Safari weekend

I've recently been thinking about writing in this blog again, just haven't gotten around to it. So I figure my trip to Kenya is a perfect reason to get it back up and running! More on why I'm here in Kenya later. I’d rather write today about my incredible trip last weekend. (Sorry no photos here - internet isn't cooperating; you can check out my photos in Picasa though.) I'm really fortunate to have a few fellow CDC colleagues/friends here too. Anu did a lot of the trip planning before Allison and I even arrived in the country – we were super fortunate for this as our first work-week here was very hectic and didn’t lend itself to much of anything else.

Around 6:30 Saturday morning, our cab driver met the three of us at our hotel. We had arranged for him to stay with us the whole weekend, which took a lot of pressure off of organizing transportation throughout. Lake Nakuru National Park is southeast of Kisumu, an approximately 3.5 hour drive. The road quality varied: some sections were very new and in great condition (despite often not being lined) while others were...not. I slept quite a bit on the mostly bumpy ride, but did happen to wake up for one absolutely gorgeous stretch of land in the Kericho District. The hilly area is where a lot of the best Kenyan tea (including the famous Ketepa brand) is grown. The air was cool there and it felt calm and quiet compared to the more urban Kisumu.

We met our park guide in Nakuru town, stopped to pick up groceries, and headed to the park in a safari-outfitted van. This thing was awesome – the top opened up so that you could stand up, with cover, to view the park. Not only is the higher view better, but there is no window glass separating you from the outside. Luckily there are also bars and handles for hanging on over the often rough terrain. Lake Nakuru National Park is about 46,000 acres of protected land that houses numerous animal species. When you first enter the park you get a striking view of Lake Nakuru, absolutely covered with birds and with a beautiful mountainous backdrop. We spent about six hours driving all through the park on Saturday. It is almost impossible to describe how amazing it was to see so many different animals co-habitating, sometimes three or four groups of different species intermixed in one small area. The park was serene and stunning and (as usual) the photos don't do it justice. We saw a black rhino (rare - one of only 25 or so in the park), zebras (a new favorite for me), four lionesses sleeping in trees, Rothschild giraffes (endangered - only a few hundred are still in the wild), white rhinos, waterbucks, water buffalo, jackals, impalas, gazelles, numerous bird species, baboons, and others. The lake was literally covered with thousands of pink flamingos and Great White Pelicans. It was breathtaking.

We had a packed lunch at an area named Baboon Cliff – aptly named because a) baboons were everywhere (sadly they were both aggressive and reliant upon humans), and b) the cliff provided an amazing vantage point to see the park and the massive numbers of birds on the lake. They looked like tiny specks. One of my favorite moments of the day occurred later that afternoon - we came upon a grassy field bordered by forested land and witnessed a large group of impalas running and kicking their back legs up super high. Our guide explained that the mothers were teaching their young how to run from predators. Young impalas were "practicing" in the field – zipping back and forth mimicking the adults! So incredibly cute.

Saturday night we stayed in a guesthouse located within the park – very basic accommodations that were great. After a delicious dinner prepared by the cook, I crashed pretty early. We were told we might hear lions roaring during the night, but unfortunately there were storms and we missed out on that. We were up early Sunday for breakfast and a few more hours in the park. It was cold and very misty, but quiet and absolutely beautiful. Another favorite moment was when we encountered a group of Rothschild giraffes having their breakfast of leaves from the tops of some tall trees. They were VERY close and seemed just as curious about us as we were about them. We watched for about 10 minutes before they moved on.

We left the park and met our cab driver in Nakuru a little before lunchtime. From there we traveled further south to Naivasha, about 1.5 hours away. We had heard stories about Hell's Gate National Park and were really excited to be able to fit it into our weekend. After meeting our guide at the park entrance, we took off on mountain bikes down a dusty, gravel road that wound its way through the park about five miles to the entrance of Hell's Gate Gorge. I can't explain how cool it was to be on a bike surrounded by wide plains with zebras and buffalo, all encircled by giant cliffs. It honestly didn't feel real! On the way to the gorge, we passed several areas known for rock climbing – perfect reason to return one day :)

There is a lot of evidence of the geothermal activity that has and continues to go on in the area - two distinct volcanic plugs stand tall in the park (Fischer's Tower and Central Tower), obsidian pieces litter the ground, water flowing into the gorge is warm to very hot ("hot enough to cook an egg!" according to our guide), and the first geothermal power station in Africa is located here. We explored a smaller side gorge before venturing down into the larger Hell's Gate Gorge. It actually was a little dangerous (=fun) – steep, rocky, and slippery climbing and scrambling, not to mention the lack of medical care anywhere nearby – but we all made it down safely. After we arrived at the lowest point of the gorge, we then climbed super steep terrain and ended up at a lookout that viewed across the entire park. It was a clear and beautiful view. On the trail back to the bikes, we passed some Maasi men and women who had jewelry for sale. I am so intrigued by their culture and was excited to buy one of their pieces.

We hiked back to our bikes and then headed to the park entrance. There was a terrifying, yet somehow hilarious, moment when two adult water buffalo and their baby were staring us down and approaching in a not-so-nice manner. Our guide yelled for us to “PEDAL FAST!” I had been off of my bike taking photos of them (haha), Allison was beside me waving at some other park visitors who were actually warning us to get away from the buffalo, and Anu was in back leisurely pedaling along. Luckily no stampeding occurred. It started pouring just as we arrived back at the entrance and met our taxi driver for the return to Kisumu.

So, definitely one of the best weekends I've ever had. I could seriously get used to being here.