| |
Hot
Air Balloon Safaris
see
photographs
send
me balloon holiday options
Borne on the breeze across the great plains.
The adventure begins just before dawn. Flames from the balloon burners
light the darkness as the crews inflate their craft. The first,
pink tongues of sunlight flicker across the skies and the balloon
fills then rises. Suspended in a basket beneath the rainbow coloured
canopy, you're off for a game-viewing adventure with an entirely
different perspective.
The thing that amazes most first-time balloonists is the absolute
stillness, the silence as you float above the plains, the forest
and the rivers of the Masai
Mara. And if you've flown elsewhere, you've seen nothing like
this. The sounds below drift clearly upwards:
a lion's roar, elephants crashing through the bush, baboons perched
in the tips of the trees startled and screeching to see something
above them.
For an hour or so you drift wherever the air currents take you.
If you're lucky you'll climb high above the Mara for the view of
a lifetime. Then your balloon safari finishes with a flourish. In
the time honoured tradition of balloon flights the world over, you
toast your return to earth with a champagne breakfast. The difference
is that this breakfast happens in the bush, wherever you land, and
it's cooked before your eyes on the burners that minutes before
kept you suspended in the air.
Safety and Requirements
Mara Balloon Safaris pioneered game viewing by hot-air balloon in
Africa. Today they operate from Governors' Camps. They have some
of the world's most experienced pilots flying some of the world's
largest balloons and their distinctive colours are known the world-over.
Passengers should be able to climb in and out of a basket and stand
for the duration of the flight. Warm clothing is required for early
mornings.
Variety of flights
Flights last an average of 1 hour over the Masai Mara. Balloon flights
often get booked up in advance, we recommend you book early.
Best times to go
Available most of the year round but subject to prevailing weather
conditions. All balloon flights begin soon after dawn, it means
an early start.
Prices per person
Per adult: US$385 (GBP240)
Per child under 12 years: US$195 (GBP122)
The above rate includes the Balloon Safari, a full champagne safari
breakfast freshly cooked at the landing site, and a game drive on
the return to Camp.
TOP
Birding
see
photographs
send
me birding holiday options
The great contrast in habitat across Kenya means
that different areas of the country have very different bird lists
(see Variety below), making it a fascinating
part of the world for birders to visit. As much of the country is
open grassland the birds are also relatively easy to see.
Some specialist tours boast that you may see in excess of 500 species
in a two-week tour. Taking it fairly gently, without a specialist
bird guide on some of the bird walks available at lodges around
Kenya, 350 species in two weeks is still achievable!
The problem as a "twitcher" on a standard wildlife safari
is that other guests may not be as interested as you are in little
brown birds or even the raptors - their quest is for the big game
and the guide therefore follows the same. However at lodges many
of the guides are quite knowledgeable and quite happy to point out
interesting looking birds and many of the lodges are themselves
home to lots of species and often have their own bird walks through
the grounds. You'll still see plenty of species but are more likely
to miss out on a few good opportunities. A number of lodges now
employ bird guides to take guests around the area (such as Lake
Baringo Club) but the quality of the bird walks on offer is
variable.
Specialist bird tours vary from tours where people actually stop
and watch the birds in a fairly leisurely manner to ninety-mile
an hour twitcher specials where the apparent aim is to rack up as
many species as possible in the shortest possible time. Some companies
offer a variation on the standard safari where you pay extra and
have the safari-bus or car plus driver/guide to yourself, and even
draw up your own itinerary. This can be fairly expensive, but has
the great advantage that on game drives you stop when you want,
watch what you want and with only a few people in a safari-bus you
can always get to a window on both sides.
Requirements
A mild degree of fitness as birding will probably be combined with
a guided nature walk. In expected warm temperatures, plenty of drinking
water should be carried.
Variety
Recommended National Parks and corresponding lodges that have
excellent birding:
Aberdares NP (Treetops
and Sangare Tented Camp) and Mount
Kenya (Borana, Mt Kenya Safari
Club, Ol Malo)
Like Mount Kenya the Aberdares has a mixture of montane grasslands,
forest and moorland with birds not seen in other parts of Kenya.
