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Samburu

Letter from Kenya

1st June 2023

Letter from Kenya

The best destination for a first safari? The ideal country for a ‘one and done’ safari? The classic of all classic safari areas in Africa? Kenya, Kenya and Kenya. 

For the last 10 days, Kathy and I have been revisiting four areas in Kenya which help make it what it is: an astonishingly diverse, breathtakingly beautiful country. A country which lives up to even the most elevated of expectations for a safari. Lots of animals which are easy to see. The friendliest of people. And a well functioning tourism infrastructure with accommodation choices to suit everyone’s taste and budget. 

Early on, at Elewana’s Tortilis Camp in Amboseli, we rediscovered the feelings and emotions which go hand in hand with being on safari. The feeling of being in the right place. The pervasive sense of being connected with your surroundings. Almost as if Africa is where you belong and where you’re meant to be.

It is not unusual to experience deja vu while on safari in Kenya. On just our second night at Amboseli with Mt. Kilimanjaro slowly disappearing as the last light faded to black, I felt oddly at home. Or maybe I never really left the last time. The distinct feeling of having lived that precise moment already – of having the same experience again – was as palpable as the evening breeze on my skin. As many times as this has happened to me and other people I know, I’ve almost come to expect it in Africa. Maybe it is just a memory of a dream. Or something buried deep in our subconscious mind, hearkening back to our progenitors who spread out into the world from this very area. Africa. It’s good to be back.  

All an Africa aficionado has to do is to enunciate four words out loud and something magical happens… Amboseli. Meru. Samburu. Lewa. The mind lights up with visions of elephants wallowing in an idyllic swamp setting. With images of one of East Africa’s best safari lodges, its rooms carefully tucked in among giant granite boulders. With pictures of a Samburu warrior – dressed to the hilt in ceremonial garb – straddling a boda-boda noisily taking its owner to the weekly market. With recollections of conservation work encompassing habitat, wildlife and the local community – rivaled by none. 

Traveling within Kenya in the typical ‘safari cocoon’ – where everything is taken care of and you literally just have to show up each morning – we were once again wowed by the country’s dazzling diversity of animals, landscapes and experiences. All without setting foot in the Masai Mara, its crown jewel.  

In just 9 nights on safari – with quite a bit of time taken up with site inspections – we tallied 36 mammal species and 145 bird species. The numbers – even as impressive as they are – become almost meaningless in the light of specific experiences. Here are a few:

Incredibly, two cheetah kills on the same day. Both kills made by female cheetahs taking down young Grant’s gazelles. One in Samburu, practically within sight of Elephant Bedroom Camp and the other one in Lewa on a game drive from Lewa Wilderness Lodge. We watched, spellbound, awestruck by the cheetahs’ amazing turn of speed as they ran down the overmatched gazelles.

Several hundred strikingly beautiful lesser flamingos reflected in the glassy surface of Lake Amboseli, superimposed with the reflection of Mt Kilimanjaro. An abundance of riches.

A powerful tawny eagle striking a cattle egret midair and downing it. Upon our approach, the eagle took off right in front of us. With the unfortunate egret gripped tightly in its talons, the eagle made its way to a distant copse of trees. Ironically, the dead egret’s immaculate white plumage shone like a beacon against the eagle’s chocolate brown feathers.

Two female lions walking along a track in Samburu, their ultra-lean appearance telling a story of hardship among plenty. Tall grasses creating ideal cover for herbivores whose numbers had plunged due to a long and only recently broken drought. The result? Hard times for lions.

A kaleidoscope of vividly colored reticulated giraffes, their rich orange-brown pattern creating the most stunning of natural tapestries. Converging and separating, their extraordinarily long necks jutting out in every direction – they were nothing short of Daliesque.

All of these extraordinary sightings came courtesy of our outstanding guides – John Njoroge in Amboseli, Joel Gachora in Meru and Francis Mayetu at Lewa. We also reconnected with our long-time friend Edwin Selempo, head guide of Origins Safaris, our Kenya destination management company for the last 20-plus years. In his usual inimitable way, Edwin capably guided us in Samburu. As always, he wowed us with his amazing birding skills, the easy and almost unobtrusive way in which he imparts information and his sunny disposition. Witty repartee? Better have it ready when traveling with Edwin.

AMBOSELI

Tanzania has the mountain and Kenya has the view.  All too true when said about Kilimanjaro when viewed from Amboseli National Park. Amboseli is the spot from where you can see Kilimanjaro like you’ve always imagined it: a great big looming mountain abruptly jutting out of the open plains, surrounded by nothing. Which makes it, as the guidebooks say, the world’s highest freestanding mountain.  

