Kenya - April 9th, 2008

April 9th, 2008

We have breakfast, load up and drive from Sweetwater to Samburu. Fuel stop in Nanyuki and we are able to buy some snacks and beer. I did manage to find some ice in a small grocery store. It was bagged and weighed for me by the Indian shopkeeper.

At most fuel stops and some police check points we were swarmed by street vendors selling everything from brown bananas, wood animals, knives, scarves and jewelry of every sort. The vendors were always very persistent but polite. Invariably they would make a sell after some haggling and bartering.

Kim had a discussion with Mary at Shoor travel about the money. She was using the driver’s cell phone. The general manager got involved and it was agreed that Kim’s credit card would be charged and her cash reimbursed. This was to take place in Nakuru where Shoor has a second Kenya office. Nakuru was between Sweetwater and Samburu so this worked out logistically.

Pee breaks were far and few between. Our driver would not pull over on the side of the road because of bandits or it might be personal property and somebody would demand cash, or so he told us. The rest stops that we did take would be at roadside tourist shops.

You run the gauntlet to the restrooms that are located in a building behind the shops. Typically there is a tip jar for the cleaning staff. I was glad to drop a few shillings in the box.

On the way out we were encouraged to look.

“It costs nothing to look.” “Where are you from?” “What State?” “That is a very beautiful state.”

Nothing in the shops had a price tag and a quote was hard to come by on a single item.

The staff was always polite and persistent. I cannot blame them though. With tourism off by 50 to 90% due to the post election violence, they are eager to make a sell.

Somebody always bought something but no big-ticket items. Every little bit helps.

We were back on the uphill road. It was paved but no painted lines or shoulders.

Passing clearances were measured in millimeters. We topped out at 8000’, after that it was all downhill.

The pavement turned to dirt and gravel. Our driver explained that a Kenyan company was awarded a contract to rebuild this road. They received a sizeable initial draw and disappeared. A Chinese company was doing the work now. There were surveyors, dump trucks, road graders and a bulldozer on one stretch of road. We also saw a heard of 30 to 40 camel.
We make it to Samburu, which is at 3000’ above sea level. Pop the top and we are on a game drive. We spot some elephants. They are clay colored from the cooling mud baths they take in the local soil.

The trees are full of weaverbird nests. The chicks are easy pray for the cobras.

We spot our first Dik-diks. They are small antelope that weigh no more than 15lbs when fully grown. They mate for life so typically two are spotted together. We saw lots of Dik-diks and many times an offspring would be nearby.

http://www.awf.org/content/wildlife/detail/dikdik

Samburu has lots of elephants. We saw dozens in several familial groups. Oryx’s gazelles and giraffes were in abundance.

We make it to the lodge and are escorted to our cabins. They have nice mosquito nets around the beds.

Dan spotted a cobra lying next to a watering hose and pointed it out to Kim. At first she did not see it but then it raised up and displayed it’s hood. That was a missed photo opportunity.

We were fed at the open pavilion. A quick siesta and then another game drive.

It was a leisurely drive thru some rolling hills. I opened the cooler to grab a beer and casually mentioned that the lid to the Amarula was not tight and the contents had partially drained into the cooler. I was kidding.

Bob casually mentioned “lion;” ha, ha, but he was not kidding! We spotted our first lioness about twenty yards out. She looked back at us and then disappeared behind some bushes. I did not get a good shot.

We saw more elephants with calves and then made our way to a river where we saw two crocodiles. They were much greener then I expected.