The Migration Is Here!

The weather’s great with clear mornings, cool afternoons and clear sunsets. Temperatures vary between 16ºC and 27ºC.

    

THE GREAT MIGRATION OF THE WILDEBEEST AND ZEBRAS

The annual migration of the wildebeest and zebra has begun – both for the resident from the Loita plains and those coming in from the Serengeti.

The Serengeti-Mara migration is at Sand River approaching the Mara reserve. The herds can be seen south of Mara Intrepids Camp by the Mara Bridge.  They are moving faster than usual. This could be due to the fresh grass sprouting after the rains a few days ago.

The resident wildebeest and zebra are at Topi Plain between Olare Orok and Rhino Ridge. There are also big herds of topis, gazelles and hartebeests. 

   

PREDATORS SIGHTINGS

The predators are having a good time now for there is plenty of food i.e. prey.

LIONS

Lion sightings are getting better for the prides are beginning to re-group themselves. There is enough food for the families and less competition for food.

The chances of the cubs surviving are good versus when there’s not enough prey around.

The Olkiombo pride, Ridge pride and Marsh pride are doing well with no cubs lost.

The Olkeju-ronkai pride lost 12 of their 13 cubs last year. 

LEOPARDS

Olive and Saba are operating in their territory but Bahati is trying to distance herself from the two. Bahati has been seen between Rekero and the junction of Talek and Olare Orok rivers.

   

CHEETAHS

Regularly seen around Mara Intrepids Camp around Olkiombo plains are Malaika and her male cub aged one and half years. There’s also Tante and Narasha (Alama) with her two cubs – a male and a female.

Have you booked your safaris? We have a few slots for the wildebeest migration at Mara Intrepids, which you can combine with a safari from Samburu, and then some sun at Lamu's most amorous hideaway, Kipungani Explorer. 
Download our specials or contact us on sales@heritagehotels.co.ke.

Heritage Hotels (Kenya) manages two luxury camps in the Masai Mara - Mara Explorer and Mara Intrepids - in the confluence of the four game viewing areas of the Masai Mara. The camps are on the banks of the Talek River, with most tents spread along the banks.  Report by John Parmsau. Pictures by John Parmasau & Ndeithi Kariuki  ©Heritage Hotels Ltd, Kenya. http://www.heritage-eastafrica.com/

Diving at the Voyager Beach, Mombasa

Buccaneer Diving is Kenya’s only PADI 5 Star IDC Centre and with a dive center at Voyager Beach open daily. It is recognized for its quality of training programs offered from complete beginner through to Instructor and beyond.  Owner Bruce Phillips is a PADI Course Director, which is the organizations’ highest rating, ensuring that the PADI courses run at Buccaneer Diving are of the highest quality.

                

Buccaneer Diving is deeply committed to keeping the Mombasa Marine Park pristine and since the early nineties, has been an active stakeholder, working closely with the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS).

Buccaneer Diving has been involved in diverse and interesting projects such as creating East Africa’s largest artificial reef, the MV Dania. At this point, we are working on creating a second artificial reef program.

Our commitment to keeping the ocean doesn’t stopped there. To ensure that the reefs are properly protected in the future, we have a school children’s education program, called School To The Sea, for the lesser-privileged children in Mombasa. The children enjoy a day out at sea and learn about the sea-life first-hand with the hope that they will be the future custodians of this wonderful underwater world. Twice a year, during the World Clean-up day and the Dive into Earth day, our staff takes part in the biannual underwater clean-ups. Our most artistic sea activity has been collecting flip-flops washed ashore to create a flip-flop whale used to build whale conservation awareness.

Diving

Most of our dive sites are reef dives where the top of the reef is at 8-9m and then gently slopes down to 18-20m. A wide variety of soft coral exists on the reef with an abundance of fish. Most of our dive sites are in the Mombasa Marine Park and Reserve and as such a $10 user fee (adults) is payable to the KWS.

Watch the sinking of MV Dania below.

