Further through Kenya

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Jambo Mengi Sanna from Home!

Well, we know it has been a while since we updated our blog, but we were unable to find internet access for almost three weeks. Now that we are home, we can bring you up to date. You will also be happy to note that we have posted a fraction of our 3000 photos. So Enjoy!

Let us bring you up to date.

Aberdares National Park & the Ark

I believe when we left you, we were off to The Ark. The Ark is a novel experience in the Aberdares national park. It attempts to mimic the feeling of a cruise with decks and viewing decks. You get there at tea time, set up yourself at a viewing deck and wait for the animals to come. In the afternoon we saw many dig-digs (cute little deer-like animals about 60cms/18 inches tall) and water buffalo. We broke for dinner in the dining room and then set up again in a viewing area for a long evening. We saw some little cat like animals, some nocturnal birds and other small animals, but nothing big. During the evening, we slept in our clothes because the ark has people on watch all night and a buzzer to alert you what has come to drink by the watering hole. We heard the buzzer for elephants in the middle of the night, but we had seen elephants and therefore ignored it. In the morning, we learned that only 2 elephants came (we had seen many herds by this time). So we did not miss much. We were served breakfast on the Ark and then we packed up and returned back to Abedares Country Club to our guide. It was a neat experience, but disappointing with regards to the animals we saw. It is bit of a crap shoot and you are really at the whim of the animals, whereas, on a safari, your guide should be able to hunt out something engaging and entertaining for you.


Lake Nakuru

From the Ark we were on to Lake Nakuru. - a great place to see. When you first see the lake from a distance, it looks pink. As you get closer, it becomes clear that the lake is not pink it is the millions of flamingos that reside there that make it look pink. Quite remarkable. We stayed at a great lodge there - Enjoyed great food. In lake Nakuru Park we had our first glimpse of a leopard up close. They are very shy and very difficult to spot (no pun intended). As we drove along, it appeared in some bushes about 3 feet from Karl. Really amazing. The sighting lasted about 10-15 seconds and then she was gone. Clearly she was hunting some impalas on the other side of the road and we startled her. But we do have the photos to prove it (Karl is quick with that camera now). We also saw many storks, pelicans and baboons. We spent 3 nights (2 days) in Lake Nakuru. And we were on to Lake Navashia.


Lake Navashia

We stopped in Lake Navashia primarily to hike Hell’s Gate. I was sceptical about Hell’s gate (particularly since the roads were so BAD we drove through the drainage ditch to get there), but it really was a challenging hike and an incredible experience. We hiked through a gorge that led us to some hot springs. Hells Gate was created by volcanic activity several thousand years ago. As you hike through the gorge, there is steam coming from the water filtering into it. The water itself is 98 degrees Celsius as it materializes out of the rock. It is the first time Julie had seen anything like this. This phenomenon occurs because the water table is located over top of a lava pocket deep in the earth. The Kenians have wisely learned to use this steam to generate electricity. The steam from these springs generates 80% of Kenya’s electric needs. Pretty cool!

The drought in Kenya has not been kind to this area of the country. We saw several zebra and water buffalo dead on the hill side due to dehydration. It is very sad.

We stayed at a beautiful lodge on Lake Navashia. The lodge informed us that hippos regularly come out and eat the grass just outside their restaurant which excited Julie to no end because, to date, we had not seen any hippos. So in the afternoon, we went to see if we could spot any hippos in the lake. While we spotted some “lumps” in the water, we could not conclusively identify them as hippos. There were however, tell-tale tracks of a rather large beast into and out of the lake. We knew they were around without a doubt. So, at dinner, we waited, and waited, and waited, alas, no hippos came. Julie was extremely disappointed, but more determined than ever to see hippos.


Maasai Mara

The Maasai Mara proclaims to be one of the premier game reserves in the world. The Maasai Mara is the Kenian side of the Serengetti. It is 1400kms in area and has both black and white rhinos, zebra, ostrich, elephants, giraffes, water buffalo (currently is in serious peril due to the draught), cheetahs, lions, the elusive leopard, grand gazelles, thompson gazelles, impalas, hippos, a whole host of birds and other wild life.

The Maasai Mara is also home to the Maasai tribes (who also live in other locations), sister tribe to the Samburu. The Kenian draught has left the Maasais desperate with very little grass for their cattle and other live stock to graze. Because they are a primarily meat eating people, the consequences are devastating. The Maasais have begun illegally grazing their cattle in the game reserve (affecting zebra and white rhino food). They have also begun begging and harassing tourists to get by. There just do not seem to be any easy answers

Our first game drive was in the evening at the Maasai Mara and very disappointing. We saw very little and were rather discouraged. Our guide Philip encouraged us to persevere and be patient.

Our second game drive the next morning rewarded us first with lions. Then we knew about a cheetah hiding in a bush that would not come out. Because it was just Karl and I on the drive… we waited for her to come out. We waited about 20 minutes and were rewarded with not one, but two cheetahs who sat and preened for us for about 10 minutes. They were beautiful and impressive to watch. A real spectacle.

The next morning, we took off for an all day game drive on the hunt for Julie’s beloved hippos. We were rewarded (AT LAST!). We found a very well known hippo pool close to the Tanzanian border. About 35 hippos were hanging around sunning themselves. We saw a couple of good yawns, some babies and a crocodile at the pool. Sadly, it was very hot, the sun was high, and we could not stay long. None the less, it made our day a complete success. To top it off, we saw some baby lion cubs that were adorable and later we found 3 lions (two adolescent males and a female) après feast hanging around under a tree. We watched them pick at the scraps for a while anticipating they would be thirsty and watch them go to a water hole. It was about 30 minutes later when we noticed the female slink off down the hill. We gave her some distance and were again rewarded. We watched her stalk a heard of wildebeest. It is amazing just how cunning lionesses are and how they anticipate and confuse their prey. Apparently she was not that hungry. She just played with them for a while, found no easy pickings and proceeded to get a drink and then fell asleep under a tree. Another great spectacle to end our day.

The following day, we were up and out of our lodge at 6am and headed on a long drive to the Tanzanian boarder. It was there we picked up our Tanzanian guide and jeep and headed onto the Serengetti.

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