Roads That We Crave For

Today was the first day of the safari and the day started at 5 AM. After getting ready and a hearty breakfast I met the tour operator Paul and the guide Charles to discuss the day plan. After checking out from the hotel we started the journey at abouåt 7:30AM towards Lake Naivasha and Lake Nakuru as planned.

Crossing the town in about 20 mins we were on the highway which is known as the eastern expressway. On the way we crossed the town of Limuru where British settlers first came in and settled for Coffee plantation. Some of the old houses are still maintained by the locals.

Traveling along with the Great Rift Valley which is a series of contiguous geographic depressions, approximately 7,000 kilometers in total length, that runs from Lebanon in Asia to Mozambique in Southeast Africa, we stopped at the viewpoint after about an hour and half for some pictures of the Rift valley, a break, and souvenirs. The local shops are managed by the community who travel all the way from the Nairobi everyday. Half hour later we were back on the road towards Lake Naivasha which took almost 1.5 hours of single lane drive with heavy traffic.

Lake Naivasha is afresh water lake and was originally not in my itinerary. I added it for a boat ride to see some of the famous fishing eagles, hippos and a tour of the crescent island which was separated from main land due to volcanic activity and herbivorous animals got stranded there which are now an attraction as they roam free and mingle with visitors. I am really glad that I added this part to the list as you would see

I got to see some magnificent birds, up close encounters with Hippos, and the marvelous pictures of the fishing eagles and the Pied Kingfishers catching fish from the lake. It was a breathtaking experience to see the eagles dive from top of the tree where they nest to catch the fish. The pictures turned out to be amazing and I had a big smile.

My day was already made but more was to come… After an hour boat ride and visit to the island, and hundreds of pictures later we were off towards Lake Nakuru which was the final destination for today. Lake Nakuru is a soda lake (alkaline) and is famous for the thousands of the Flamingos that congregate here. There is a National Geographic video on the two Kinds of Flamingos that live here due to the rich feeding waters.

I am staying at Lake Nakuru Lodge which is one of the two lodges that is close to the lake. 30 kms before the Lake Nakuru National Park we took a detour as the traffic was very heavy on the main road and took the off-track roads towards the park. It was a bumpy ride but the 4×4 sailed through the off-road easily. On the way I say Lake Elementaita where many of the Flamingos have now moved on to as the water has risen quite a lot in Lake Nakuru due to heavy rainfalls in recent years.

Since the park fees was paid by the tour operator in advance we quickly got through the Nderit Gate. As we entered the gate I was greeted by a Secretary Bird (famous for killing snakes by stomping them through it’s long legs flying across and it settled in it’s nest on the right side of the vehicle to feed the only chick in the nest. Got a beautiful picture of it feeding the chick which was almost fully grown.

As we moved further towards the lodge the weather quickly changed and it started raining. Down the hill we saw a lot of vehicles lined up seeing something. There were a few lions waiting to see if they can catch a single grazing water buffalo. I guess due to lack of some of the members of the pride and rains they decided not to make the chase.

Leaving the lions and the lone Pumba (Water hog) soon we were at the Lodge and after checking in, a quick lunch and resting a bit I started the afternoon game drive to see the animals and birds around Lake Nakuru National Park. First visit was off course the lake to see the Flamingos and the thousands of Pelicans. It was a breathtaking scene seeing the birds and again I was lucky to get some fairly decent pictures.

We continued the journey towards the park to meet the other animals of which the main attractions are the Zebras, Antelopes, Rhinos (white and Black), Rothschild Giraffe (they have white legs like wearing socks) and are found only here in the world. After close encounters with many animals and beautiful birds like the Full crested eagle, snake eagle, and many other birds we got a call on the radio for another lucky break.

The driver raced towards the location where the sighting was made and I was greeted by a family of 5 white Rhinos and about 20 Giraffe. There were some baby Giraffe also in the herd which was exiting to see. As the day closed this sighting made the day a truly amazing experience that touched my heart. Its just the first day of safari but all the planning and travel seemed worthwhile.

Later at the Lodge there was a cultural program going on but I was too tired to do much so had a quick dinner and called it a day to catch some rest. Tomorrow is a long journey to the Masai Mara National Reserve.

Experience the complete Day -2 of my solo safari on my YouTube video below: