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2008
KENYA CONSERVATION SAFARI WITH THE EAST AFRICAN
WILDLIFE SOCIETY, Cheetah Conservation Fund Kenya,
AND AMBOSELI TRUST FOR ELEPHANTS
A Thirteen-Day Kenya Safari
September 08 – September 20, 2008
Nairobi – Amboseli - Lewa - Masai Mara
Arriving and
Departing in Nairobi, Kenya
Limited to ONLY eight clients |
 
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Take a wild adventure safari in Kenya with the East African Wild Life Society (EAWLS) and Cheetah Conservation Fund Kenya (CCFK). See the cheetah; the fastest land mammal on earth, and meet those who work tirelessly to ensure its survival. Take advantage of years of research and successful tracking to guarantee a safari full of spectacular wildlife photo opportunities and the latest information. Your safari takes |
place in Kenya, a magnificent country with one of the greatest wildlife populations in the world. With more than 80 major animal species and the world’s widest spectrum of wildlife habitats, Kenya is the original safari destination. During your visit, you will meet representatives of the EAWLS and Mary Wykstra, Kenya representative of the CCFK. You will be privy to behind the scenes access of the CCFK and Kenya Wildlife Service operations, which will enrich you with first hand knowledge of the cheetah. |
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This is a very special safari
focused on ongoing conservation efforts in
Kenya, a magnificent country with one of the
greatest wildlife populations in the world. With
more than 80 major animal species and the
world’s widest spectrum of wildlife habitats,
Kenya is the original safari destination.
Meet with representatives from
the East African Wild Life Society (EAWLS),
Cheetah Conservation Fund Kenya (CCFK), Amboseli
Trust for Elephants, and Kenya Wildlife Society
(KWS). Take advantage of years of research to
guarantee a safari full of spectacular wildlife
photo opportunities and the latest information.
You will be privy to behind the
scenes access of the EAWLS, CCFK, Amboseli Trust
for Elephants, and KWS operations, which will
enrich you with first hand knowledge of the
wildlife that they are working to conserve and
protect. |
| Kenya Safari itinerary |
| B=Breakfast, L=Lunch, D=Dinner |
| September 08, 2008 - Nairobi |
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Upon arrival in Kenya, you will be met by your
Kimbla-Mantana professional safari driver/guides
and taken to the Karen Blixen Cottages for an
overnight stay. The cottages are located in
Karen, a beautiful, peaceful suburb
approximately 20 minutes from downtown Nairobi.
The cottages are located in the midst of one of
the oldest formal gardens in Kenya which have
huge jacaranda, candelabra, cactus, bottlebrush,
and other trees. Over 200 types of flowers bloom
throughout the year and numerous bird feeders
attract hundreds of varieties of birds.
Karen Blixen Cottages |
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| September 09, 2008 - Nairobi |
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After breakfast and a safari briefing,
your Kimbla-Mantana driver/guides will drive you
to the nearby Giraffe Center, a conservation and
education center where you’ll have the
opportunity for a close encounter with African
wildlife – and you don’t get much closer than
being kissed by a Rothschild giraffe. You’ll
learn about these gentle giants through intimate
experience at the center. Specially designed
wooden platforms mean you will find yourselves
eye to eye with members of the resident herds.
On arrival, everyone is given a handful of
special ‘giraffe treats’ which are very popular
with the more sociable herd members. Hand
feeding a giraffe lets you discover the
remarkably gentle nature of these huge
creatures. The giraffes at the centre are so at
ease with their human visitors that they will
happily eat from your hand, or if you’d like,
from between your lips with a soft lingering
kiss.
Afterwards, you will continue to the David
Sheldrick Wildlife Trust, known for its work
with elephant and rhino orphans. This Trust has
had some real impact in the lives of elephants
and rhinos, which would have normally just died
due to human poaching and surrounding population
conflict. All the elephant orphans raised by the
Trust are gradually rehabilitated back into the
wild elephant community of Tsavo National Park
when grown, a transition that is made at their
own pace and in their own time. Some of the
ex-nursery orphans have now had wild born young
which they have brought back to show their
erstwhile human family, and others are now
pregnant and living free, yet keeping in touch
with those who are still Keeper dependent.
After lunch, you will visit the Karen Blixen
Museum. Lovers of “Out of Africa" will step back
in time to breathe the spirit of the writer and
the lives she immortalized. Those interested in
the history of Kenya will appreciate the period
furnishings of this genuine farmhouse from the
early years of the 20th century. The Museum,
originally built in 1912, was the home of the
Danish author Baroness Karen Blixen (also known
by the pen name Isak Dinesen) from 1917 to 1931.
After several changes of ownership and sparked
by the success of the film of "Out of Africa,"
the house was converted into one of the
constituent museums of the National Museums of
Kenya in 1986.
Karen Blixen Cottages, B, L, D |
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| September
10, 2008 - Nairobi |
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After breakfast, you will visit the East African
Wild Life Society (EAWLS) headquarters and meet
Ali Kaka, the Executive Director of the EAWLS.
After lunch with a cheetah presentation given by
Mary Wykstra; Kenya Representative of the
Cheetah Conservation Fund, you will visit the
Kenya Wildlife Society orphanage and its orphan
cheetahs. This evening, you will enjoy dinner
with Ali Kaka and Mary Wykstra at the Karen
Blixen Cottages.
