I had never heard of Ngobit River, didn’t even know such a river existed. But before we ventured that far from Gilgil, Solomon Gitau from Kipipiri joined us to show where the colobus monkeys from Kipipiri were. Kipipiri is in the fabled ‘Happy Valley’, and the range stretches in front of the taller and longer Aberdares.
Published: 15 September 2018
At the Nyatote gate of Ruma National Park in Lambwe Valley near Lake Victoria, metal casts of the roan antelope (Hippotragus equines langheldi) are nailed to the gates. This subspecies of the handsome antelope with a face that looks like it was painted by a make-up artist is only found in Ruma –which means it is endemic. It is a handsome antelope, the size of a horse. It has distinct facial markings — black-rimmed eyes set against white, very much like a traditional African mask. Wearing a coat of russet copper, it really is a noble looking antelope. Both male and female have ringed horns.
Continue reading “Ruma the famous park for Roan, Rhino and Rothschild”
Published: 8 September 2018
It’s a world full of sights and sounds. In the first light of the day the lake is as still as glass without a ripple under an intense blue sky. The shrill of the African fish eagle pierces through the quietness of the morning. Out on the beach by the light house at Lake Vitoria Safari Village at Mbita Point the otter family enjoys a swim while the Pied kingfishers jack-dive to retrieve the tiny omena to feed on.
Published: The East African (Nation Media)
Friends wanted a holiday with a difference. Not the usual coast and game parks. Since it was August, high on the list was the migration. That is, the annual migration of the wildebeest trekking in from neighbouring Serengeti into the Mara following the grass route that is their diet.
So with 10 days on hand to arrange a safari on a budget – that was the other thing – it had to be affordable and at the same time not cheap hovels. It’s a notion that you can only enjoy a holiday if you have tons of money in high-end hotels and lodges. Kenya and the rest of East Africa are opening up to local budget travellers in style.
This was easy. From the Mara to Mfangano via Mbita Point and return via Menengai – by chance all beginning with M, we set out to our first destination. Continue reading “West Side Story”
Part 2 of 2
Published:1 September 2018
Above: Lioness at dawn in Maasai Mara National Reserve August 2018
Copyright Rupi Mangat 2018
The wildebeest crossing takes the entire day. The following morning packed with a picnic breakfast and lunch from Crocodile Camp on the banks of the Talek river by Talek gate, we’re inside the reserve but this time heading to the Olkiombo plains on the west side of Mara with the Oloololo escarpment lined in the horizon. The Talek is a main tributary flowing into the mighty Mara River. Continue reading “The Big Cats of the Mara”
Moonlion Safaris 