Few places have more evocative names than Masai Mara. Long before I traveled to Africa, those two words could conjure up a dreamlike world of golden plains, acacia trees, and big cats waiting alert in the shade. Long-held expectations often lead to disappointment, but reality lived up to the shining ideal when I joined a SkySafari tour of southwestern Kenya in September.

in most safarisFinding a lion is more of a hope than an expectation. They are few in number and spend their days lounging in tall grass, so you can pass close by and see nothing. If you’re lucky, your guide will notice a pair of ears and bring you close to one; This means that he may half raise his head in curiosity, then lay it down again and lie motionless, while you watch and listen to his breathing deepen and inhale. goes back to sleep. They are wonderful animals, even when at rest; but most of the time they don’t do much.

I might have been lucky, but I saw lions almost every morning and evening in the Masai Mara. The most dynamic image featured six individuals, including a mother and her cubs, who were found by a stream when we joined them. While the adults embraced in the water, the young ones crossed each other on the riverbank and paddled through the mud, emerging with boots blackened to half the mottled fur on their legs. After drinking their fill, they all set off across the moor towards us, scattering a nearby herd of zebras who regrouped a little further away, their ears pricked and growling their alarm.