Masai Mara Game Reserve Warnings Or Dangers

I've driven in and ridden on some bad roads in my life but nothing - NOTHING could prepare me for the roadways leading into and out of the major parks throughout Kenya.
It is a shame really, as the goverment seems to take road ways for granted spending little if any money in their repairs.

Pot holes, debris and road side hazards are something to avoid rather than a rarity.
We'd have to make unscheduled stops just to rest in between the justling that most of us were made to endure in the long drives in between parks. Perhaps this is why some tour operators and guests choose to do fly-in safaris rather than the more innexpensive option of driving in.
What should've taken 3 - 4 hours often times took up to 6 hours of difficult journey. I have been told that during certain times of the year, some of the roads are also impassible due to the rains.
Kenya should get it's act together and invest money on improving the road systems throughout the country.

Not for the faint of heart nor people with bad backs or suffering from motion sickeness!

You may get excited when you see the animals in the wild so sometimes, you want to get a closer look. There were some vans that go off the vehicle trail or path and go on the grass to get closer to the animals. This is not allowed because this will leave more unnecessary tyre tracks all over the area

When visiting the Maasai village, try to wear covered shoes because YOU WILL step into cow dung. The Maasai use cow dung to build their houses and sometimes, you have to walk through the place where they keep the cattle. Well, if you don't have a problem with it, by all means go with a sandal.

This is not supposed to be a general warning of the people here. They are generally quite friendly, especially if they feel they can sell you something. They are very used to tourists and quite the businessmen. So the will show you their village ? for 10-15 Dollar you can get it -including a demonstration of their dances and a visit to a hut and of course the possibility to buy some of their souvenirs: necklages etc.

Never ever try to make a picture of one without permission. Not only they will get very angry and will make you pay for it. Much. Shoot out of a driving car and you are apt to get stones and sticks thrown at it.

Some of the masai are very good looking and they do a lot for it: they wear makeup in red and black, do their hair in fine braids, wear yewellery of tiny pearl on the neck, the ankles, the wrists on the head and on the clothes. Classically they wear red clothes or at least with much red in it. The feet are bare or they wear sandals, sometimes made of old tires.

There are no fences around Maasai Mara to keep the animals out of our campsite. Therefore, each night we were guarded by Maasai Men wrapped in red plaid blankets (shukas) armed with spears and clubs. They used this opportunity to ask us questions about our culture before they retired to their guarding duties. We also learned about their traditions and practices like how many lions they killed. No matter how fiercely proud they are of their traditions, they were equally as proud of their ‘mobiles’. Unbelievably, these goat-herding, spear-carrying, red clad warriors each carry a cell phone that they use to call their girlfriends!

If you want to be able to see the animlas, you need to keep quiet, something we learnt to our peril. On our penultimate day, we were looking for leopard, when one of our party spotted something yellow in a tree. Once we got nearer we realised it was a leopard with a kill, and we all got so excited we squeeled sunconciously. The leopard took fright, ran down the tree and scampered. Althoug we saw him quite clearly and actively, all we were left with for the photographs, was this dead gazelle!

Whilst driving within the Masai Mara, you are required by law to keep to the tracks. Failing to do so and being caught by the authorities, results in a US$50 fine. Many of the safari drivers (ours included) totally ignore this rule and get as close as they possibly can to the animals. They are probably hoping that if they do get caught and fined that the tourists would pay. Which of course we would. US$50 is nothing between a group of eight tourists, whereas it is a huge amount of money to a Kenyan!

Often the animals will come right up to the tracks anyway!

The Mara is just a few degrees south of the Equator, so the overhead sun can be relentless during the heat of the day. Make sure you apply a high factor suntan lotion, wear a wide brimmed hat and take plenty of water to avoid dehydration. I made the mistake of thinking that a litre of water was going to be enough on a full day game drive, and ran our of water by lunchtime, making it very unpleasant for the rest of the afternoon when I was suffering from dehydration!