Karen Blixen Cottages, B, L, D |
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| September
11, 2008 -
Amboseli National Park |
Your safari experience begins with your
driver/guides waiting to drive you out of
Nairobi; through the Athi Plains down to
Amboseli National Park, which lies at the foot
of Mount Kilimanjaro, and which provides the
classic photographs of wildlife set to backdrop
of this snow-capped mountain. This park has some
of the highest densities and diversity of
wildlife in Africa. Many travelers avoid the
park because its main center is clogged with
lodge-based tourists. Kimbla-Mantana offers a
private campsite situated on the boundary of the
park. Here the staff has set up a luxury camp
just for your group. Kimbla-Mantana’s private
concession area at Amboseli sits in a triangle
between Lake Amboseli and the Tanzania border.
It is set amongst some green volcanic hills that
help guarantee its privacy without blocking the
views of the mountain, and it faces directly
towards Kilimanjaro. The tents are pitched on a
volcanic sandy soil with a good covering of
grass, and are scattered amongst a stand of old
Tortilis trees to give welcome shade at midday.
There is a resident herd of elephants which seem
to have a semi-regular route through the
campsite. Amboseli is best known for its
abundant and approachable elephants. Other
animals found in Amboseli include: giraffe,
gerenuk, kudu, oryx, buffalo, cheetah, impala,
lion, wildebeest, hyena, jackal, warthog, zebra,
and baboon. You will arrive in time for a late
lunch at the camp and enjoy an afternoon game
drive.
Kimbla-Mantana Mobile Classic Camp BLD |
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| September
12 - 13, 2008 -
Amboseli National Park |
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Unlimited game drives. Spend the next two days
viewing wildlife and the huge herds of elephants
for which Amboseli is famous.
You will visit the Amboseli Trust for Elephants
research camp. The Amboseli Trust for Elephants
aims to ensure the long-term conservation and
welfare of Africa’s elephants in the context of
human needs and pressures through scientific
research, training, community outreach and
public awareness. In 1968, Cynthia Moss made the
life changing decision to move to Africa to
study elephants in northern Tanzania. Four years
later, she found ideal conditions for studying
elephants in Amboseli National Park. Thus began
what was to become the longest running African
elephant field research project in the world.
Her studies of more than 1600 elephants in their
natural habitat are the most comprehensive ever
undertaken.
The elephant population in Amboseli National
Park is one of the few that has been able to
live a relatively undisturbed existence in
natural environmental conditions. This rare
situation is primarily due to two factors – the
presence of researchers and tourists in the park
and the support of the local Maasai. In the
absence of poaching and culling, the Amboseli
elephants have been increasing slowly since the
late 1970's. Amboseli is, therefore, one of the
few places in Africa where the elephant age
structure has not been drastically skewed and
the population spans the whole range from
newborn calves to old matriarchs in their 60's
and, even more unusual, many large adult bulls
in their 40's and 50's.
"If elephants are to survive, human beings will
have to be convinced that these magnificent,
intelligent creatures are entitled to retain
some share of the living space left on earth.
There could be no more persuasive argument for
them than that provided by Cynthia Moss."
--
Sir David Attenborough
You will also visit a Masai Manyatta (village)
and enjoy a Masai dance at your campfire one
evening.
Kimbla-Mantana Mobile Classic Camp BLD |
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| September
14, 2008 - Lewa Downs |
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After breakfast, you will fly to Lewa Downs.
Lewa Downs is a world famous private reserve,
featuring beautiful countryside at the foot of
Mount Kenya with plentiful wildlife viewing. The
Lewa Wildlife Conservancy is a unique experiment
in wildlife conservation and community
development and is a not-for-profit
organization.
Lewa Safari Camp BLD |
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| September 15, 2008 - Lewa Downs |
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You will spend the day at Lewa learning more about
their rhino conservation program and other
environmental programs and viewing wildlife.
Lewa Safari Camp BLD |
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| September 16, 2008 - Masai Mara Game Reserve |
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Game drive to the Lewa airstrip for your flight
to Masai Mara Game Reserve.
Masai
Mara Game Reserve
is one of the best known and popular reserves in
the whole of Africa and undoubtedly the finest
wildlife area in Kenya. Seasoned safari
travelers, travel writers, documentary makers,
and researchers often admit that the Masai Mara
is one of their favorite places. All of the big
five game is here: elephant, lion, leopard,
buffalo, and rhino. Other commonly sighted
species include: cheetah, zebra, wildebeest,
Thompson’s gazelle, Defassa waterbuck, eland,
Masai giraffe, and topi. From approximately July
to October, you will be privy to the great
migration occurring in Masai Mara, where two
million wildebeest, half a million zebra, and a
quarter million gazelle roam the plains with all
the big predators in tow. Masai Mara is home to
over one hundred species of mammals and more
than 450 species of birds. After lunch, enjoy an
afternoon game drive.
Kimbla-Mantana Mobile Classic Camp BLD |
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| September 17
- 18 - 19, 2008 - Masai Mara Game Reserve |
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Unlimited game drives.
Your driver/guides will explain the animal
behavior - and because of their expertise and
experience, will take you to the best locations
for the season to maximize your safari
experience. You will enjoy dinner
with Mary Wykstra one evening to learn about
issues facing cheetahs in Kenya and the CCFK
focus on cheetah census work with EAWLS and
community-based programs in the neighboring
Kajiado district. You will combine game drives
with visits to KWS Mara Cheetah Research
headquarters, County Council Warden and the
“Cheetah One” program in the Mara conservancy to
learn about issues facing cheetahs in game
reserves.
Kimbla-Mantana Mobile Classic Camp BLD |
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| September
20, 2008 - Nairobi |
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This morning you will fly back to Wilson Airport
and transfer Hardy House for a farewell lunch.
Afterwards, day rooms have been reserved for you
at the historic Norfolk Hotel until 6:00 p.m.
Transfer to the airport for your international
flight out this evening.
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