Shaba for me has always been much like a village rumour; you’ve heard it but you don’t know anyone who personally witnessed what actually went down. As pertains to camping you kind of hear it mentioned now and again, see a picture here and there but it never coalesces into anything solid or tangible. Turns out when there’s little to no information about a place sometimes there’s (a couple of) reasons why that is…
Strictly speaking this article is not specifically about Lake Bogoria, but it is about something just as good. I already covered the reserve in detail way back when. The part about me not being happy? That part is unfortunately true but we’ll get to that later. This is a story about some of the familiar frustrations I encounter as an independent traveler around Kenya and the surprising rewards of a never-ending curiosity.
What could Part 2 possibly mean? It means there was a Part 1. Starting off beneath the Ndoto Mountains in Samburu County and through to the back shores of Lake Turkana in the shadow of Mount Kulal, the trip back home takes us east through Marsabit County. This is just a quick run-down of the journey home but there’s still loads to see…
Last look at the lake as we head North-West to Kalacha.
So it’s done. I finally made it. No more side-eyes from inquiring minds; “Yes I know you’ve traveled a bit around the country, but have you been to Lake Turkana?” All that’s it in the past, I can finally walk with my head held high. Thought I’d do something different for this article and post a photo essay with minimal chat, hope you you enjoy it.
Spot the human.
This is the 3rd and final part of our overland adventure hugging the southern border of Kenya, didn’t think I’d manage to get it all written down but here we are. From driving the deserts of Lake Amboseli to swimming the blue waters of Lake Chala all roads have led to the most southerly point of this trip in Tsavo West. The adventure is far from over though, actually it’s almost like it’s just beginning…
How much do I love Kenya’s bit of the Great North Road? I can count the ways for days. Out of the entire 7000+ kms all the way from Cape Town (South Africa) – Cairo (Egypt) Kenya’s infamous 500km section of lunar surface from Isiolo – Moyale put us in the unenviable position of ‘number last’ but that is now all behind us. Who do we give props for this? Was it ex-president Kibaki? Wherever you are mzee please pokea a fist bump. The soon to be completed stretch of the Isiolo-Marsabit-Moyale road has created massive potential in the previously marginalized Northern Kenya counties and has already created better tourism opportunities and brought enhanced security to this previously ‘unknown’ region.
As we’ve seen before Kenya is full of surprises so of course there’s a little conservancy just off this highway that’s just begging to be visited.
Lake Naivasha is the mall where all of Kenya’s cool camping sites like to hang out. This area has long been synonymous with camping and casual weekender’s for as long as anyone can remember. If you live in Nairobi, Nakuru or further afield it’s quite possible one thing or the other has led you here; be it a wedding, a weekend getaway, a drunken bad decision or all of those combined. In Part One of the series on locations for first time campers and family-friendly locations we explored Mount Longonot National Park so lets keep it moving shall we?
For a camping blog I just realized I haven’t written about camping in a while, I won’t be winning any awards for focus that’s for sure. So my next 3 articles will be on trips I like to call ‘shorts’. These are places that are easy enough to do over a weekend from Nairobi and are also tame enough to do if you’re a first-time or occasional camper, so join me as I seek to lubricate your journey into one of Kenya’s most famous holes.
In our daily lives sometimes we tend to over complicate things. We make decisions that cause us more stress than necessary, we hang around people who drain our positive energy, we down play our achievements and dwell on our mistakes. Then when we look into inward we can only ask ourselves “Why do things have to be so hard?”.
Sorry, strange way to start a travel article I know, but this next place really did put the thought of how simplicity can be such a positive force in our lives. Because if there’s a place that personifies the concept of “just enough” its Amboseli Bush Camp.
Early morning view of Mount Kilimanjaro from camp.
It’s a real treat for me to be able to visit all the places I travel to twice; first when I visit them, and second when I’m writing about them. My visit to Lumo Conservancy was born as many of my trips are, staring at a screen while at work and daydreaming over photos on the internet. So after much planning (and of course saving), I found myself meandering down the Nairobi – Mombasa Highway, what i found there was a prime example of the link between community and conservation.
