Tag: Camping
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A Night on the Sacred Mountain
‘Maape!’. ‘Let’s go!’. Our Samburu guide, Lemaiyan, urged us to continue our climb after a long water break. The mid-morning heat had been turned up a notch, and our progress was slow. We zigzagged up the eastern slope of Mount Ololokwe, along a path well trodden by elephants and cattle. Stumbling under the weight of…
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Safari and Adventure in Classic Land Rovers
For those that have followed this column for years, you will no doubt have picked up on the Fox family’s fondness for Land Rovers. In fact, I believe all of us have mentioned them, such as the escapades of “Mzee” the old Range Rover or the Defender that tried to take off John, my dad’s,…
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Buffalo Springs: Of Blue Pools and Pink Elephants
‘You guys missed all the action!’, one of the rangers said, as we returned to camp from a long morning game drive. ‘A big crocodile dragged an impala into the river, and then fought with three other crocodiles over the scraps!’ They would have had a good view of this toothy tussle – the Spring…
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Camping by the Ewaso in Ol Pejeta
In many ways, Ol Pejeta is the ideal destination for a weekend safari out of Nairobi. The drive is manageable – short enough for a one-night stay, and with plenty of good breakfast spots along the way. The views of Mount Kenya are stunning, the density of wildlife is high, and there are accommodation options…
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On the Sidelines of the Safaricom Marathon
It has been 20 years since the Lewa Wildlife Conservancy hosted its first Safaricom Marathon. The inaugural event was a comparatively low key affair, with just 180 runners taking part. Among them was Dave Buzza, who became the first and only British national to win the race. So a lot has changed in 20 years.…
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A Night Under Canvas in the Mara Triangle
All around us the plains are black and smouldering. The absence of long grass reveals a scattering of bones, and the bottoms of shrubs have been charred by flames. Controlled fires stimulate growth before the dry season, when hundreds of thousands of wildebeest make their frenetic journey into the Mara from the Serengeti. We are…
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Camping Wild in the Aberdares
We followed a dusty two-track in the forested salient of the Aberdares. Thick patches of striking purple Vernonia shrubs bulged into the road, and twisted white tree trunks punctuated a sea of deep green on the hillsides. We rounded a bend, and a mud-coated buffalo lay in our path, unperturbed. A large male leopard suddenly…
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Camping with Pigs and Hyenas at Sanctuary Farm
I zipped open my tent and was greeted by a most peculiar scene. Beyond the rickety bamboo fence that encompassed the campsite, a podgy pig nuzzled up to a pair of tall grey horses. In an adjacent field, a handful of zebras and wildebeest grunted and grazed, and on the edge of the acacia forest…
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A Relaxing Weekend at Kimana House
A friend of mine recently suggested that I take a few days off work to join him on a trip through Kajiado, Amboseli and Kimana. I didn’t take much convincing. I was excited by the prospect of tracking wild dogs near Kajiado, in an area where they are frequently spotted. But that turned out to…
Going Places Africa 