KENYA

From the country where the ‘safari’ originated one can discover an amazing diversity of landscapes, a myriad of animal, bird and plant life, fascinating culture and warrior tribes.

Kenya contains almost every known landform, from true glacial ice to arid desert, mountain massifs to sprawling savannahs, large lakes and dense forests. The Great Rift Valley, its floor littered with beautiful lakes and extinct volcanoes, cuts through this land from North to South.

Mt. Kenya (at 17,058 ft/5,199 m) with its dramatic snow-capped peaks stands sentinel above rolling grassland plains and the intriguing semi-desert wilderness much further to the north. Lake Victoria, the largest lake in Africa and source of river Nile dominates the South West of the country and Lake Turkana with its paleontological history and haunting landscapes borders the North.

To the South and South East, Kenya meets the Indian Ocean in a brilliant blaze of blue where the crystal clear azure waters caress fine white sands and amazing corals reefs harbour another safari-world under the warm waves running up and down 480km of pristine beaches.

However, Kenya’s ultimate attraction is its concentration of spectacular wildlife found in its 48 national parks and game sanctuaries. Whether it be the greatest game show on earth with the annual wildebeest migration or the world’s greatest ornithological spectacle of millions of flamingos on Lake Nakuru, Kenya’s flora and fauna is captivating to even the most seasoned traveller.

Recreating the history of the country’s earliest settlers and the explorers – Denys Finch Hatton, Karen Blixen, Lord Delamere, Elspeth Huxley and Ernest Hemingway – to name but a few, can be done in privacy and away from the crowds. With an excellent variety of privately owned bush homesteads, small hideaways lodges and nights under canvas in exclusive permanent or mobile camps, it’s possible to experience the magic of the country as it was in days gone by.

With safaris on offer that include walking, fishing, camel trekking and horse riding it is possible to experience Kenya the way our forefathers discovered this continent of adventure.

zebra-grevy

A world apart from the lush green parks of the south, this fascinating semi-desert Northern frontier district of Kenya has its own unique species not found in the less arid areas of the south. The tranquil Ewaso Nyiro River flowing through these parks provides an ideal habitant for crocodiles, large herds of elephants, elusive leopards and endemic species including Grevy’s Zebra, Gerenuk, Reticulated Giraffe, Beisa Oryx and Somali Ostrich. This Northern rugged area is a set against a background of jagged purple mountains providing some of the best game viewing in the country.