We also have the dive site MV Dania, a wreck that was intentionally sunk to create an artificial reef in 2002. It lies on the seabed at 30m and only advanced divers are allowed to explore it. There are also several inside-the-reef dive sites ranging from 7 to 12m. In the rough season, April to September, half our dive sites are closed (only dive in the marine park). In the calm season, October to April, all the dive sites are open.

Buccaneer Dive Sites:

• Angies Place

Angies Place

Angies Place

• Mv Dania
• Bamburi Reef
• Bamburi Coral Gardens
• Kasa

Kasa

• Rain
• Mushroom
• Taa
• Mtwapa Drop        
• Birthday Reef

Adam at Birthday Reef

Birthday Reef

• Wall
• Shelly Corner
• Likoni
• Lucky Chance

Lucky Chance

The last few weeks have been good for diving. Striped dolphins, whale sharks, bat fish, manta rays and hawksbill turtle have been spotted. When booking your next Voyager holiday, make sure to include diving in your itinerary. Buccaneer Diving's instructions are offered daily at our Water Sports Centre.

Heritage Hotels (Kenya) manages the luxury cruiser in Nyali - Voyager Beach Resort, a ship themed-resort that 'sails the seven seas'.  The Voyager Beach Resort is one of a kind on the shores of the Indian Ocean, built in the style of the old forts that once guarded the sea front complete with white washed lookout turrets and cannons, fringed by a fascinating coral reef and sparkling blue waters, just waiting for you to dive in. Article courtesy Bruce Phillips, owner Buccaneer Diving Kenya. Pictures courtesy ©Adam Sanders and Heritage Hotels Library. 

Samburu Intrepids Camp’s Eco-Garden

COMMITTED TO FOOD SAFETY QUALITY AND ECO TOURISM AWARENESS

INTRODUCTION

Supporting Kenya’s Millennium Development Goals regarding environmental sustainability, Samburu Intrepids Camp started an eco-garden 11years ago to cut back on carbon miles while at the same time ensuring healthier organic foods for our guests.

 ECONOMIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFITS:

By growing our own vegetables and fruits, Samburu Intrepids has cut down on its grocery bills. Our spectacular 25x50m eco-garden is open for guests to see. Just enquire at the reception.

• Save money on groceries 

 A packet of seeds cost us less than a dollar. If we buy heirloom tomato, non-hybrid species, we save the seeds from the best producers, dry them, and plant again. We are therefore able to feed our guests even when the rainy season is over. To give our guest a Kenyan taste, we fuse traditional food like sweet potato, yams and arrow root.

• Reduce environmental degradation. Our garden helps the planet in many ways. We grow our food organically, without pesticides and herbicides, We collect our organic manure from the nearby Samburu village (Manyatta) .This helps reduce carbon emissions and spares the earth the burden of unnecessary air and water pollution.

• Healthy outdoor exercise. Planting, weeding, watering, and harvesting add purposeful physical activity to our environment. Our staff is committed to healthy exercises. It is good to lift heavy objects properly, and to stretch your tight muscles before and after strenuous activity. Gardening is also a way to relax, de-stress, center your mind, and get fresh air and sunshine.
   
• Enjoy better-tasting food. Fresh food is the best food. Comparing the flavor of a homegrown tomato with the taste of a store-bought one is like comparing apples to wallpaper paste. If it tastes better, you are more likely to be eating healthy, fresh produce that’s good for your body. Visit Samburu Intrepids Camp and you’ll have tastes to remember.

• Build a sense of pride. As we grow, we are very happy to watching a seed blossom under the care of our great chefs to become food on our guests plates .It’s an amazing sense of accomplishment.

•  Stop worrying about food safety. We are committed to the Hazard analysis and critical control points (HACCP), a systematic approach to food safety. Since we responsibly grow our own food, we don't have to worry about contamination that may occur at the farm, manufacturing plant, or transportation process. This means that when the whole world is avoiding tomatoes due to contamination, for example, we don't have to go without—you can trust that your food is safe and healthy to eat.
• Reduce food waste. Many people throw away about $1000 worth of food each year. It's a lot easier to toss a moldy orange that you bought than a perfect red pepper that you patiently watched ripen over the course of several weeks. When it's "yours," you will be less likely to take it for granted and more likely to eat it (or preserve it) before it goes to waste.

