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Back from Kenya


dlo

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Just back from 18 nights in Kenya and I've never been more worn out! I really just want to give a note of thanks to @@JakeGC and everyone at Gamewatchers-Porini. The guiding was great and all the drivers in Nairobi were great fun who I had a great time meeting. If you read this Jake you can pass on my thanks to all your staff and especially everyone at Karisia for being so helpful when I became so sick. The concern they showed me those 2 days really touched my wife and I. As for the doctors and nurses in Nanyuki, well wow they were great. I would have spent 5 to 8 hours here in an emergency room and they were hurrying through all kinds of tests because I had a plane to catch!

 

The trip itself had some incredible highs though with some high quality sightings. Amboseli gave me the Gerenuks Lesser Kudu and Elephants I wanted but whats with all the lions, and wow a hunt on a night drive! The Jackal and the Tommy was incredible.

 

The carnage continued at Ol Kinyei and the Mara and we had lion cubs playing to ourselves in the Mara for 20 minutes without a vehicle in sight! Oh yeah a leopard hunt is a pretty cool thing.

 

@@amybatt Of course visiting the orphans was great and of course we adopted another one. We're up to 4 now so I think we're catching up to you!

 

A river crossing in the Mara at the end of October, could it be or am I dreaming?

 

Chris got to walk very close with Elephants at Karisia while I was on my back, I'm not jealous though!

 

All in all a good trip despite the week being horrible at times. I still can't believe I had about 8 sightings of lions doing things that did not involve sleeping and the river crossing day with the constant shifting of emotions will stand out forever.

 

I've only looked at a handful of pictures but here's a couple of jpegs.

 

 

 

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Quite the tease. Sounds like an excellent trip, other than the bits involving being on your back or doing tests in hospitals.

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Welcome back! I´m very sorry to hear that you were so sick, but it´s good to hear that medical care worked fine. And it sounds like you had some terrific sightings, looking forward to hearing more about it. I´m sure in quite a short while you will forget about your illness, but will remember the highlights forever.

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@adio I know what it's like to be truly sick on safari. On my longest,and most ambitious safari which lasted 2 months and covered six countries 5 years ago I went into convulsions!!! I had to medically evacuated from Selous National Game Preserve to Dars es Salaam. When I woke up I found myself in a private hospital. The baggage carrier service of Kenyan Airlines had lost my baggage,and unfortunately my medication was in it. The safari camp called my travel agent who contacted my mother. She then had my doctor send a fax to the doctor in Dars es Salaam. After three days I was allowed to leave and continue on my safari. I bought a few pieces of clothing in Dars, as well as a suitcase. I continued on my safari because i simply had to much to miss,and I couldn't bear not seeing . So I continued going, and miraculously 18 days later my baggage arrived in Laikipia. I'm so glad that I forced myself to keep going. Until then I never realized just how tough and determined I could be.

 

I really wish that we could have meet when you were in Nairobi. In all sincerity there's nothing that I enjoy more than meeting my fellow safari enthusiasts. I agree with @micahael-ibk that you'll quickly forget about the fact that you were sick,and remember all the highlights. I can't wait to see more photos,and read the rest of your report.

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@@dlo it sounds like you had a torrid time but with some amazing highs that I'm sure we will all enjoy hearing about.

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@@dlo, so sorry to hear you fell ill, but glad you got such good treatment! Can't wait to hear and see more, especially about your newly fostered ele!

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Thanks everyone. With 2 hospital trips in 2 years maybe I should just book a visit to a hospital into each trip! @@twaffle and @@michael-ibk you're both right and the high's were really very good.

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Many thanks for the message @@dlo and I'm delighted to hear you enjoyed the safari that we arranged for you. We were very sorry that you were so unwell during the trip but glad that you were looked after well and hope that you have now made a complete recovery.

Recently our guests have been having wonderful sightings in Selenkay/Amboseli and Olkinyei/ Mara and I'm pleased to hear that you had some excellent wildlife viewing and that our guides did a good job for you.

Our big challenge right now is finding a way to keep the conservancies in existence! After first having been involved twenty years ago at Selenkay in starting the concept of leasing land from communities to set up conservancies wit the aim of expanding the area of protected habitat for wildlife, it is becoming harder for us to keep finding over $1 million each year from our tourism income that we need in order to pay the lease costs and conservancy running costs for all the conservancies in which we are involved. Selenkay and Ol Kinyei Conservancies are supported single-handedly by Gamewatchers Safaris while at Olare Motorogi and Naboisho Conservancies we were involved in their start-up but had done so with a few other like-minded "Tourism Partners" who pay their share of the costs but we still pay for nearly a third of all the costs of the 100,000 acres comprising Ol Kinyei, Naboisho and Olare Motorogi. We need to keep attracting visitors as it is tourism that provides us with the income to pay these costs. Our latest blog gives more details: https://www.porini.com/blog/an-open-letter-to-potential-safari-goers/

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Sick on safari? Unfortunately I can relate, most recently from a painful couple of weeks in June. From your intro comments your illness did not interfere too much.

 

In a comment you made in my report you mentioned some jackal activity from your Kenya trip so I tracked down this report. You're keeping us in suspense about the jackal but the lion and is a fine start.

 

Hope you are 100% now. Take your time in finishing this, jackals and all.

 

That $1 million a year in tourism is a tall order. You helped fund it and I'm sure more of us on here will do our parts.

 

Looking forward to more, but no hurry.

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  • 4 weeks later...

@dio hope you are ok? Hopefully you will continue your TR as I am going to Kenya next year and would love to hear more. Pen

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Ditto the above. Looking forward to seeing the TR. It looks like you've been to the Gamewatchers' Selenkay and Ol Kinyei concessions. I visited them in August 2013 and really liked both places, especially Selenkay.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Thanks @@penolva a trip report is coming soon but I will start a new thread for it. Everything is good just finally shaking a bad cold which I got 2 days after landing and now it seems I'm constantly shoveling snow.

 

@@FlyTraveler I agree about Selenkay it far exceeded expectations.

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@@dlo I hope that you get better soon. I can't wait to read your trip report.

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Thanks @@penolva a trip report is coming soon but I will start a new thread for it. Everything is good just finally shaking a bad cold which I got 2 days after landing and now it seems I'm constantly shoveling snow.

 

@@FlyTraveler I agree about Selenkay it far exceeded expectations.

 

Great looking forward to it and hope you feel better. Shovelling snow is certainly good for ones health! Pen

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