Life is so full of surprises and happy coincidences.
Photography is my hobby since my mid-teens and I am trying to learn it ever since. Having ended up in Kenya in the recent past in search of livelihood, my foremost interest has been visiting various wildlife parks and photograph, guess what? Wildlife of course. My wife has accompanied me on most of these trips. The most common of these trips has been to the world famous Masai Mara National Reserve. I have posted numerous photographs from these trips on my website (http://KapoorPhotoImages.com) and on my Facebook account (however, the best ones remain in my private collection).
Recently, National Geographic ran a photographic competition titled Traveller Photo Contest 2013. I also submitted some of my photographs in the competition. The results of the competition were announced on 1st of August 2013. As expected, my entries did not even earn a mention.
August is also the peak season for the world famous great wildebeest migration from Serengeti to Masai Mara when hundreds of thousands of wildebeest and zebra migrate north in search of fresh pasture, and return back in October. It is one of the most wonderful natural events, sometimes also referred to as the 8th wonder of the world.
As planned, I was to leave for Masai Mara trip on the morning of 2nd of August. As I was wrapping-up my internet activities the previous night, I checked the National Geographic photo contest results announcement. One of the winners that caught my attention was a photograph captured in Masai Mara (http://travel.nationalgeographic.com/travel/traveler-magazine/photo-contest/2013/entries/gallery/winners-winners/#/2). I had seen this photograph earlier too but what made me blink this time was when I read the description given by the judges pointing out special features that made them consider this photograph special. What caught my attention was that the cheetahs in the picture were standing on the top of a vehicle which was open from all sides and all the occupants were totally exposed. All along I had thought that the vehicle had a roof on top, but it did not.
On our flight to Masai Mara, I mentioned about the photograph to my wife and jokingly asked her what her reaction would be if she were to encounter such a situation. I was not really looking for an answer, as I know that even in an enclosed car she makes the driver move away the vehicle at the slightest hint of a dangerous animal so much as looking in our direction. I, however, casually mentioned to her that we are also likely to have an open vehicle this time (I was just hoping, though I was not sure). I really wanted an open vehicle as it is much more convenient for photography.
Just as luck would have it, on landing we found (to my delight) that we indeed were provided such a vehicle by the hotel. My happiness was increased manifold when subsequently I found out that we two were to be the only occupants of that vehicle for the duration of our trip. This was important as it allowed us the freedom to decide where to go and how much time to spend at a particular spot. In a group one has to compromise and give in to the others’ preferences too.
The first day itself was eventful, as late that evening we got an opportunity to view and photograph a leopard at leisure (leopard at leisure and photography at leisure). This was the first time that I had sighted a leopard after my numerous safari trips.
The second day was expected to be eventful, anyway, as we were to undertake a balloon flight over the vast wildlife reserve, again a first for us. My wife was very hesitant to undertake this flight, afraid as she is of anything out of the ordinary. My children had already tried to boost her morale in the past few days. I too had to work hard on her the previous night and she slept, half convinced. Very early next morning we proceeded to the balloon embarkation site. We were a group of 13 people for the balloon ride, a mix of aged, middle aged and teenagers. Anxiety was clearly writ large on my wife’s face. However, once the pilot explained to us the procedure for getting into the gondola, in preparation for the balloon to take off, she baulked and told me that it will be better that I go ahead without her and that she would follow in the accompanying vehicles to the rendezvous point. However, a little more convincing from me and fellow passengers finally got her into the balloon. The rest of the flight was thoroughly enjoyable and her fear of a balloon ride was gone forever.
We decided to spend the rest of the morning in search of wildebeest herds readying for the famous river crossing. For photographers and tourists alike, the main event of the visit during the peak season is to witness the actual river crossing by wildebeest, zebras and gazelles when thousands of them jump into the river to reach the other end in search of fresh grass. Many of them get ravaged by crocodiles in the water and many more die in the stampede. But be able to witness an actual river crossing is purely chance. One may wait for hours and the animals may just decide to not even attempt crossing the river. One has to be at the right time at the right place along the vast meandering river to catch even a fleeting a glimpse of the event. Of course, if one has the money and time to spend one to two weeks in the camps during the peak season, the chances of witnessing one go up immensely. My family was fortunate to witness one last year and I have wonderful photographic memories of that. This time, however, we had to return empty handed having spent hours in search.
Just as we were on our way back to our lodge for lunch, having seen on the way a lone lioness resting on rocks, our driver came to know about a group of four cheetahs having been sighted some distance away. And we went out looking for them. After some effort to locate the exact point, we were able to find them – two cheetahs resting on a mound of earth. Then we saw the third one a little away in the grass and then a fourth one, further away. Fortunately, at this time there were only three tourist vehicles in all, their engines switched off and absolute silence in that secluded place. The only sound was of the cameras clicking. Over a period, all the four cheetahs came to rest on the same mound and I was clicking away crazily all this time. We must have waited there for a long-long time. Suddenly, the cheetahs decided to move on. Two of them decided to go downhill, while the other two went into the opposite direction. Our vehicle followed them, overtook them on the road and now they were coming towards us and I was clicking all the time.
Then one cheetah came towards our vehicle as if to cross over to the other side and I was still clicking. Suddenly the cheetah climbed on the back of the vehicle. It was standing on the spare-wheel of the vehicle, maybe three to four feet from me. I recoiled back not knowing what to do? By this time my wife was whispering to the driver to drive away. I also sat down and asked the driver to start the vehicle engine so that the noise will shake off the cheetah from our vehicle. The driver was, however, nonchalant and was telling me and my wife that cheetahs enjoy sitting on the cars and play. He was telling us not to worry. However, I was not going to rely purely on such assurances of the driver to put our lives in danger. I must clarify that, surprisingly, I did not have a feeling of fear but concerned I was. On looking back I wonder why I was not afraid? Maybe the lack of any reaction from the driver indicating any concern even remotely.
The driver then encouraged me to take photographs of the cheetah. Suddenly, I got up. Cheetah was facing me just three-four feet away. We looked into each other’s eyes, while I was trying to set up my camera to take pictures. Unfortunately, I had my long zoom lens on and the camera was finding it difficult to focus at an object so near. On top of it, I was alternating between looking directly at the cheetah in front of me and then through the camera eye-piece. However, before I could manage a proper photograph, the cheetah decided to jump off his perch and walk away. For me it was a big miss. I could just manage a pair of extremely poor photographs which vaguely are my evidence of this encounter now. Come to think of it, it is the tourists/photographers on the other two vehicles that would have the best pictorial evidence of my wonderful encounter, anyway.
It needs guts to stand up to a cheetah. But was I being brave? Far from it. I can still see those piercing eyes staring directly at me. And I can also distinctly remember me seeing directly into those eyes. It is very difficult for me to even today accurately tell myself what I was feeling at that moment. However, it was definitely not a sense of fear and it was definitely not a sense of bravado.
Life is so full of surprises and happy coincidences. Imagine, just a day earlier I was asking my wife how would she react if a cheetah were to climb on top of our vehicle. And it actually happened. I cannot believe that, but for the initial reaction, even she was calm throughout when I got up and faced the cheetah directly. I have never asked her what she was feeling at that time.
PS: I had delayed this piece in anticipation of receiving photographs from the tourists on the other two vehicles to whom I had given my business card. Though they had assured me, I have not received any photograph till date. Incidentally, one of them had asked me what I was feeling when I was facing the cheetah. Even at that time I could not recall how I felt.
