[Kenya] The Lions of Kenya

Seeing lions in the wild was one of the most exciting experiences we had during our safari. We saw these majestic animals a few times, both in Lake Nakuru and in Maasai Mara.

Lions in Maasai Mara

The first time we saw lions, we could barely see them. While driving in Lake Nakuru, we passed by a jeep parked on the road. The guide of that other jeep told us that there were lions hidden in the tall grass and the bushes a really long distance away from us. It actually took a while before I could see part of the lion. It seemed like it was eating something. There were supposedly a couple of others but I didn't see them.

This is officially the first lion we saw (although we barely saw it)

The second time we saw lions was in that same game drive in Lake Nakuru. We actually almost didn't have a chance to see them. We learned that there were lions in a certain part of the reserve but when we got there, the area was so full of jeeps and we couldn't park. Since none of them seemed like they were leaving anytime soon, we decided to just leave. On our way home, we had to pass through that same area of the lion sighting again and as we did, we saw several of the jeeps leaving. This gave us an opportunity to park and we finally saw the lions! It started out with what seemed like a lone lioness (or maybe a young male lion without any trace of a mane yet)...

Our first good view of a lion in Kenya

...before a head of a male lion reared its head from the grass. As if that wasn't enough, another male lion showed its face to us. So instead of just one, there were three!

Can you see the two lions at the back (one partially covered by a bush)?

One of the male lions then moved towards us and the lioness. We stayed there for quite a while, taking lots of photos...

...and even selfies. I forgot you are not supposed to turn your back on a lion but we did it because everyone there was also doing it (and the lions weren't looking at us anyway)

Selfie with the lion and the lioness

We saw a few more lions two days later, in Maasai Mara. Early in our game drive, we saw three young male lions.

Three young male lions in Maasai Mara

As we got closer towards the middle of the day, we saw what seemed to be a lioness stalking a wildebeest. We passed by several jeeps that were parked along the dirt road and we decided to stop too. From here, we saw a lion barely visible in the savanna grass that seemed to be following a lone wildebeest. The wildebeest seemed to be walking towards the large herd quite some distance away and the lion was several meters behind it, following in its footsteps. I thought that at some point, the lion would hunt that wildebeest but it never did. They were so far away from us that my photos of them are fuzzy and unfocused but it is proof that we got to see them!

The lioness followed this wildebeest for a really long distance but never gave chase

As we were getting ready to leave Maasai Mara, we spotted a lioness. It was initially walking then suddenly, it increased its pace to a fast trot (or like a lion version of a jog). Our guide Zachary told us that he doesn't normally see lions move like this - they normally walk or run but not trot - so it made him quite curious.

The last lion we saw in Kenya

It really was such an amazing experience getting to see a lot of lions in Kenya!

It was an exhilarating experience getting to see lions up close in the wild!

Next: Special and Memorable Moments on Safari