Read about Ron & Viv's journey so far through Africa - KENYA - Nairobi, Tsavo & Amboseli National Parks, July 2007.
Kenya
The scenery in the Tsavo NP is beautiful and rugged.
The scenery in the Tsavo NP is beautiful and rugged.
The tracks in the park very very dusty!
The rich grazing around the swamps is popular with the wildlife.
A good size male elephnat walks through the swamp.
Neil & Helen enjoy lunch with our new friends, Gill & John, from South Africa at our camp at JJs in Nairobi.
AFRICA TRIPEarly - Mid July, Southern KENYA
Nairobi, Tsavo & Amboseli National Parks
Early July – To Southern Kenya & Nairobi
From our delightful time in the Serengeti we had the rude shock of people, buses and animal life as we headed to the sprawling waterfront town of Musoma, which is a small port – but busy - on the edge of Lake Victoria. There's a small fish market on the edge of the lake as you enter the main part of town where the small boats and canoes pull up to sell their catch.
Set up camp in the lakeside grounds of the Tembo Beach Hotel which is situated right on the waterfront of Lake Victoria (GPS 1° 29'18”S 33°48'19”E). There's a small camping area set back from the sandy beach, a few units as well as a bar and restaurant. Toilets and showers are clean and the water hot (with luck) from a donkey.
Next day we headed north and crossed the Mara River on a fancy bridge – no photos allowed – and passed the Mara River campsite (GPS …???? )
Rough Road to Nairobi
Then it was on to the border and an easy crossing with very pleasant border control people on both sides of the border to help you through. Once in Kenya you noticed the schools looked better, there were more people using the buses and in the first 10 minutes we saw more tractors than we had seen in a month in Tanzania. This is a rich agricultural area and grows a lot of sugar cane in big plantations and we passed many tractors hauling cane. You also noticed that there was a lot less people hauling their own goods to sell whether that was fresh fruit, vegetables or wood or charcoal – it seemed as if they were better paid for work in the sugar mill or fields and didn't have to sell their excess crops on the side of the road. Not that it finished completely – far from it – but it was certainly less than in Tanzania.
Got to the sprawling town of Kisii , which is in the heart of a busy agricultural area and found our way onto the B3 towards Sotik. We were still quite high and often the GPS told us we were at 7,000 feet, the countryside crowded with small cultivated fields and dotted with huts – many of bricks and nearly all with tin roofs - that's progress.
The country got drier as we got closer to Ngorengore and was less heavily populated and now the fields were bigger and planted with commercial crops of corn and wheat. We then got back into Maasai country again and there were cattle and fat-tailed sheep on the drier pastoral lands.
Drove into Narok and as we entered the main part of town saw a campsite sign and spun into it – it was the only thing available. The Members Club (GPS 1° 29'18”S 33°48'19”E) has rustic accommodation and a fairly large area for camping. Toilets and showers are functional and cold and reasonably clean. A rough bar offers a cold beer and a meal although the latter is from a very limited menu. A car wash is also available. The camp is fenced and there is a security guard provided.
From there it was on to Nairobi on one of the worst roads of the trip. It was once bitumen but had degenerated to a long chopped up, pot holed, rough and dusty road that was busy with trucks, buses, crazily driven taxis and a few private cars – the latter the only ones being driven with any form of sensibility!
We had picked a good day to drive into Nairobi – a Sunday – and we managed to only have one near miss from a couple of crazy truck drivers. Found our way to Upper Hill Camp and Backpackers (GPS 1° 29'18”S 33°48'19”E? ????? ), which is situated on Nairobi Hill just a couple of km from the centre of the city. It is located in what was once a private house with a big block. It is a bit tired looking and crowded with tents on the lawn, the gravel carpark rough and untidy with a few clapped-out cars parked under trees. The house offers rooms while a few bark huts offer more accommodation. The camping area, for want of a better term, is small and tucked in one corner near the huts and at one end of the carpark. There's a busy bar and one of the rooms in the old house is now a dining room/restaurant, while a shade-covered in area has a lot of seating. Camping is KSh300/person/night. The place is popular with overlanders and ex pats as well as backpackers. The staff are friendly and helpful, with ‘Ritch' being the owner, manager and a friendly, helpful bloke.
We spent the next few days sorting out a visa for Uganda (easy), shopping and getting both the Patrol and the Ford repaired. What was surprising was how cold Nairobi is at this time of the year - we had to wear jumpers! We found a great taxi driver, Peter, who we used during a stay in Nairobi. He got us around safely and couldn't have been more helpful, and friendly. If you need a taxi, and it sure as hell beats driving a big 4WD vehicle, or any vehicle for that matter, around Nairobi, then give Peter a call on 0721 556 511.
The traffic and smog were wearing a bit thin and topped off with the loud music from a nearby club that went until two in the morning (we must be old!) on our last night we were glad to head south out off town.
