The first full day at Mara Bushtops we had booked a balloon ride in the Masai Mara. We were woken up with coffee and cookies well before dawn and then whisked in a land cruiser into the park. We arrived at the launch site just as dawn was beginning to break. There was not much for us to do as we stood out of the way as the crews scrambled to get the balloon laid out and filled with hot air. Once it started to become bouyant, however, then things moved fast and the had to scramble into the basket while the balloon struggled to fly away and a dozen ground crew members struggled to keep us on the ground.
Once we were airborne the most striking thing is the total silence (if you don’t count the occasional roar of the gas jets as the pilot put more hot air in the balloon). We drifted over the Mara for about an hour and then, after a controlled crash landing, the chase vehicle whisked us away to another omlete station that had sprung up out of the bush.
Getting ready for the dawn balloon ride.
Balloon ride prep. We stood around with not much to do for a long time while they warmed up the balloon.
Once the balloon had lift we had to move fast to get into the basket.
Another balloon fires up in the distance.
Crystal on the balloon ride.
Dawn balloon launches are popular.
Mara sunrise.
A balloon up above us.
Another Mara sunrise shot.
Mara sunrise.
Another balloon fires up in the distance.
This was Nora's birthday.
A group of researchers stake our a hyena den.
We didn't see many hyena except on the balloon ride. We saw over a dozen on that trip.
This is one of the chase tractors for the balloons. Here he was doing about 35 mph.
Crystal and Kai floating over the Mara.
More hyenas on the Mara.
Hyenas frolicking at dawn.
Another hyena shot.
A balloon far off in the distance.
Crystal and Kai on the balloon ride.
Nora peeking out of the balloon basket
At first the balloon pilot thought this was a rhino but it turned out to be a massive forest warthog.
Bush breakfast after the balloon ride.
Omlette stations in the middle of the African savanah were more common than one might expect.
