Camp in Kenya's wildlife parks
There was a rumbling roar in the distance while spicy chicken sizzled over our campfire. Blue hour was upon us, the sun had just set and the hippos were starting to climb their way out of the river to graze. I sat in my chair bubbling with excitement and internally telling myself “stay cool, the animals won’t attack you, you’re safe.” As the roaring got louder another lion started roaring on the opposite end, creeping closer and closer. I turned to Dave and asked “At what point do we get in the car?” seconds later Dave turns to me and says “Get in the car.”
Upon arriving in Kenya with my two buddies Dave and Justin, I was so naive to what was in store. Dave had spent the last 29 years in and out of Africa exploring and camping his way from Cape Town to Sudan, Congo to Mozambique and studying the land and animals along the way. That first day we dusted off and organized his Land Cruiser that was built for a long camping trip. Filled it with gas, groceries and water to last us for the week and headed north to Ol Pejeta Conservancy.
The road to the park was long and bumpy. I’m pretty sure I gained an extra set of abs just from trying to stabilize myself in my seat. As we entered the park we were greeted with giraffe, elephants, warthogs, zebra, impala and baboons. The air smelled like sweet hay intertwined with damp dirt, and the yellow fever trees blanketed the horizon with their golden branches. We rolled up to our site away from the main road and right on the edge of the river. Dave and Justin got out first to inspect the area for any predators that might be lurking around the corner. As they peered over the edge a hippo popped its head up to say hello. The tents were quickly pitched just in time for us to do a sunset game drive.
Ol Pejeta protects the last two remaining northern white rhinos Najin and Fatu, and houses up to 130 black rhinos and 30 southern white rhinos making it the largest rhino sanctuary in East Africa (olpejetaconservancy.org). These powerful and majestic animals are endangered in the wild due to poachers that hunt and sell their horns on the black market. This is still a major issue today, so the park rangers shave down their horns to make them less of a target, and remain on duty 24/7 to watch over the animals.
Our last night there we splurged and spent a night at one of the most amazing properties called the Pelican House right in the heart of the conservancy over looking a watering hole. It was a beautiful 3 bedroom, 3 bathroom oasis with tribal rugs high beamed ceilings, a massive fireplace and waterfall showers. It’s difficult to book so I highly suggest planning ahead if you can.
On our way out we stopped at Mount Kenya Safari Club, and I’m going to just quickly gush about how wonderful their Animal Orphanage is! They work around the clock rescuing animals who have lost their parents to poachers, or have been injured in traps set up by poachers. We got lucky enough to meet a 107 year old tortoise and his side kick monkey, bongos, white zebra, serval cat, and this stunning female ostrich that enjoyed a little bath from the afternoon downpour.
A few days before they rescued a distressed leopard that lost one of her paws due to a trap. Though we may not hear about it in the news too often, poachers are still very active. Over 10000 rangers have been killed in the past 10 years while serving to protect wildlife. This beautiful heart driven orphanage gives these animals a second chance at survival. If you’re passing through northern Kenya, I highly suggest making a pit stop here. Not only are the grounds at Mount Kenya Safari Club breathtaking, you’ll be supporting a good cause.
We made our way to the second conservancy of the trip, the Maasai Mara. And though we had our fair share of difficulties like our fridge catching fire, chasing daylight to make camp before dark, and getting stopped by the police for going 5 mph over the speed limit. We were happily greeted by 20 plus hippos yards from our tents and a view that made you want to stop time. There was always wildlife roaming in sight, sometimes it was a journey of giraffes walking single file in front of a rising sun or a lone bull elephant following a spotlight among storm clouds.
As we sat and studied a family of elephants try and pull themselves out of mud, I became highly aware of how mature their emotional intelligence is. Watching a hyena naw on a bone and later cuddle its pups delivered a whole new light on their stereo type. Witnessing hundreds of wildebeest and zebra risk their lives to cross crocodile filled rivers so that they can reach greener grass was exhilarating and inspiring. When you’re low on the food chain your perspective and awareness of the land around you changes. On this journey I felt like Alice in Wonderland if she were to take a stroll in the Lion King.
