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A Walking Wonderland
Walking Wild from Lewa Wilderness Camp is a walking safari supported by camels, though the camels can be ridden when the terrain or route allows.
We often suggest clients stay a couple of night in Lewa where drives, walks or rides allow them to see the big game this area supports. They then start their exclusive multi day safari outside the conservancy, where wildlife numbers are less dense (although recent clients saw both elephant and lion while on foot) and walking is an excellent way to explore this region alongside a Masai guide who has grown up locally.
Some clients finish their walking safari with a stay at Il Ngwesi, while others drive or fly to other areas of Laikipia.
The walking area is generally very arid, so to see the photo below, was somewhat of a shock!
Below are a few words from the head guide, Kitonga Lipan, who led this particular safari:
"Just before the rain broke here I took a new route. Our destination was the Ewaso Nyiro river and its elephants.
In the early morning as we started our day, we had a fantastic view of Oldonyo Keeri (the Maasai name for Mt Kenya). We walked to one of the most beautiful indigenous forests in Kenya, the Mokogodo forest. As we got closer, we saw zebra and Grants gazelles and by midday we were sitting under the African pencil cedar and olive trees; in the nice cool air, listening to birds like the Turracos.
It was those same birds that woke us and we continued our walk through the forest to the Lariak-Orook spring, a beautiful stream coming out of nowhere, and there we made our camp. Just before dinner we started to hear trees breaking and knew that the elephants were getting closer. By the time we finished eating, and by the light of the moon we could see them just below us. They spent the whole night drinking at the spring.
After breakfast we journeyed on past Dol Dol village, which used to be the centre of the Laikipiak Maasai Clan in the 19th century. Here we came across pink elephant dung. Because of the drought and over grazing by livestock, there is nothing for the elephants to eat apart from a cactus like plant with pink juicy fruits (Opuntia Vulguris), which they certainly seem to be enjoying! We spent the night in Keresure, a beautiful dry river bed which is the boundary of the Ilmomonyot and ILdikirii Laikipiak Sub-Clans. It is here where the bushes are very short, that we began to catch sight of the elephants we had come to view.
Our last day took us through Oldonyiro where the Lewuaso live, another Laikipiak Maasai Sub-Clan, who are traditional bee keepers. Almost every big tree has around fifteen suspended bee hives. Holed logs are hung under the trees and aside from providing homes for the bees, help protect them from the elephant’s destruction. We walked along a lugga and over a small rocky range to the big valley that holds the Ewaso Nyiro River.
Our camel crew were very happy and I was very delighted and excited to have reached our goal. I think the camels were the happiest though, after 4 long days of work they got a good long drink."
