Bush Chronicles: Part 1
Monday morning and we arose early and after an early breakfast headed to the Amboseli Airstrip …enroute encountering some yellow baboons grooming themselves and making it clear who has right of way!! We drove onwards finding the old Amboseli lodge completely overrun by wildlife….Elephants browsing in the front and impalas in the back! We had been this side of the park on our game drives and the devastation of the rising waters was certainly on display …looks like many more trees will fall and Amboseli will need a massive seed bombing excursive to replant in sections trees to avoid becoming a dustbowl ..but even in the scenes of devastation soo much beauty …the huge lakes containing flamingoes and so many waterbirds is entrancing. We didnt have to wait long after “checking in” at Amboseli Airstrip when the Dash 8 landed…very exciting to be travelling in such a huge plane!! Our Captain was a lady and in the cabin a young man from Tanzania was being trained as cabin crew in anticipation of working on similar aircraft in Tanzania for Airkenyas sister company Regional Air…and he demonstrates great promise. Plane was full of Australins who seem to be having a marvellous time
25 minutes later we landed at Wilson Airport and after 45 minutes we boarded our Twin Otter flight to Nanyuki …besides us there was an interesting assortment of passengers…from Spain & Australia again and then a couple who were very excited and couldnt stop taking pictures of each other and an elderly lady on a walking stick and her daughter who had emigrated to Australia but had come to spend time with her Mum…as we landed in Nanyuki there was Mt Kenya in all her magnificence and George who had arrived safely and in time to collect us. Our plan this morning was to go and visit the Nanyuki Spinners and Weavers…a place that i have not visited in at least 15 years and i was truly amazed at what they have achieved in that time. It was a project of the Presbyterian Church of East Africa and Anne who founded this to help women with young children who would not otherwise have the opportunity to go to work. They started pre school for these young children and now the they build classrooms up to Standard Five.!! They have also built an entire High School….and they are working on completing the Primary School . They had just secured a bore hole and needed a pump for it …well my wonderful guests gave her the necessary funds to acquire the pump and a Roto Tank ….ohh Anne was completely overcome with joy to the extent she talked in Kikuyu trying to express her gratitude. The spinning wheels and the weaving looms are still of the ancient variety but wielded efficiently by these women who are producing lovely rugs even now…a truly inspiriting visit
We headed onward to Sweetwaters …by now the sun was really beating down on us and we finally arrived at the oasis that is Sweetwaters in time to check and have lunch!!! After a short break watching the wildlife that had gathered in turns at the waterhole including two very old Buffalo who at one point stood soo still they could be mistaken for statues. It was most interesting to see how all the different species took turns to come and drink water and the birdlife particularly the waterbirds was proliferent. After this appetiser we went out on a game drive to see what we could see….almost at once seeing giraffe , zebra . a variety of gazelles and then in the valley A BLACK RHINO…with a young calf…Joy!!!!! When they disappeared in the the bushes Jean thought she spotted a rhino on the ridge…we drove up to higher ground and found indeed it was 4 rhinos and this time White Rhino’s ….a nice herd of elephants one that came all the way up to the car and tapped us as if to say welcome and be respectful of all wildlife…The sun set on this magnificent scene and we headed back to camp well satisfied with our expedition .
Dinner was a hearty affair full of good food and much laughter!! Tired and happy we headed back to our tents for our first night of “glamping”
As i am typing this in the early morning of Tuesday in the distance Lions are roaring.