To Tsavo
We turned off the main road and headed along the much better and with less traffic, C97 through rolling farmland to Machakos. This hillside town – we were still at around 1650 metres (5000 feet) was for a short time back in the 1890s the ‘capital' of Kenya – before Nairobi was established. It's the main town for the big farming communities that spread out from here. Some quite steep country near (east) of the town is heavily cultivated and even terraced in a number of places. A wide mixture of crops are grown but on the lightly undulating plains the country soon dries out to corn fields and then grazing land where solitary blokes were tending their small mob of cows and/or goats. While there were supposedly 3 ‘supermarkets' in town, one was closed (it was Saturday), the second was very small and not well stocked, while the 3rd , the Naivasha Self-Service Store was surprisingly well stocked, but extremely busy – it was the start of the school holidays and the narrow store isles were wall to wall with people. Got most of what we needed and got out.
Got back onto the highway and headed east, the road improving as we went – having been upgraded by the European Union. As we got to Sultan Hamud, which is a place not a person, the country was growing a few dry season crops such as maize, the small spindly tree that has a large yam on it were planted in large paddocks that had been ploughed. A short distance on red onions in their hundreds were for sale, as were tomatoes, bananas and melons, pumpkins and oranges and something that looked like a green pawpaw(?).
Got to the fuel town of Kibako and pulled in to The Hunters Lodge. There's accommodation here with a restaurant and bar, as well as camping on the lawns beside the small lake they have. It's a pleasant spot but there are a lot of birds roosting in the fever trees on the edge of the lake so there is a bit of crap around - don't camp under the trees! The vervet monkeys are there as well and not afraid to enter a tent and take a few carrots – as Neil and Helen quickly found out.
Headed to the gate at Tsavo West and sorted out our payment for both Tsavo and Amboseli - US$40/each plus $10 each to camp plus KSh300 per vehicle for every 24 hours – dear but cheaper than Tanzania! Tsavo West is a pretty big park but combined with Tsavo East, which is more wilderness than anything, it is a gigantic park sprawling across more than 21,000sq km of wild country and making it the biggest park in Kenya.
We pushed on to the camp at Chyulu Gate, which was about 30km away. Saw a small group of good size elephants, a few zebra and giraffe and just before the gate, Viv spotted a leopard sitting between two trees just off the road. By the time we had stopped it was already slipping away into the thick dense scrub.
Booked into our camp – the paperwork and procedure you go thru getting into and out of gates (the camp is just outside the access gate) is unbelievable. The campsite (GPS …????) has basic flush toilets and cold water showers. A few bush shelter sheds along with a couple of fireplaces and taps with water make up the fair size camping area. The ground is a bit rough and rocky – it is situated right beside one of the lava flows the park is known for - but it is pleasant.
One of the great attractions of this park is Mzima Springs, which is a series of crystal clear pools so we took a drive down there for the afternoon. Along the way saw a good mob of big buffalo, more zebra, some giraffe, and a small group of hartebeest.
At the Springs itself the carpark is quite big, while the walking trails are dedicated paths thru the tall trees to where the water pours into the two big pools that make up Mzima Springs. Going by the notice board the forest once had a lot of palms – three species in fact but all we could see was fever trees. The palms looked like they have disappeared. A few ververt monkeys were around but amongst the thicker taller trees, closer to the springs, were some Sykes monkeys. These cute harmless, docile little fellows looked like worried old men as they watched us walk by before scampering deeper into the bush or up a tree. Sadly the hippos and the couple of crocs, which we could see easily, didn't play tag with us and didn't come into view from the underwater observatory.
Went for a drive further south and then along a lesser trail south of the river, thinking that we'd see a lot of animals on the grassy plains beside the river. The drive was quite good with very pleasant scenery and sweeping views across wide valleys that were often dotted with big hills. Crossed the river which was still flowing quite well but the small grassy plains didn't have much on them. Quite a few big palms along the river and scattered over the close-by floodplain. Great country to drive thru' but not much around. Spotted a lone Fringe-eared Oryx, and in the thick dry thorn bush country we passed thru' we saw at least a dozen of Kirks dik dik - a very small antelope.
Next morning we headed to Rhino Valley and its very pleasant scenery spying a good group of elephant – some of which were carrying good ivory – along with the more normal, zebra, giraffe, buff and wildebeest. In a grassy valley there were quite a few common reedbuck.
Onto Amboseli
We had to be back at the gate by 10am to meet with our security guards for the drive to Amboseli. With one of them sitting in the front of the Patrol, his AK47 tucked between his legs, (Viv had moved in with Neil & Helen) we headed west thru' the Maasai land to the gates at Amboseli.
This is a small park mainly consisting of a vast plain surrounding a normally dry and dusty Lake Amboseli. There's only a few patches of scrub and trees with most of the activity around the large swamps that take up the heart of the park. To the south is the high cloud shrouded peak of Mt Kilimanjaro. The mountain dominates the view to the south from wherever you are but you rarely see its crowning peak – Aug-Sep is the best time by all accounts. We never saw its top, in fact we only saw the very lower bit the whole time we were there.