The two parks have a lot of birdlife in common including the Crowned
Eagle, Rufous-breasted Sparrowhawk, African Black Duck, Golden-winged
Sunbird, Silvery-cheeked Hornbill, Hartlaub's Turaco and the White-eyed
Slaty Flycatcher.
Amboseli NP (Amboseli
Serena, Ol Tukai Lodge, Tortilis
Camp)
Amboseli is home to over 400 species of birds, many of which live
in and around the swamps. Several parts of the park (including Lake
Amboseli) become flooded and large numbers of wildfowl and other
wetland birds move in. During and just after the October-December
rains the local birds are joined by migrants from the Northern hemisphere,
sometimes in fairly large numbers, and bird watching around the
swamps and impromptu lakes can be very rewarding.
Lake Baringo NP (Lake Baringo Club, Island
Camp Baringo)
Verreaux's Eagle are sometimes seen soaring over the basalt cliffs
near the West shore of the lake. Heuglin's or Three-banded courser
is not uncommon and you may also be able to see Lichtenstein's Sand
grouse and the Spotted thick-knee.
More than 470 species have been recorded here in total, and more
than 300 have been recorded in a single day. There are plenty of
birds to be seen even by novice birders. Pale and dark phase Gabar
Goshawk, Paradise Flycatcher, African Fish Eagles, Marabou Storks,
Shikra and White-faced Scops Owl are amongst the regular sightings,
while some the less common birds include Hemprich's Hornbill (along
the cliffs), the African Darter and occasionally the African Skimmer.
Kakamega NR (Rondo
Retreat)
The birdlife of the Kakamega is a fascinating and unique combination
of central African lowland species sitting alongside highland species.
It is probable that at least 45 of the species on the Kenya list
are to be found only in the Kakamega. It is the last refuge in Kenya
of the Grey Parrot which is present in very low numbers. Two other
species, Turner's Eremomella and Chapin's' Flycatcher are globally
threatened and a further 15 species are regionally threatened. Amongst
the Kakamega specials are Ansorge's Greenbul, the Blue-headed Bee-eater,
the Red-chested Owlet, Shelley's Greenbul, Grey-chested Illadopsis,
Brown Illadopsis and the Green-throated Sunbird.
Masai Mara NP (Mara
Camp, Governors Private Camp, Mara
Explorer, Kichwa Tembo Tented Camp, Mara
Serena)
The abundance of game means that 6 out of the 7 species of Kenyan
vulture (Egyptian, Hooded, Griffon, Nubian, White-backed and White-headed)
can be seen in the game reserve in a bird list totalling over 450
species. These range from the large and highly conspicuous Common
Ostrich, to the small Cardinal Quelea. From the ever-present White-bellied
Loerie to its two uncommon relatives, the Bare-faced Loerie and
the Eastern Grey Plantain-eater. The Mara is also home to three
Woodpeckers (Golden-tailed, Little Spotted and Fine-banded). If
you get really lucky the Mara River provides an opportunity to spot
the rare and elusive African Finfoot. The Mara is also one of the
most likely spots for the Blue Quail, a rare intra African migrant.
An inconspicuous resident is Jackson's Widowbird. In the breeding
season, it becomes a master of the "high jump". Each male
tramples down a dancing circle in the grass and from this he leaps
into the air to a height of perhaps one metre. Since they group
together in loose colonies you will often have a large numbers of
males all launching themselves skywards in a bid to out-do one another!
Meru NP (Elsa's
Kopje)
Meru has a bird list of over 300 species including the elusive African
Finfoot and Pel's Fishing Owl. During the northern migration (October
through to March) it plays host to an impressively large population
of Eurasian Bee-eaters and Rollers. That said, bird watching can
be a challenge, the dense vegetation on the riverbanks makes it
very difficult to spot water birds and the long savannah grass hides
the smaller seedeaters. On the plus side the park is quiet, you
can go for hours without seeing a single tourist and this makes
bird watching a joy.
