11 Days Best of Kenya Highlands & Plains Camel Trekking Safari
Places: Lolkejeta Karisia Hills, Suiyan Lugga, Chanook Lugga,Nageregero, Ngoteya, Namasaa, Ewaso Nyiro River,Tumaren
Highlights: Walk in the scenic and beautiful hills and plains of Kenya in the company of an expert safari guide. Your walking safari will be supported by camels and gives you an opportunity to mingle and interact with the local people of Kenya. Accommodation is in mobile camps; mostly not what you expect back home; or in five star hotels – but it is still an adventure!!
Day 1: Arrival in Nairobi / Transfer to Hotel
Meet and greet at Jomo Kenyatta Airport and transfer to your hotel, which is located in a lovely gardened landscape with close proximity to the city.
Overnight: Fairview Hotel
Meal plan: Bed & breakfast
Day 2: Nairobi / Lolkejeta Karisia Hills
You will be collected from your hotel and driven to the Karisia Hills, Maralal, which is a 6 – 7 hour drive. It is very scenic we will stop along the way for lunch. The camp is on the edge of the forest and we will spend the afternoon exploring the area, taking photographs and looking for animals. The plains below the hills are home to the Samburu people and they graze their livestock on the edges of the forest singing to their herds as they come to drink. Camp at Lolkejeta, a stunning camp nestled in a clearing between rising forested ridges.
Overnight: Lolkejeta Camp
Meal plan: Lunch, dinner, breakfast
Day 3: Rapa, Karisia Hills
After breakfast you will walk up into the forest looking for birds such as the Hartlaub’s Turaco, Silvery-Cheeked Hornbill and possibly even a Crowned Eagle. The forest is full of ancient, old-growth Podocarpus and Strangler Figs trees and we will learn of the medicinal uses of the plants and trees from our Samburu trackers. The forest is home to Buffalo and Elephant as well as Bushbuck. You will have a picnic on an ancient rock outcrop used for millennium as a lookout before taking another route down to a new camp called Rapa, at the foot of the hills.
Overnight: Rapa Camp
Meal plan: Lunch, dinner, breakfast
Day 4: Suiyan Lugga
You will wake early and walk up and through the forest before dropping down into the drier country to the east of the Karisia Hills. The scenery changes dramatically and at the bottom it is much drier with a lot of Acacia Tortilis growing in the river bottoms. You will camp on the Suiyan Lugga (a seasonal sand river), while the team digs for crystal clear water for the showers and the hand basins. Here you might see Klipspringer perched on the rocks and Stone Partridges calling from their roosts in the evening.
Overnight: Suiyan Lugga Camp
Meal plan: Lunch, dinner, breakfast
Day 5: Chanook Lugga
Walk up the Chanook onto the edge of the Leroghi Plateau before dropping down to Ngoteya, a high area of vistas, where you will camp looking east and north toward the Mathew’s Range. You will look out for sign of Wild Dog as they like to frequent this area. Golden Breasted Starlings are common here as well as Bristle Crowned Starlings around the cliffs. Enjoy sundowners on a high rock with stunning views across northern Kenya looking back over the many miles we will have traversed.
Overnight: Chanook Lugga Camp
Meal plan: Lunch, dinner, breakfast
Day 6: Nageregero, Ngoteya
You will walk along the edge of the Laikipia Plateau to another vantage point high above the river. A visit to a local Masai Manyatta to learn more about Masai culture can easily be arranged. Greater Kudu are common in this area and so we will walk quietly in the morning to try for some pictures.
Overnight: Nageregero Camp
Meal plan: Lunch, dinner, breakfast
Day 7 & 8: Namasaa, Ewaso Nyiro River
Walk down to the Ewaso Nyiro River which is deep in the valley below you and cross the river to Namasaa, your campsite on the opposite side of the river. Enjoy bathing in the rocky pools and spotting Greater Kudu on the hillsides above.
Overnight: Namasaa Camp
Meal plan: Lunch, dinner, breakfast
Day 9: Tumaren
Early wake-up call and walk to the pinnacle, Ngai Suisui that has a dramatic 360 degree view of the area and is also the nesting site for a pair of Verreaux Eagles. We will have breakfast up on the rock and walk along the ridge to where our vehicles will be waiting to take us to Tumaren. The drive takes us through dramatic country and along the way we should see some plains game as well as Laikipia Masai Herders. In the evening you will go on a drive and night drive hopefully spotting some of the illusive nocturnal animals like Bat Eared Fox, Porcupine, white-tailed Mongoose, Aardwolf, Aardvark or Leopard.
Overnight: Tumaren Camp
Meal plan: Lunch, dinner, breakfast
Day 10: Tumaren
You will go on a morning game drive looking for some of northern Kenya’s unique species such as Lelwel’s Hartebeest, Reticulated Giraffe, Gravy Zebra and if very lucky, Wild Dog. Tumaren is also home to Eland, Buffalo, Elephant, Common Zebra, Grant’s gazelle, Gerenuk, Lesser Kudu, Steinbuck, and Dikdik among others. You will have a picnic lunch on the river and then in the evening take another drive and enjoy sundowners at the end of our last day, toasting the adventure.
Overnight: Tumaren Camp
Meal plan: Lunch, dinner, breakfast
Day 11: Return to Nairobi
After breakfast, you will be driven to Nanyuki in time for your flight to Nairobi. In Nairobi you will have a vehicle at your disposal to take you shopping, the elephant orphanage as well as the airport.
What is included?
– Full board accommodation with Expedition Style Safari Accommodation
– Non alcoholic drinks on safari
– Transport in Nairobi on day 1 and 11
– Bed and Breakfast accommodation at the Fairview
– Transport to and from the safari
– Guides and camels for the safari
– Conservation and community fees
What is NOT included?
– Travel insurance
– Gratuities or tips
– Extras which are not included in the program
– International flights
– Visa
– Any other item not mentioned in itinerary