The perfect Amboseli photo opportunity? Having a few of Amboseli’s strikingly white-tusked elephants in between you and the mountain… Beyond needing a bit of luck for that, you’ll need a competent guide who understands the movements of the elephants into and out of the swamps and who can anticipate where they will be at specific times of the day. Plus of course the mountain has to be visible, which is not always the case. 

As massive as it is, Kilimanjaro is as evanescent as an image on an Etch-A-Sketch. One minute there, the next minute – gone. Your best chance to see it is usually early in the morning or late in the afternoon during the wetter part of the year, from about November through May. During the dry season from June through October, the mountain often disappears completely, hidden behind a hazy curtain of clouds, fog, dust and smoke.  

Did we see the mountain? Did we ever! Kili was out from our arrival to our departure, morning until night. If we never see Kilimanjaro again, that amazingly evocative picture will be emblazoned in our memories forever. The incredible snow-capped bulk of it, its overwhelming presence transforming a nice corner of Africa into a place you simply have to see and experience.

MERU

Meru National Park is Kenya’s forgotten secret. The park gained a measure of fame – and lots of visitors – in the late 1960’s after the release of  ‘Born Free,’ a movie about Elsa, an orphaned lion cub. Elsa was hand-raised by Joy Adamson and her game-warden husband George, right in Meru. Ironically – and often omitted from the tale – George had to shoot Elsa’s mother in self-defense when the lioness attacked him while trying to protect her cubs. Elsa, one of three surviving cubs, was successfully released back into the Meru wilderness a couple of years later. After being away in England for more than a year, the Adamsons returned to Meru and found Elsa – who still remembered them – with three cubs of her own.

Then the story of Meru took a turn for the worse. Invading bandits and poachers from Somalia decimated the wildlife for much of the late 1980’s and 90’s. Visitors stopped coming and the park fell into neglect. It wasn’t until 2000 when the Kenya Wildlife Service, under the leadership of Richard Leakey and with the financial support of private conservation groups, was able to invest substantial amounts of money into combating poaching and restoring the park to its former glory.

Current day Meru is once again a showcase park, famous for its striking African savanna landscapes and its diversity, with the park containing an extraordinarily high number of different mammals and birds. Even so, the park is still lightly visited compared with most of Kenya’s others. On one occasion we spent the better part of 40 minutes observing a lone female lion beneath a tree on the edge of a stream without so much as one other vehicle driving by. Some 13 perennial streams flow through Meru from west to east, defining the landscape of the park. The rivers – which are part of the Tana River basin – act as magnets for wildlife, particularly in the dry season which stretches from June through September.  

We simply love Elsa’s Kopje where we rested our weary heads for a couple of nights in Meru. This stunning property is considered by many to be one of the most spectacular locations and lodge designs in Africa. In addition to its splendid location, with its individually designed rooms artfully obscured by vegetation and rocks on the slope of an inselberg, Elsa’s has a charming central area overlooking an infinity pool, and a solid reputation for good food, great hospitality and top-notch management. 

SAMBURU

Samburu is Africa right down to its ubiquitous red dust which gives its many elephants their telltale cinnamon brown appearance. It can be a harsh and unforgiving place, particularly in times of drought which can last for months, even years. Dry or not, Samburu is always dramatic. If it’s not the striking vegetation – dominated by massive stands of doum palms – it’s the glimpses of far-off mountains like Ololokwe, the sacred mountain of the Samburu.

Be on the lookout for the unique gerenuk antelope in this area; it is easily recognized by its long thin neck, its tendency to stand on its hind legs to browse and its peculiar ‘ET’-like facial features. While visiting Samburu we recommend taking some time to visit a local manyatta. Squeeze into one of the smoky, bare-bones huts and observe the near total absence of so many material things we take for granted. 

Elephant Bedroom Camp, where we spent two nights, is a small camp hidden among the riverine forest on the banks of the Ewaso Nyiro River. The camp is right in the heart of the best game viewing area of Samburu and guests don’t have to drive miles and miles (as is the case from some other camps) to see the wildlife. Guests from other camps drive here. Over the course of our 3-night stay there were lions, leopards, cheetahs and African painted dogs seen within a mile from the camp. Also an aardwolf.

LEWA

Every once in a while on my African travels I discover a place which immediately appeals to me. Bonus? When I realize that our guests will enjoy and appreciate it as well. The Lewa Wildlife Conservancy is one of those places. Lewa is special on many levels. Back when I first visited in the late 1990’s, it struck me as being almost sublimely ‘Out of Africa.’ It was no different this time around. Mostly, the place just shouts ‘Africa.’ Standing there on a clear day on an elevated spot, you can see the jagged peaks of Mt. Kenya to the south. If you turn around 180 degrees, on the horizon to the north looms the sacred mountain of the Samburu – Mt. Ololokwe. Mountains, valleys, vast open grassy plains and the gray-blue horizon seemingly reaching up to the clouds.