Lake Naivasha (Great Rift Valley Lodge)
The lake edge supports dense vegetation, which, in turn, supports
a thriving bird population including the Grey-capped Warbler, Spectacled
Weaver, Brimstone Canary and Red-billed Fire finch. The area has
a bird list of over 350 species. Being a freshwater lake, Naivasha
has a healthy fish population which attracts a variety of fish-eaters
including Long-tailed and Great Cormorants, Black Cormorants, Fish
Eagles and Pied Kingfishers, and Grey-backed fiscal, Black-lored
Babbler and a large population of Lovebirds.
Samburu NR (Samburu
Lodge, Samburu Intrepids), Buffalo
Springs (Samburu Serena, Sabuk Lodge)
and Shaba
Birds commonly seen in Samburu include the Bristle-crowned Starling,
Verreaux's Eagle-owl, Night Heron, Palm-Nut Vulture and Pygmy Falcon;
Donaldson-Smith's Sparrow Weaver, and Red-headed Weaver. Shaba's
birdlife is fairly similar to Samburu/Buffalo Springs bit it also
includes the rare and endemic Wiliiams' Lark about which very little
is known.
Tsavo NP (Patrick's
Camp, Voyager Safari Camp)
The bird life is as varied as the landscape, from the conspicuous
flocks of Golden-breasted Starlings around most of the park to the
dull, skulking Evergreen Forest Warbler in the Chyulu hills. Tsavo
is home to both the Common Ostrich present in Tsavo West and the
Somali Ostrich in Tsavo East. Hartlaub's Bustard is found in both
parts of the NP. Tsavo lies on one of the main migration routes
for northern hemisphere birds.
Each year from September to November the Ngulia region becomes the
base for large-scale netting and ringing exercise. This provides
important information on the migratory routes and the habits of
many common northern species. This position on the migration route
makes Tsavo a good place to spot some of the rarer migrant falcons,
with Eleonora's Falcon and the Sooty Falcon both being on the bird
list for the region (they're most commonly seen in October and November
although they may also be seen from March to May).
Tsavo West, or at least
the southern part of the park, is also fairly close to the Taita
Hills, home to the Taita Thrush, an endangered species endemic to
Kenya, and the Taita White-eye, both of which are found only in
that part of Kenya. Right down in the Southwest corner of Tsavo
on the border with Tanzania is Lake Jipe where some of Kenya's less
common water birds, such as the African Water Rail, Purple Swamphen
and Lesser Jacana can be seen.
Best Times to Go
For sheer numbers the best time is between October and April when
more than 120 migrant species have arrived from the Northern hemisphere,
mostly from the Palearctic but with some African migrants such as
Forbes-Watson's Swift; there is also the chance of finding one of
the passage migrants such as the Sooty Falcon in March-April and
October-December. The coast is particularly good during this period
with large flocks of water birds congregating at Mida Creek and
Sabaki Estuary, while The Rift Valley lakes and Amboseli attract
a lot of northern waterfowl.
From April to October the Northern Migrants are replaced by birds
from the Southern hemisphere and Madagascar, but these are much
fewer, no more than 10 or 12 species. It is however the time when
many of the birds are in breeding plumage following the long rains,
which makes species such as the various weavers much easier as well
as much more colourful. The Mara River regularly collects mixed
flocks of vultures and Marabou feeding on the animals that failed
to cross the river. Kenya's seasons come in two basic flavours -
wet and dry.
Aside from the obvious disadvantages of trying to peer through binoculars
in a tropical storm the rainy seasons can leave many roads and tracks
unusable, especially if you don't have the advantage of 4WD vehicles.
This can leave some parks, or parts of some parks, totally unreachable.
The long rains are usually between March and June with the highest
levels of rainfall in April and May. The short rains start in late
October and go through to December. It does however vary throughout
the country and Northern Kenya is generally happy for any rain it
can get.
Prices per person
Generally included with the accommodation rates for the recommended
camps above. For Specialist Birding Safari itineraries please enquire
here
Tailor-made birding safaris with renown ornithologist - from US$240
(GBP150) per day and travelling and accommodation expenses of
the specialist (Please note this rate excludes your own accommodation
and other expenses. The above rate is just for the ornithologist
to accompany your group.)
|
|
