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| Walking with a young giraffe, who was too busy eating to notice us! |
"The only man I envy is the man who has not yet been to Africa - - - for he has so much to look forward to." Richard Mullin
On our fourth day in Kenya we drove northwest for about one and a half hours through a scenic, mountainous region of the country, the Great Rift Valley. The valley is deepest north of Nairobi, and contains a chain of volcanoes and a series of lakes. No trucks are allowed on the road, and the lack of guardrails along steep cliffs left Richard a bit uneasy. As for myself, I just was simply awed by the deep, green valleys and sweeping views.
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| Impressive views |
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| Windy roads |
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| Colorful landscape |
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| Guard rails? |
Along the roadway we saw a number of craft-type shops, many featuring items made of fur (hats, rugs, coats, etc.) We also saw men along the road selling ears of corn, which were roasting in pits dug in the ground. In one area, some baboons showed themselves as well.
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Craft shops along the roadside; lots of skins
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"Many Colors" Curio Shop
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Colorful Kenyan Blankets
Roasted corn seller |
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| Mama and baby baboon |
After our scenic ride, we arrived at the highest elevation of the Kenyan Rift Valley, Lake Naivasha. This volcanic, fresh water lake is fed by the Malewa River, and has dried out twice since 1898. Carp are the predominant fish in the lake, and we saw many fisherman trying to catch them in their nets and with poles.
Naivasha (Nai'posha) means "rough water" in the local Maasai language, as storms can arise quickly here. Some of the flying scenes from the movie "Out of Africa" were filmed high over this the lake. We immediately noticed that the acacia trees poking out of the water were all dead. This happened in 2014 when the land flooded which killed the trees.
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| Fishermen untangling their nets |
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Storks
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We boarded a small wooden motor boat and our guide, Peter, took us for a ride around the lake. We saw all sorts of birds (including huge numbers cormorants and pelicans, and an African fish eagle) and a number of hippopotami (Richard's favorite African animal.) These huge animals love water and spend more than 16 hours per day submerged in the lake, keeping their bodies cool in the hot African sun. At sunset, they come out onto land to graze, eating around 80 pounds of grass in an evening. They also feel more threatened on the land; you don't want to get between a hippo and the water.
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These boats take folks for rides around the lake and to the island
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Stork
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| Richard just enjoying the ride |
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Cormorants
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| Pelicans |
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| Hippos sleeping in the water |
We boated out to an island/peninsula on the lake where Crescent Island Game Sanctuary is located. The island was created in 1988, when the water of the lake receded enough to make the island a part of the mainland. Crescent Island is actually a peninsula, and is also accessible by road.
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| Egret in the foreground, Pelicans in the background |
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| Thousand of nesting cormorants |
It was here that we experienced a walking safari, strolling around with the animals on flat terrain in an open, non-fenced area. An experienced guide, also named Peter, gave us information about the animals that were all around and easy to see. We walked with Maasai giraffe, wildebeest, impala, common zebra, water buck, elands, and cape buffalo. All the animals on the island are indigenous, except the wildebeest. There are no predators on the island (except scavenging hyena), so it is perfectly safe to get as close to the animals as they will allow.
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Young Maasai Giraffe
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| Impalas |
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| Richard and Peter, chatting about the animals |
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| Waterbuck |
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| Common zebra |
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| Hippo footprint |
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It was awesome to be so close to this little beauty.
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After the visit, we had lunch at Buffalo Mall and headed back to Karen. We drove a different route to get home; below are some pictures taken on the way back. What a wonderful day!
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| Similar arrangements of produce for sale are seen all around the area; I like the triangles of cabbage |
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| Friendly children waving at a stoplight |
One more day to go . . .
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