|
Africa Safari Articles
> Kenya Safari
Articles
WILDEBEEST
MIGRATION
Wildebeest Migration - How To Get The Best Seats In
The House
By:
Bruce Whittaker
To get the most out of a wildebeest migration safari you need to
know where the best places along the migration route are, the times
you need to be in certain areas and who the top safari companies
are.
The Best Spots On the Migration Route
Have you ever seen those wildlife documentaries that show masses of
wildebeest swimming across a river being shadowed and sometimes
dragged under by huge crocodiles or drowning because of the crush
and fatigue?
And those wildebeest that do make it across safely sometimes fail at
the last hurdle because the bank is too steep and slippery with mud
for them to reach the top even though they make a huge effort to do
so.
This all forms part of the incredible wildebeest migration that
takes part every year in the Serengeti and Masai Mara game reserves
in East Africa.
The best spots to see spectacles like the ones described above are
at the Grumeti river in the western corridor of the Serengeti
because this is the first major river the hordes of wildebeest need
to cross in their quest for sweeter grazing in the north.
And the massive crocodiles are waiting...
The second and last major river they need to cross before they get
to the Masai Mara reserve is the Mara and this is also an excellent
vantage point from which to watch the drama play out.
But something that few people know is that there is another part of
the wildebeest migration that is just as incredible as the actual
trek north. And this is the annual foaling of about 400 000
wildebeest calves all in about a three week period early in the
year.
This is also an awesome spectacle and the best spot to experience
this is the southern Serengeti in February. You are also bound to
see a lot of the predators like lion, hyena, leopard and cheetah
take advantage of this food bonanza.
Timing Is Everything With the Wildebeest Migration
So how is it possible for a million wildebeest to just disappear?
This is a question that gets asked reasonably often by people who go
to the Serengeti to see the migration but get the timing wrong and
then they fail to find the huge herds.
The answer is that the million wildebeest are still there but they
are spread out across a wide area on the Serengeti plains so it just
seems like there are fewer of them because they aren't ready to mass
for the trip up north yet.
So how can you make sure you get the timing right?
It's extremely difficult to predict when the migration will occur
because it's all dependant on the rain. And the rain comes at
different times each year but it is possible to make a rough
estimate based on past occurrences so if you are in the Central
Serengeti in April-May you should start to see them move northwest
towards the Grumeti controlled area.
In June you will find them doing their death defying swim across the
Grumeti river and soon after in August they attempt to ford the Mara
river in the north to reach the life sustaining grassland of the
Masia Mara in Kenya.
In November-December the migration starts to move southwards towards
the Serengeti plains again to capitalise on the fresh grasses that
have grown there in the interim.
Top Wildebeest Migration Safari Companies
A very important decision you need to make if you want to experience
the wildebeest migration successfully concerns the safari company
that you choose to guide you. It's very easy to become confused
because there are so many operators in the market.
Make sure they are a reputable company by getting recommendations
from previous travellers that have been on safari with them in
Serengeti wildebeest migration trip reports.
You can also check their membership in various safari associations -
KATO - Kenya Association of Tour Operators, TATO - Tanzania
Association of Tour Operators and ATTA - African Travel and Tourism
Association.
And lastly make sure that they can satisfactorily answer all your
questions about their payment, refund and cancellation policies and
what the exact itenirary will be. Choosing the wrong company for
your wildebeest migration safari can be disastrous.
About the Author:
Make the right choice of wildebeest migration companies by using the
Top Three Serengeti migration operators list which ranks the best
companies according to their past performance-
http://www.african-safari-journals.com/serengeti-migration.html
..The Top Three Honeymoon Safari Companies List-
http://www.african-safari-journals.com/honeymoon-safari.html
Source:
www.isnare.com
Have you gone on vacation to Africa
and would like to share your experiences with others on this site?
If yes please contact us today by clicking here
and we will gladly contact you with instructions on how to submit
your article.
|