THE  CHEF’S GIMMICKS

Plating is the art of presenting food in a way that enhances and improves the appeal of the food itself.
It involves many different aspects of food preparation and presentation, starting with the combination of foods that make up the meal, to how the food is cooked, to the plate that is used to serve it, to how it is arranged on that plate, to the garnish decorating the dish.

Plating can take a dining experience from good to Unforgettable!

Turns out, not only do we enjoy eating beautifully presented food more, we actually get more nutrients from food that is sensually appealing. The saying, “you eat first with your eyes,” is literally true.

 

Sweet or Savory 

There is no good night without dessert. It makes for a delicate balance between the lips and aiding in digestion for a good night’s sleep.

Heritage Hotels (Kenya) manages one luxury camps in SamburuNational Reserve - Samburu Intrepids Camp. A lush oasis on the banks of the great Uaso Nyiro River, this tented lodge is a delight to be in – deliciously cooled by the river breeze and the forest. Reports and pictures ©Heritage Hotels Ltd, Kenya. http://www.heritage-eastafrica.com/

Out And About In Ziwani, Tsavo West

MASAI GIRAFFE

Driving to Serengeti plains (not to be confused with Serengeti National Park in northern Tanzania), our guests had one wish – to see the Masai giraffe. They had never seen them in the wild. Luckily near Lake Jipe we spotted a herd after which we returned to the Camp via Slaughter hill and the Sniper Tree – both features of the First World War.

NORTHERN WHITE-CROWNED SHRIKE (Eurocephalus rueppelli)

With up to 200 different species of birds around the Santé River, the Northern White-Crowned shrike is often seen in pairs of 3 or 4. They spend much of the time hunting from exposed perches. They are quite vocal, sometimes producing harsh scolding notes and at other times musical tweets. This picture of the shrike was taken in the Camp.

THE RED BISHOP

A seasonal bird at the Camp, we’ve had great sightings during the rains along Sante River.

SPOTTED HYEANAS

Spotted hyenas are the largest and most powerful of the three species of hyena found in Africa. They are also the most numerous of East Africa’s large predators.

During the day, hyenas often lie in shallow muddy pools to keep cool. We see them often on game drives.

However, we also have the Stripped hyenas in our Sanctuary. They are rare and strictly nocturnal predators. We sometimes see them on our night game drives.

HIPPO HOME DEFENSE

According to African cultural beliefs, (for example the Maasai), the hippopotamus are regarded as very jealous in terms of sharing females in their territory. It doesn’t exist. Male hippos will fight to death to defend their territory.

This is what we witnessed with our guests during the night game drive and lots of thanks to Liz and Wayne Peachey from England for sharing with us with these amazing photographs of the fight.

This huge Hippo was captured while grazing in Sante River after a rest at the restaurant foyer.

AN UNUSUAL ZEBRA

A few months ago, I reported about the Albino zebra on Ziwani plains. A few days ago, we were on a game drive in the Sanctuary, looking out for the three cheetah brothers (i.e. Kazungu, Juma and Patrick) whom we had not seen for a few months.

We headed to Kidong plains since the Sanctuary has been extended that far. Both sides of the road were occupied by large herds of zebras when I spotted the albino zebra in the middle of other zebras. It was good seeing him again – alive.

Heritage Hotels (Kenya) manages one luxury camp on the western edge of Tsavo West National Park - Voyager Ziwani Camp. Located on a private sanctuary on the western edge of Tsavo, the camp sits on a secluded dam on the Sante River – home to turtles, crocodiles and hundreds of basking hippos.   Reports and pictures by Salim Ibrahim & Stephen "Chameleon" Lekatoo, Voyager Ziwani Camp ©Heritage Hotels Ltd, Kenya. http://www.heritage-eastafrica.com/