Dinner in the Bush

When camping I think the two most important things are food and a hot shower, in that order. I love my food so I would hate to go two or three weeks without a decent meal. We have tried both camping and lodges on our visits to Kenya and by far the best to me is camping. For one thing it's cheaper, but more importantly you also get closer to nature and to the local people, who work in the campsites and look after you really well. Although camping is basic that doesn't mean it's not comfortable, most campsites now have tents with en-suite toilet and shower which is brilliant. The campsite above was the exception. It is somehow relaxing to lie in bed at night under canvas listening to the lions roar in the distance and the calls of the hyena, they really do sound as if they are laughing. The animal calls remind you that the plains are very much alive at night.

As part of the camping experience we travel with a guide and our own personal cook. We were lucky enough to get a really good one, name Charles, he has accompanied us and fed us on most of our travels around Kenya. Being in the middle of nowhere means that you can't just pop down to the shop to get a bag of crisps or a sandwich, which is why its great to get nice food and plenty of it. Generally Charles would use the kitchen facilities in the campsite, but occasionally we have stayed in campsites where there are no cooking facilities which is why Charles brings along his little camping gas ring, the one he is using in the photo. He actually managed to rustle up a delicious three course meal for us on this, I was very impressed.

I hope that he is free to join us again on our next visit.

Mount Longonot

This photo of Mount Longonot was taken from lake Naivasha, on this years trip we decided it wouldn't hurt to be a bit more active. Usually we would spend our time following and watching the wildlife, which means that we are confined to our vehicle most of the time, for obvious reasons. I wanted to get out of the jeep for a change, walk around and enjoy the scenery, so I chose Mount Longonot. This is a small dormant volcano, well small when compared to Mount Kilimanjaro and Mount Kenya but fairly large in my opinion. At 9,108ft it is just under half the size of Kilimanjaro. I have to confess that I don't normally do alot of walking especially not in mountainous regions, however I thought it would be challenging but fun. The guide book I consulted said that it takes about an hour to reach the top then another two hours to walk around the rim, I thought even I could manage 3 hours! The guide book also said it was worth the climb for the incredible views from the top, they were at least correct in this. I had though, seriously over-estimated my fitness levels and my stamina, being a grandmother I'm no spring chicken. I probably could have climbed it in one hour if I had been training at boot camp for six months, in reality it took me two hours, with plenty of stops for water, applying sunscreen because the sun was very hot and of course to catch my breath. It was hard going but I finally reached the top.

It took 20 minutes for me to recover enough to take in my surroundings, it was a fantastic view in all directions. After we recovered Ken was all for going back down but I talked him into walking around the rim, after going to all that trouble to get up there it seemed silly to go straight back down. It didn't look that bad, but for the second time I had over-estimated my abilities. It took us three hours, the path was narrow with loose stones and dry grey dust that made certain parts slippery and almost lethal. I fell more than once so my clothes were covered in the grey dust. By this time I was also becoming quite burnt from the strong African sun, despite applying liberal amounts of sunscreen. So I had the idea of covering my bare arms and face with the dust to protect my exposed skin. It worked but I must have looked a sight when I finally descended and reached the picnic area where lunch was waiting for us. I was so exhausted after the hike that I couldn't even eat anything and boy was I happy to get a hot shower that evening.

Once I had showered and rested and was sitting out under the stars with a cold beer and mosquitos for companions. I was really proud of myself and pleased that I had done it, I felt a real sense of achievement, maybe next year I will attempt Kilimanjaro.