Breakfast was good. Pastries for the first time and we were given the option of having freshly made omelette. There are chickens by the parking so I wonder if they provided the eggs.
Lake Nakuru game drive it was this morning.
We are back to Kikuyu land here so plenty of farms dotted around.
Lake Nakuru National Park is 188 square mts and the lake is one of the Rift Valley soda lakes at an elevation of 1754m. It can have a surface area between 5-45 square mts depending on whether it's dry or rainy season. Average depth is 0.3m and the maximum depth is 1.8m.
In the last few years, perhaps due to pollution, urbanisation and recent droughts, the water quality and the availability of algae has decreases hence less flamingos are now seen at the lake.
As we arrive at the gate of Lake Nakuru National Park, Sandy cries out 'Rhino!'. We all turn and this is what we see:
She really thought a rhino was greeting us at the gate. We couldn't top laughing!!!
Hippo
African Buffalo
Common Warthog
Common Zebra
Olive Baboon
Black-Headed Heron
African Spoonbill
Great White Egret
Pelicans
Flamingos
Latin: Uraeginthus bengalus
Swahili: njiri buluu shavujekundu
Status: common resident
GREATER BLUE-EARED STARLING
Latin: Lamprotornis chalybaeus
Swahili: kuzi machonjano
Status: common resident
LILAC-BREASTED ROLLER
Latin: Coracias caudatus
Swahili: chole
Status: common resident
Kenya's national bird.
GREY CROWNED CRANE
Latin: Balearica regulorum
Status: common but threatened by habitat loss
Uganda's national bird.
SECRETARYBIRD
Latin: Sagittarius serpentarius
Swahili: karani tamba
Status: widespread resident, but not common
Wouldn't stay still and was too fast for me!
ROTHSCHILD'S GIRAFFE
Latin: Giraffa camelopardis rothschildi
Swahili: twiga
Different from the Masai giraffe by having chestnut-coloured square patches separated by buff-coloured lines and no markings below the knee. Males also have 5 horns instead of 3.
VERVET MONKEY
Latin: Cercopithecus aethiops pygerythrus
Swahili: tumbili
Note its blue testicles and red penis. Hilarious!
IMPALA
Latin: Aepyceros melampus
Swahili: swala pala
Lion's favourite meal
WHITE RHINO
Latin: Ceratotherium simum
Swahili: kiaru ya majani
We did not manage to see a black rhino, which is supposed to be more common. Instead we saw 4 white rhinos, the more rare. White rhinos are not indigenous to Kenya, they were introduced from South Africa in a bid to avoid extinction.
White rhinos are grazers, they feed on the grass so easier to see on a plain. Black rhinos are browsers, they eat leaves, small branches, fruits, etc, they are less picky!
I must say you could feel a slight disappointment in the air for not being able to spot a black rhino. Masai Mara delivered so magnificently and we have been so lucky that we were really hoping to see all animals in our list. However, one cannot book a time with a lion or an appointment with a zebra. We have no option but to take what Mother Nature offers, when it offers.
The rhino is part of The Big 5: elephant, rhino, lion, leopard and buffalo. Historically, The Big 5 were so named by colonial hunters for being the 5 more difficult and notoriously dangerous animals to hunt and kill. Nowadays, they are the top 5 animals to see.
We returned to the accommodation at Lake Nakuru for lunch. The initial plan was to have a picnic lunch on the way to Samburu, which should have been ready and packed in the morning. It wasn't. It should have been ready at lunchtime. It wasn't. So we had to have a sitting down lunch. Felix wasn't happy. We had a 7h drive to Samburu and we were running late.
The majority of the trip was done at full gas. It was evident Felix was pushing the van to go as fast as possible to get to Samburu before sundown. The afternoon stop for toilet and refreshments at a road side shop confirmed it. The man at the shop was surprised we were going this late to Samburu. They closed the shop as we left.
The scenery changed between the lakes in the mountains and the north semi-arid Kenya. We went through mountains, green, lush, around 2200-2400m the majority of the time. Where Mount Kenya should be we saw only clouds. Maybe on the way back!
Then we started going down. The sun was high, it was hot and the land was dry and flat. Where in the south there was green grass perfectly manicured by the grazing animals, here there were patches of dry grass. Trees are more sparse and vegetation is more on the ground level.
There are plantations of eucalyptus, an Australian tree. Felix tells us they use them for posts (electrical cables, phone cables).
We pass the equator line. There was a sign. And then a mile ahead there was another. Not quite sure where the equator is?
Part of the final road was done on a unfinished / dirt road. Whereas in Masai Mara one needed to be careful with mud holes, here the holes were still there but dry. We kept the windows closed. Felix joked: 'Dust is Africa!'.
Isiolo is a big Kenyan town. Felix tells us it's right in the centre of Kenya, which might explain for the international airport. Lots of business and, apparently, a hub for British expats.
Isiolo is populated by 3 different tribes: Meru, Samburu and Somali. I ask Felix if the Somali were immigrants but he says no. Somali have been living here forever. They are a tribe like any other, it were Westerners that made the geographic divisions and created Somalia, the country. There is some conflict between them when it's very dry due to the lack of vegetation for the animals to graze but the majority of the time they co-exist peacefully.
At the equator the days are the same length as the nights. Sunrise at 6.30am and sunset at 6.30pm. At 6pm, with anther 1h30 to get to the accommodation, it was clear we weren't going to make it. Our accommodation is in the Samburu National Reserve (Samburu Sentrim Camp), by the river. I suspect the road to get there is difficult and dangerous to do at night. Cate changed the accommodation and we were moved to Camel's Gate Lodge at Archers Post, the entry town to Samburu National Reserve. Not as nice in terms of location but easier and safer to get to.
They didn't have a single room for Manuel so instead took him to another location, out of the accommodation compound which, as usual, has high walls with barbed wire, big gate and a security at the gate. It was down the road, a small room with a small partition for a toilet and shower. It looked clean but not great. Locals budget accommodation? Manuel did not want to stay too far from us and have to walk alone after dinner so decided he was bunking with us. So far, all but one of the double rooms have an extra single bed. Lucky him!
The rooms are in what looks like an hexagonal box with a tin roof, but the most spacious so far. They are hot! There is no air-con. Again, mosquito nets are just for show, they have huge side openings we can't close. There is no way we can close windows, we would boil in the room.
The shower room is interesting: sink with 1 only functioning tap, shower without hot water and no pressure, toilet tank slightly broken and toilet seat definitely broken. The door has a lock both on the inside and on the outside. Why?
Dinner includes fries. A very welcome different type of carbs. Food is a bit of the same, meat stew. Knifes don't really have a serrated edge so removing the meat from the bones is a near impossible task.
We decided to sleep with windows open, 2 fans working full speed, bathed in insect repellent and prayed for the best.
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