Lars Beusker German , b. 1973

Literature

Right before I was in Amboseli/ Kenya again in January 2023, the animals there went through a severe dry season. Very little rain, as well as barely fresh plants had the consequence that thousands of animals died of starvation/thirst. Already on my arrival on the way from Amboseli Airstrip to my camp, I felt the effects.
In neighboring regions of Amboseli, it had previously rained significantly more, which meant that there were almost no animals present in Amboseli National Park.
My guide Juma knew that the region Kimana, about 2 hours away from our camp, should be much more lively and populated by elephants. It was worth a try, I thought... so we set out one morning.
Without much expectation we set off, as dry as it was in Amboseli, it couldn't really be any different just 2 hours away... On the way there I already noticed how the clouds were closing in on the sky. A veil covered the entire sky, even the Kilimanjaro completely disappeared.
Arrived in the Sanctuary, it took my breath away. One meter high grass as far as the eye can see, trees, bushes... everything was alive, fertile and green. As ordered, the veil of clouds opened and Kilimanjaro adorned the horizon.
Now only the elephants were missing, I thought. Juma explained to me that most of the elephants stop overnight in a small forest on one side of the sanctuary and in the morning walk across an open field, to the other side into a marshland and spend the rest of the day there. So the window of opportunity I had in case of an encounter was extremely small.
Nevertheless, we were waiting by a small hill when it actually happened. We saw a gigantic herd, consisting of at least 30 animals, making their way to the marsh. I positioned myself, early on for the perfect frame and was finally able to take my picture. A moment of true goosebumps and when I look at the picture myself I feel that I have found it... my "Garden of Eden".