reserve which is a safari park.
Massai Mara National Reserve is situated in south-western Kenya. This reserve is one of the most popular reserves in Africa. This reserve is basically the continuation of Serengeti National Park which is in Tanzania. Massai Mara is a large game reserve. Now you guys would be curious that what a game reserve is? Infact game reserve is an area which is set aside for maintenance of wildlife for the purpose of tourism or hunting. The Massai Mara National Reserve is the part of Massai-Serengeti ecosystem. This reserve covers an area of 1510 km². This is really a paradise for safari travelers, the people who prepare documentaries, for the researchers and for the common people who have adventurous nature. There are number of reasons for the people to visit the reserve. Most probably it would be great wildebeest migration a centre of attraction for the visitors. Others may be the open skies, hot balloon ride, the romantic site and open savannahs. These are the few things which we have mentioned but actually it is really hard to narrate the place in words.
HISTORY
This wildlife area was established in 1948. At that time the area of the reserve was just 510 square kilometers. Then in 1961 the area was expanded to 1821 square kilometers and this was the time when it was converted into the Game Reserve. In latter developments the area of the reserve was reduced in 1974 and 1976 to 1662 square kilometers and 1510 km² respectively.
WILDLIFE
There is nothing less than wonderful in the reserve. It is basically grassland and because of this animals always remain in sight. There is abundance of wild animals. There are more than 450 species recorded so far which include migrants as well. All members of Big five which include lion, leopard, African elephant, African buffalo and black rhinoceros are found here in the reserve. Other than Big five community, there are large groups of hyenas, cheetahs, jackals, bat-eared foxes, Thomson’s gazelles and Nile crocodiles are found in the reserve. A great number of antelopes, impalas, elands, duikers, zebra, masai giraffe and common giraffe is also found in the area. The view is just awesome when you see a lion chasing gazelle in the orchids. Another spectacular thing about the reserve is the wildebeest migration which is seen from July to October. This is called great migration and is a great event worldwide. In this migration more than 2 million animals which include wildebeests, gazelles, zebras, topi and elands are migrated to the Massai Mara Reserve from Serengeti National Park in Tanzania.
TOURISM
This is a wonderful place for the visitors. It will be a unique experience if you visit the Massai Mara. The reserve is easily accessible from the capital Nairobi. It is just 270 km away from the capital. You can reach the place both by road and by air.
It can be threatening to view lions, cheetahs, African elephant, leopard and wildebeest wandering around you but there is no need to panic at all. The administrators have provided the best possible facilities for the tourists. There are number of lodges and tented camps for the tourists inside the reserve. Catering is purely headache of the visitors unless it is provided by the agencies. There are no security issues inside the reserve. Rangers patrol continuously and therefore there is a quite secure game viewing. Another activity which we recommend you guys is the ride of balloon safari. When you raise in the air the view of surroundings is just unparalleled. The view of sun rise and sun set are also spectacular in the reserve.
You will never forget the experience of visiting Massai Mara.