BUCKET LIST
KENYA
“ A DAY SPENT IN THE MAASAI MARA NATIONAL RESERVE PROVED EVERYTHING THAT PUMBAA, SIMBA AND RAFIKI HAD STIRRED MY IMAGINATION TO BELIEVE”
The morning after was hot and, after riding through a magical flower farm, we headed up a steep dusty trail into, yes, you guessed it,‘ the badlands’. Actual black, volcanic, contorted rock with sparse vegetation and no sign of animals, even the hyenas, except some vultures circling high above. It could not have been scripted better.
Five endless days of riding 500km through the Great Rift Valley – starting from the cool-air, high-altitude, brightgreen manicured tea plantations of Limuru outside Nairobi, dotted with colonial architecture – brought us exhausted but smiling to the bush oasis of Entumoto Safari Camp near the gates of the Maasai Mara National Reserve, where cold hand towels, hot food and fresh linen awaited. Bikes packed away, we went on game drives and lay in hard-earned comfort on a lounger by the pool watching all kinds of creatures stroll by. Bike life! Pinch me. My pictures tell the story.
FEELING THE LOVE
Apart from the villages of beautiful, wide-eyed, happy local children dressed in impeccable school uniforms, and the animals and natural scenery we passed through, what really hits home on these experiences is how, when spending real time unplugged from phones and deadlines, we get to connect with humans who we often barely notice beside us.
I had the privilege of spending starlit evenings by the fire having long philosophical conversations( and getting fascinating history lessons) with race founder and guide Eric Nesbitt. He’ s a gem of a human whose heart and life have been poured into 14 years of finetuning the RVO. His passionate, hands-on experience of indigenous forest-logging and illegal fence-building by locals that have directly impacted migration patterns of wild animals over the past decade alone saddened me, and I realised that my grandchildren are unlikely to experience what I had. I need to take them deep into Africa before it’ s gone. Something needs to be done to conserve it. Fortunately a day spent in the Maasai Mara National Reserve proved everything that Pumbaa, Simba and Rafiki had stirred my imagination to believe. It’ s simply the most fantastic game-viewing experience imaginable.
I also got to ride with a group of South Africans who were celebrating birthdays and anniversaries together. These friends were bonded by riding but separated by life. Witnessing their connection reminded me again of the importance of time outside, together. Here’ s their story, as narrated by Kenyan-based expat Jill Magrath, the party convenor.
30 | MTB | bucket-list busting