Other ways in which Lewa is special? It harbors and actively protects more rhinos (white and black) than any other conservancy in East Africa. Lewa’s rhino population has grown from an initial 15 rhinos to around 255 rhinos currently, a significant percentage of all rhinos in Kenya. Lewa also has a great mix of endemic species including Grevy’s zebra, beisa oryx and reticulated giraffe. Some of these animals – like the Grevy’s zebras – are rare and endangered and they are all spectacularly beautiful. Lewa has an enviable record as a hugely successful wildlife conservation entity and for effectively involving the surrounding community and mobilizing their support. 

So what is a keen safari enthusiast to do? If you’ve never been to Kenya, give us a call at 1 800 513-5222 or email me (bert@fisheaglesafaris.com) to discuss some options and let’s get you on a flight to Nairobi. With the possible exception of April and May, Kenya is a true year-round destination. For the wildebeest & zebra migration, July through October are the best months but there’s much to be said for November through March as well. Been to Kenya before? No reason not to go back. Kenya is the most diverse safari destination of all and there is always somewhere new to explore, or a different time of the year to visit. Take a few friends and book one of the exclusive use properties at Ithumba or Galdessa for the most amazing orphan elephant experience of a lifetime!

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Seeing and photographing Giraffes on safari in Africa

As long-time safari planners and regular African travelers, giraffes are often on our minds, or in front of our camera lenses.  Other than perhaps elephants, it is the one mammal that we get the  most questions about.  Everybody wants to see giraffes on safari.   Just like the big cats, these quintessential African mammals are high on everyone’s must see list. It is easy to see why.  They are simply spectacular in so many ways.  There’s the sheer size of them, their stilt-like elongated necks and unmistakable ‘horned’ heads literally towering above the landscape and everything else.  There’s the way they feed, drink, stare at you and run.  Pretty much everything about a giraffe is weird and worth a second look.


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Linyanti floodplain, Botswana

This photo, taken in the Linyanti area in Northern Botswana, illustrates a couple of things about giraffes and about getting useful images of them.  Be ready with the right lens.  If all you have available is a big telephoto lens, this is all you might get.  A portion of a giraffe.  Legs.  Or a head, maybe a neck and head.  So either shoot them at a good distance where they can fill the frame or use a shorter zoom lens to frame them properly.  On this day I was fortunate to have a yellow-billed oxpecker bail me out of the tight photo spot.  These birds have a symbiotic relationship with giraffes, helping them to get rid of disease-carrying ticks, food for the birds.  Even ill-equipped photographers can be the beneficiaries of symbiosis, with a bit of luck. 


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Kwara concession, Okavango Delta

When it is not possible to get the entire giraffe – or more than one – inside the frame, consider grouping together a few giraffe necks, heads or upper bodies.  Sometimes, you can get lucky and three giraffes will be facing in the same direction, with a nice cloudy background.  It doesn’t happen all the time but keep looking for such an opportunity to present itself.  Some years ago in the Kwara concession in Botswana’s Okavango Delta, I did just that, got lucky and succeeded in getting a visually pleasing shot of these three giraffes.


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Kwandwe Game Reserve, Eastern Cape

I captured this photograph of three plains giraffes feeding at Kwandwe in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa.  It is another example of framing more than one giraffe in the same photograph, by isolating their necks and heads.  The more giraffes, the better.  Four necks may even be better than three; I’ve just not come across a suitable opportunity to try that!


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Samburu region, Kenya

There are several species of giraffe in Africa.  The three photos above have been of the most common of these, the Southern giraffe.  In north-eastern Kenya one finds what I consider to be the most handsome of the giraffe species, the Reticulated giraffe.  This photo of a few of them was taken in Samburu, a mostly stark, arid area where a good number of these endangered animals co-exist with a couple of other northern Kenyan endemics such as Grevy’s zebra and Beisa oryx. I’ve always described the Reticulated giraffe as the oil painting of giraffes, compared with the more washed out – ‘watercolor’ – Southern giraffe.  If you’ve seen Reticulated giraffes in nature, I think you will agree.  Their spots are a vivid, dark burnt orange which make the white stripes stand out even more.  Another good place to find and observe Reticulated giraffes is the Lewa Wildlife Conservancy. 


