Tsavo, Nairobi and Timau

This blog has been written by Jessica and Jo.  We have at last found a fast internet connection so have uploaded pictures onto our last couple of blogs, should you wish to go back and look at them.

We left our campsite on the Indian Ocean near Mombasa on Sat 8 October for the drive to Tsavo National Park which is half way to Nairobi.  There is only one two lane road from Mombassa to Nairobi and it is horrendous! The traffic is nose to tail the entire way, mainly with container lorries driving to and from Mombassa port. Most travel very slowly, frequently break down and because of the weight of traffic, are very difficult to overtake. We estimated that at any one time there were up to 40,000 container lorries travelling one way or the other on this 300 mile road.  It was a most frustrating drive and a hot one!

We finally arrived in Tsavo West National Park around lunchtime on Saturday and pitched our tents in a wild camping site allocated to us on arrival before going for an afternoon game drive to the black rhino sanctuary. Sadly the rhinos did not want to be seen and we saw nothing! We then returned to the solitude of our tents for a night of wild camping. As night descended we lit a large fire and listened to the animals around us.  Jo had to get up in the middle of the night and, as instructed, shone the torch all round the perimeter of the camp first. In the torch light she picked up six pairs of yellow eyes…Jeremy (who was with her) assured her they were only jackal, it was still the quickest pee in living memory!

The following morning we had a more successful time.  We firstly visited Mzima Springs where the lake has an under water observation tank.  We saw several hippo and crocodile who were completely un-phased by our presence. We also saw lots of giraffe, zebra, impala, bush buck, warthog and the famous Tsavo red elephant (so called because they dust themselves with red earth).

We then set off for the second half of the journey to Nairobi. On the way we stopped for a break by the side of the road and Jessica stood on a upturned rusty nail which went through her shoe and an inch into her foot. After many expletives and howls of anguish we got her back to the Landrover where we cleaned up the wound as best we could and then made many phone calls to England to try to track down anyone with medical knowledge, but being a Sunday afternoon, everyone was out!  We therefore continued on to Jungle Junction campsite in Nairobi which we reached just before dark. This campsite, situated in the middle of urban Nairobi, is a favourite with overlanders who camp there or use it to store their vehicles between trips. It was a far cry from the solitude of the game park but there were hot showers which were much needed after the red dust of the Park which got everywhere.

The next day (Monday 10 October) we set off again northwards toward Mount Kenya which is some 150 miles north of Nairobi, stopping on the way at the Aga Khan hospital to have Jessica’s wound checked for infection. Once she had been sufficiently reassured that amputation was not immediately necessary she was given antibiotics and pain killers and we set off again for Timau to stay with Anne and Mark Simpkin who own a flower farm there.  Kenya, north of Nairobi, is dramatically different – fertile valleys, productive farming and quieter roads. We climbed and climbed until we reached Timau, situated on the foot hills of Mount Kenya at an altitude of some 8500 feet.

Anne and Mark’s farm seems to be on the roof of the world with beautiful views in all directions. They had kindly set aside their guest cottage for us to stay in with comfy beds, hot water and wonderful hospitality. At last we were able to relax for a couple of days, get the cleaning done, wash out the tents and prepare the Landrover for shipping back to the UK next week. Mark and Anne gave us a tour of their flower farm and production line where 40,000 roses are picked each day and flown straight to Russia, five days a week. It is a labour intensive business which employs 100 local people as the rose bushes are planted in greenhouses stretching for hundreds of yards.  Apparently the conditions at this altitude are ideal for producing perfect roses. Certainly their colours were stunning with flowers ranging from deep velvet red to burnt sienna and ice white. 

Tomorrow we return to Nairobi where Jo and Jessica will catch an evening flight back to the UK.  Jeremy will then finalise the shipping of his Landrover back home and then he and Ian hope to catch a flight back to the UK in the next week or so, but more of that in the next blog.