July 5 - Up and Away
Today we got up early to catch a charter flight to Lake Mgadi in the South Rift area of Kenya. On our way, we had the wonderful opportunity to meet up with a bull elephant in Musth. Just behind him was a seasonal waterhole full of flamingoes. There must have been at least 300 of them! With Kilimanjaro in the background, we couldn't have asked for a better way to say goodbye to the park.
The bull elephant who met us in the morning to say goodbye as we left, flamingos in the background, and in the skyline. Amazing!
The flight to Lake Mgadi was smoother and more scenic than most commercial flights I have experienced. From there we were transported on an extremely bumpy road to the Olkiramatian Group Ranch. We will be staying here for the next five days and learning about their community-based conservation projects. (Check out their blog.) This area has a membership group and a council that oversees the research and conservation of the area. There is a women's group that has been formed and is creating a Resource Center where ranchers, resource managers, conservationists, researchers and tourists can come together and learn from one another. So far, this group is the friendliest we have met. They are truly heart-warming and happy to see us, though we've never met before. There are outdoor showers with water heated by the sun and a 'sand closet' instead of the hole in the ground that was considered a toilet at the last campsite. Already, the experience is exceeding my expectations!
Here are some photos from Nicole:
Here's the plane we took to get into ORC.
New buildings being constructed at the Olkiramatian Resource Center site.
Lions in ORC.
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1 comment:
Africa and Kenya are two of the most wonderful places that I visited! Seeing all the wild animals and being close to nature were the best times of my life! Of course, flying on our chartered plane was also an experience! *Corina*
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