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Lewa Wildlife Conservancy, Kenya

Taken in the Lewa Conservancy in northern Kenya, this photo of three Reticulated giraffes also illustrates their striking color pattern.  And my penchant for trying to get  several giraffe necks and heads in the same photo…


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Lake Nakuru National Park, Kenya

There is considerable disagreement among scientists as to the specific number of giraffe species.  Some maintain that there’s only one ‘giraffe’ with several subspecies.  Others contend that there are as many as eight distinct species.  A giraffe that is widely considered to be a subspecies is the Rothschild’s or Nubian giraffe.  I photographed this one walking in a yellow-barked acacia forest on the edge of Lake Nakuru in Kenya.  Full species or not, it is certainly a handsome beast with its characteristic white ‘sox’.


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Giraffe Center, Nairobi

There are several Rothschild’s giraffes at the popular Giraffe Center in Nairobi, Kenya.  The Giraffe Center is operated by the African Fund for Endangered Wildlife, to educate Kenyan youth about the country’s wildlife and environment and to provide visitors an opportunity to come into close contact with the giraffes. ‘Armed’ with a handful of giraffe pellets, visitors walk up a ramp to a balcony from where they can feed the giraffes at eye-level.  The giraffes know the game.  Whenever there are visitors, there are giraffes ready to stick out their crazy long tongues to retrieve a treat and be photographed.  All for a good cause.  Funds raised by the Giraffe Center have helped with efforts to re-establish the endangered Rothschild giraffe in several wilderness areas elsewhere in Kenya.


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Royal Malewane, Thornybush Reserve – South Africa

A giraffe drinking is quite a sight to behold.  This photo which I took on a game drive from Royal Malewane in South Africa illustrates the peculiar posture which a giraffe has to adopt in order to get its mouth down low enough to drink water from a pond or river.  The exact mechanism by which a giraffe gets enough water in its mouth and up its massively long neck, isn’t entirely clear. What is clear is that  giraffes are vulnerable to predation when they are drinking and they are always careful to look around for lions, before assuming the position.


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Skeleton Coast area, Namibia

A little known fact about giraffes is just how adaptable they are. As a result giraffes are widely distributed in most habitats throughout Africa, even in some areas which are inhospitable to many life-forms. On two separate visits to Namibia’s Skeleton Coast we saw several groups of desert-adapted Angolan giraffe, a sub-species concentrated around ephemeral or seasonal rivers such as the Hoarusib, Huab and Hoanib.  Wherever you see groves of acacia albida (Ana) and acacia erioloba (Camelthorn) trees, you can expect to find these giraffes.  This photo was taken on a game drive out of Wilderness Safaris’ Hoanib Skeleton Coast Camp.


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Okavango Delta, Botswana

Baby giraffes are cute.  Like most other animals.  These two youngsters were photographed on a game drive out of Wilderness Safaris’ Abu Camp in Botswana’s Okavango Delta.  Even at a young age, giraffes adopt the typical habits of the species like being inquisitive and observant.  They can see you long before you can see them, and they fully utilize their special advantage,  always looking and staring.  When safari guides are out on game drives searching for predators, they make a point of checking out where the giraffes are looking.  If giraffes are standing still and staring consistently in the same direction, it is always a good indication that a predator is around.


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Samburu, Kenya

Giraffes are relatively common in many areas in Africa.  We always expect to see some – and sometimes many – in places like Mashatu in south-eastern Botswana, in Zimbabwe’s Hwange National Park, pretty much all over northern Botswana, the north-eastern lowveld of South Africa including all but the far northern part of Kruger Park, and in most East African parks and game reserves.  While it is still fairly easy to see giraffes on a trip to Africa, it is a disturbing reality that giraffe numbers have decreased by 30% over the last three decades, with about  110,000 remaining.  Even though giraffes as a species are not endangered, they are considered threatened and the situation could get worse, if current trends persist.  Mostly, their numbers are dropping because of habitat loss, which happens when woodlands are converted into farms and ranches. Trophy hunting and poaching also play a role in their steady demise.  Some of the species – or subspecies – such as the Reticulated Giraffe are in fact endangered, with their numbers down more than 90% compared with earlier times.  These Reticulated giraffes photographed in Samburu in northern Kenya are nowadays found mostly in a few wildlife sanctuaries, with less than 10,000 of them surviving.

In our blog post next week, we will take a look at Africa’s signature mammal:  the African elephant.  With plenty of photographs and a few of our most indelible memories of interacting with these behemoths in all parts of Africa over the years.  

More Info

Email bert@fisheaglesafaris.com

Email jason@fisheaglesafaris.com

@fisheaglesafarishouston

#FishEagleSafaris

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