Reptile Forum, Reptile Classifieds - CaptiveBred

[Goose]

If anyone would like to see some shots of herps i took in Kenya, here you go:

http://www.livefoodshop.co.uk/forum/index.php?showtopic=48973

sorry couldn't deal with uploading all those pics again! Id comments welcome.

Tom

[Scott W]

some great photos, how long were you out there for?
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Please DO NOT pm orders for reptiles, send email instead scott@captivebred.co.uk

[Stuart]

Great pics mate..bet that was fantastic experience..would love to go there one day.
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[JStroud]

Looks amazing, where abouts were you staying?


Very jealous
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Regards James Stroud

[Goose]

Thanks guys. I went there for 5 weeks in the summer of 2004 before going to Sheffield to study Zoology. It was a pretty amazing year as I had spent 3 months working in Chile in the spring.

Flew to Nairobi then drove to Lake Nakuru where we camped for a few days. The birdlife, especially the flamingos, and the Rhino and Leopard we saw here were amazing.
From there we drove to theAbedare NP, very mountainous,lush forest giving way to thick bamboo forest and then to alpine meadows as you gained altitude. Again we were camping but spent an obligatory night at The Ark, a hotel overlooking a waterhole and saltlick where elephants and other wildlife come to drink at night. Some mindblowing wildlife here and was nice to have a little bit of luxury after the back breaking hours in the landrover - unfortunately mainly due to the appropriation of foreign aid and the wheels of long distance trucks, Kenyas roads are in an appalling state.
From here we drove on to Samburu in the north, the country is very arid here and is under a lot of pressure from livestock and wildlife. Theres a very border town atmosphere up here, a big mix of people and its not the safest place for a mzungu (white guy). Wandering down the street in Isiolo you might see a naked tribesman leading a camel, samburu women in beaded collars, somalis with klashnekoffs fom further north, the women in burkhas or a whole mix of other peoples from further soth or the coast.
The wildlife is very different here, but the elephants are perhaps the most special. If i ever go back id like to go further north to Lake Turkana, which is pretty beyond the reach of "civilization".

We then drove to Lake Baringo, crikey it was HOT, gotta have been 100F. Camped on an Island in the lake. Could see Fish ealges fishing in front of the tent in the evening. The rains had come to the area in the weeks beforehand so the whole landscape was covered in flowering acacia trees giving the appearance that it had snowed. These flowers give the most amazing honey which the region is famous for.
Flew from there in a 4 seater to the Masai Mara to camp and watch the wilderbeast migration and a lot more. Am not great with small aircraft (too unstable!) and just after take off my window burst open as the pilot had forgot to lock it! The noise was incredible and im not ashamed to say I screamed like a girl. Thank goodness mine was the only headset that didnt work!

Writing this has brought back so many amazing memories of this trip and of my previous visit to Uganda and Western Kenya in 2001. Truly humbling experiences but ones that also left me even more concerned about the future of people and wildlife in East Africa.

Anyway,sorry about waffling on,
glad you liked the pics
Tom

[Jas]

Waffling Not at all, was a fantastic read, i see now why people keep diarys when they go these places, sounds like you had an amazing time. How many people can tell there kids about the time they spent camping in the Masia Mara or seeing naked women wearing klashnekoffs