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Published: January 29th 2008
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10th November
At first light we made our way onto the minivan, bleary eyed and settled in for the initial return drive to Nairobi where we were stopping for lunch at the Jamuraga hotel which was very nice. We then continued north of Nairobi up towards the Serena Lodge at Mount Kenya national park. This was a fantastic journey leaving the bleak barren flat landscapes that characterised the environment to the south of Nairobi.
The scenery was more vibrant, lush and green. Nick told us that in this area there were many small-scale independent farmers working small plots producing many different types of cash crop. All of these small plots were nestled into valleys and hills adding to the aesthetic qualities of the scene. Driving through Kentakai province there were dense clusters of coffee, mango, papaya and banana fields.
The destination tonight is the Mount Kenya Serena lodge and it is on stilts! We don’t have a game drive as such, but each room has a view out onto the floodlit watering hole that attracts animals. We have been given a form to fill out and tick indicating which animals, if they arrive, we are prepared to be
woken up for.
We are not allowed out of the hotel, as it is literally straight out onto the wilds. In any event I only saw some gazelle drinking and was not woken up in the night to see anything. Once again, unfortunately the rising slopes of Mount Kenya that were before us were covered by cloud. A really amazing location, just no animals!
We left Mount Kenya lodge at 07.00. Our position in Kenya at this point was close to the centre of the country, 300 kilometres directly north of Nairobi. Our journey today saw us head 250km West to Lake Nakuru. We began descending the hills we had climbed yesterday up the slopes of Mount Kenya. Following the west rather than the south and the scenery was still quite varied with crops growing amongst undulating hills.
We followed some winding roads and came out at the top of a huge chasm revealing many miles of open country below and ahead of us. We followed some winding roads and came out at the top of a huge chasm revealing many miles of open country below and ahead of us. This was the Great Rift Valley.
After an hour or so the clouds darkened and as we stopped at a craft shop for a loo and shopping break the clouds opened and it rained very hard, just as we were crossing the equator in fact! I was shown how water when it trickles away runs in an anti clockwise route as a result of the particular environmental conditions. We continued heading west, driving in the rain. It soon brightened up in time for a further stop at some magnificent waterfalls.
Due to the rainy overcast conditions and the power of the spray from the waterfall, the river below these waterfalls was covered in mist. There were some stalls here and the hard sell was quite aggressive. A young lady called Sala insisted I buy something from her as it would bring both of us good luck. I refrained.
By this point we were well on the way to Nakuru, a big city as well as a wildlife park. I could see busy streets, hotels and businesses as we approached and then went through Nakuru. One area we passed was a township that is only populated by one single tribe whereas a city such as
Nairobi many different tribes, indeed nationalities (there is a very large Indian community there) live together.
We arrived at Lake Nakuru national park at about 1.00pm. On our entrance and driving the 30km through the park grounds to the lodge we came across a minivan in front of us that had stopped and the occupants were intensely staring through binoculars towards some trees immediately to the side of the road. We stopped and Nick had a word to the driver in the van and ascertained that there was a leopard sleeping on a branch of a tree about 70 metres from us.
It took some doing to be able to spot it even though we knew it was there and where it was. Lord alone knows how it was spotted in the first place. The park trackers and guides must be aware of individual animals movements and their favourite sleeping places, watering holes etc. I did see it in the end through the bino’s but could only glimpse it as it moved by stretching or scratching. The leopard looked very comfortable and at home up the tree.
This national park is the best of the three
so far I think. It is the biggest and busiest in the country as it is central and on longer safari’s itinerary as well as being accessible from Nairobi for people on day trips. The accommodation is outrageously nice. I have a massive ensuite room and my own balcony looking out on to the game park.
I saw a young giraffe strolling about amongst the trees earlier. So far the food is good I have had 2 four-course lunches and 2 four-course dinners. The game drive this afternoon was the best yet. There is a greater variety of scenery here at Nakuru with forest, high grasses, ridges, waterways and rocks. This allows for different types of habitat and species. Lake Nakuru is at the centre with forest and marshland surrounding and you can drive around and amongst it.
As we 1st moved out we spotted a Jackal and then some Thompson Gazelle. Soon our attention was drawn to a couple of other tour vans that were doing a sharp about turn. As we followed them we saw that they were heading towards a pride of lions who were having a late afternoon snooze, about 10 metres from the
roadside. There were about 8 animals, an adult male, a couple of adult females and various offspring. It was difficult to tell exactly how many of them there were because they were so well camouflaged and as one moved part of another little cub became visible.
After a long study of this group we decided to move because it became clear that these lions were not looking as if they were going to be springing into action for a while! We moved on and spotted a Warthog, close to this a mother and baby Rhino in the distance moving towards us, which allowed our party to take some excellent photographs.
We drove down to the Lakeside and saw a tremendous spectacle, one that Lake Nakuru is famous for and has been the subject of many nature documentaries. The lakeside was covered with Pink flamingos. From a distance they create a carpet of pink surrounding the lake and in the Lake. There were hundreds of thousands of them all pink shimmering around the circumference of the lake. The smell was awful. They eat worms from the sand-beds and lay their eggs there.
For the last part of this
drive we returned into the forest, as it was getting dark. We searched for giraffe but none could be seen. However we did spot some Rhino and Nick went off the track into the outskirts of the forest to get a closer look. We stopped about 10 metres from them. There were 3 adult Rhino’s and they walked toward us in perfect circumference. They came up very close to us with their heads pointing toward the ground while they continuously eat. They moved in perfect symmetry with each other.
At this point the light was fading rapidly and it began to rain. We headed off back to the lodge but on the way we spotted the pride of lions that we had seen a few hours earlier and they were certainly looking livelier than earlier. The pride flanked out moving from cover to plains in the rain beginning their evening hunt. The whole family was involved. The chief male with his thick dark main seemed to be in charge and went ahead with 2 adult females. 6 or 7 cubs and adolescent lions took up the rear, playing and being kept in check by older adult females.
The
2 adult females now moved stealthily ahead of the male and began stalking in earnest as they saw a small Gazelle. They were tracking it carefully and slowly and the tension rose as we were waiting to see if we would witness an attack. The standoff was spine tingling but in this instance the Gazelle escaped. It was difficult to see as the light was fading fast but I could clearly see the ability of large lions to still be able to hide themselves in the right conditions and the vulnerability of their prey.
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Sweet_Angel
non-member comment
hi.... umm... WOW!!!
i LOVE those pictures!!! Their beautiful,.. STUNNING,.. and also breath-taking!!! (i love 'em!!) GOOD JOB!