The long hard road north to Ethiopia, starts here!

Well what can I tell you about Hells Gate NP and our bicycle trip? Err,
well, not much actually because it never happened! Our spot on Lake Naivasha
was just too nice and the bird life kept us busy all day. We thought we
might head there the next day but instead we took a short drive west from
camp to the small lake next to Lake Naivasha, which does join the main lake
when the water is high enough but not since the 70's or 80's so we were
told, and took in the sights of all the Greater and Lesser Flamingo
(thousands), White-Breasted Cormorant (hundreds), and Hippo (dozens). Lake
Naivasha is a fresh water lake and does not get any Flamingo, but instead
has huge flocks of Pelican, and I mean huge! Did you know that Pelican's
soar on thermals? No, nor did we until we saw it. They cruise pretty high
up, pick a spot, and land back in one big noisy splash, quite a sight. They
are obviously restless souls as they paddle around back and forth for a
while before flying off to find another spot on the lake. At camp we had the
company of two superb Fish Eagles which was grand, not to mention the
Egyptian Geese, numerous Pied Kingfishers, and many other beautiful birds.
It was such a great day we spent there looking at and identifying the bird
life.
From Naivasha we started on the long route north to Ethiopia. First stop,
the Equator! Sue has been dying to get there and get the good old water
demonstration. Our route was not a busy tourist route but there were two
brothers there with their curio stalls and John kindly, well for Ksh100,
showed us the water test. Yep it goes anti-clockwise down the plug in the
south, clockwise in the north and straight down at the dotted line! Sue was
happy and I am sure will want the scientific test repeated when we come back
down from Ethiopia, just to make sure! Afterwards we passed through
Nyahururu the highest town in Kenya and took a quick glimpse at the
Thomson's Falls the highest in Kenya, and the brownest! The camping there
was too expensive so we made tracks east to Isiolo the start of the long
trek to the border. Instead of staying on the main road and crossing the
Equator south and then north again we went in a straight line on the C76 to
Nanyuki. We were hoping for a good road and despite a few rocky patches is
was pretty good gravel and dirt all the way and it probably saved us a bit
of time too. Our goal for the night was Rangelands Hotel & Camping just
south of Isiolo and we reached it in good time allowing us to set up camp
and eat before it got too dark. The campsite facilities were not operational
so we were given use of one of the bungalows for toilet and shower, and TV!
Only local channels but a chance to get a weather report and to see how wet
and cold it was back in Nairobi!
To break up the haul north from Isiolo we had planned on a one or two night
break at the Shaba NR / Samburu NP / Buffalo Springs NP. They all fall next
to each other and your entry ticket gives you access to all of them too. Our
plan was to have the morning driving around Shaba NR and then cross over to
Buffalo Springs NP and Samburu NP to camp the night before continuing north
the next day. The guy at the gate was quite helpful with advice and we told
him our plan and asked about the camping options in the park. He informed us
of the special campsites (bush camping with no facilities but not cheapest
option) and the public campsite in Samburu. We decided to stick to plan and
see Shaba NR and head over for the night at Samburu public campsite. It all
went nicely to plan. Sort of. It was late morning almost lunch time so we
decided to treat ourselves to a drink at the Savora Shaba Game Lodge, and
very nice it was too if not a tad pricey. That's when the plan kind of went
pear shape! It is amazing what a small quantity of alcohol on an empty
stomach can do to you. We err, cough, ended up talking ourselves into
staying a night! It is amazing how many different reasons one can find to
justify such a decision. Sue's early birthday celebration, a late wedding
anniversary celebration, a 3 years since finishing work celebration, a
crossing the Equator celebration, the list just goes on. So before we could
change our minds and after a quick tour of the rooms we handed over the
credit card, delays the pain, and booked ourselves in for the night, yes
just one night I can assure you! We thought about a junior suite but decided
the saving on just having a standard room would justify the cost of drinks
with dinner, got all angles covered!!
So after the pain of the spend we got down to making the most of our money
starting with lunch and very nice the 4 courses and coffee were too. The
bird life to be seen from the restaurant, which is set up high above the bar
area, was great especially the 'Cuckoo with a hat' as one of the Americans
at the table next to us described the White-Bellied Lourie that passed
through! Suitably filled to bursting we set off for our afternoon game drive
in Mufasa. It was a very good drive and we saw a modest amount of game,
Elephant, Giraffe, Water Buck, Grant's Gazelle, and the silliest looking
animal so far the Gerenuk (Sue thinks it looks like ET), the bird spots were
pretty good too. It was a bit dusty at times, quite rocky in places, and the
odd water crossing or two, but nothing Mufasa couldn't cope with. Then it
was back to the lodge and again time to make the most of our dollars. Hot
baths, you bet! Then drinks, as justified by the saving on the junior suite,
and dinner. Boy we ate well, a buffet no less, full to bursting. Soups and
salads to start, then red snapper fillets, Mongolian stir fry, garlic and
ginger rice, ugali with some spinach thing that I cant remember the name of,
mash potato, all washed down with several different puddings, fruit, and
coffee. Just time to type a few words using the good old electric in the
room, only on between 6pm and midnight, and then time to crash out before an
early start and the 2nd half of the experience in the Samburu and Buffalo
Spring NPs tomorrow. Campsite, no lodge!
Oh, nearly forgot, the long hard road to Ethiopia. Well we had a taster of
it driving from Isiolo to Shaba NP. OH MY GOD! Dusty, badly corrugated,
rocky, you name it, and the worst is yet to come, another 500km or so! Gulp,
if it isn't rattling now it will be by the time we hit the border in a few
days time!
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