Lots of animals on the floodplain of the lake – wildebeest, Tommy gazelle, zebra, buffalo, Grant's gazelle and even a group of giraffe (4 at least) which are uncommon in this area. A small group of elephants in a small patch of scrub just south of the road.
Found our way over the dusty tracks to the public campsite run by the local Maasai community. As you had to expect there were a couple of guides there wanting us to go with them to have a cultural experience in the nearby Maasai village of Oltiyani. We did.
It was very good – the way these people live hasn't changed all that much for the last few hundred years. They are mainly cattle herders although we saw a lot more tending goats and sheep than we did on our first trip here 23 years ago. And, because of the long drought that has seen their herds decimated, they have also taken to growing corn and taking goods in from the outside world. The village consisted of 5 extended families - a total of 150 people, living in a thorn scrub fenced enclosure of about 1-2 acres of which most of the centre was taken up with a cattle pen.
In their camp and their dung and mud huts the trappings of the modern world are few and far between – maybe an odd pot or pan, but that was about all. Their huts are low, dark and smoky with just a couple of small round holes to give light and ventilation. The beds are covered in cow skins and they sit on the floor. You have to keep reminding yourself that we are in the 21st Century and people are still living like this – wanting to live like this!
Our guide, Jonathon Tipape Ulentausi (most Maasai are Christains) was well educated, had worked with the UN in Sudan and now ‘wanted peace' back in his village. He has a cellphone (ph: +254 736 195 186) and an email address ( jonathanndusi@yool.c.u.uk ) – but chooses to live his traditional way and doing what he can to help his village! The money we spent on the tour and purchases goes towards the small school they have nearby and eventually, hopefully, to a new well, closer to the village, besides food for the community.
Once you do the cultural bit inside the village, you get led thru' the selling circle which is like running the gauntlet down thru the families and their small tables crowded with goodies and all of them wanting to sell you something. We bought a few small things and Neil and Helen a lot more really good stuff – and they were treated very formally, the discussion taking the form of a circle; all the men, Neil included sitting on a small stool, all under a large thorn tree discussing the price until the deal was done!
Next morning we spent a few hours driving around the swamps and there were plenty of animals to see. We finally found some of Amboseli's 3000 elephants, about 50 of them were browsing the rich green feed on the very edge of the swamp, north of the resort. There were a couple of big tuskers amongst them too, which is always great to see. Buffalo too were commonly seen in the water feeding – sometimes up to their neck! The hippos – a mob of about 20 - on the other hand were out in the open feeding on the short grass bordering the swamp.
Saw a few jackals, a group of three bat-eared foxes just laying down a short distance off the road. It was a cool overcast day so they were out in the open. and a small group (4) of spotted hyena but no other predators, which was a bit of a disappointment.
Heading out we crossed the northern section of the flat dry lakebed of Lake Amboseli . This is dusty and arid and no animals were out here. The track was smooth though and we cruised across the lake in no time to the gate. Here we booked out and were plagued by the 20 or so Maasai who wanted to sell us their trinkets and curios.
Back to Nairobi
Got into Nairobi that afternoon. The shock of the traffic hard to get used to after the delights of the morning in Amboseli.
Found our way to the peaceful serenity of Jungle Junction (JJs) (GPS 1°17'19”S 36°45'38”E). This is situated in Amboseli Rd, in a reasonably quiet suburb north of Ngong Road, not far from the Nakarmut supermarket and about 7km from the centre of the city. The large grounds of the house are well kept and flat and you can camp on the lawns. The house offers nice clean accommodation and meals (breakfast and dinner) while a small bar has cool drinks and beer. Christoper, who owns the place, is a BMW bike fan and has travelled overland across Africa on a bike, worked in Nairobi and is a wealth of info for travellers. His bike workshop is his ‘shrine'!
Neil and Helen were already there, as were John and Gill, our new found South African friends after their jaunt into Uganda. We swapped info - as you do when you meet other travellers.
We spent the next few days here, catching up on emails, sorting out pics, up-loading to the web and more. The Patrol got a major service at the local large Nissan dealer with some suspension rubbers being replaced and hopefully the fuel system, which has been playing up again (still), will be fixed for good.
Now our eyes are looking west to Uganda – but always the discussion around the camp gets back to Ethiopia and the Sudan – the big challengers ahead!
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Ron & Viv at the Thorntree Cafe, Stanley Hotel, Nairobi.
Viv with our very friendly and helpful taxi driver, Peter, in Nairobi.
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Camp at Hunters Loge, on the way to Tsavo NP.
The delightful Mzima Springs - check out the hippos in the water.
The track crossed a river that was still flowing reasonably well.
While there was lots of evidence of the lava flows, this one, crossed on the way to Amboseli was huge.
A pleasant camp on the edge of the plains at Amboseli NP.
A hyena leaves the swamps after getting a drink.
Neil doing some negotiating on price for the spears he wanted.
JJs camping area is very pleasant and a peaceful spot in Nairobi .