Kidogo News Letter Sept/Oct 2006

We’ve had a fair bit of rain in the afternoons over the last couple of weeks and the area is looking lovely and green again. The wildebeest, who were here a month or so ago, have returned in the last few days and the continuous grunting noise is present once more. There’s something quite soothing about it and the plains look magnificent with the ribbons of animals stretching out for miles.

After one rain storm a Ker and Downey group, led my Tim Malaise, went down to the quarry luga, where they came across Lenkoko, the huge bull elephan,t and some of his family having a wonderful mud bath. They were literally throwing themselves into it, burying their tusks in and rolling about. Tim said it was one of the most special elephant sightings he’s ever seen -which is something for an experienced guide to say. As the group were enjoying the elephants, the two dominant male Conservancy lions emerged from the bushes and began playing with the elephants. This was a sight in its self, but they then began stalking the vehicles as the dark approached and the guests returned in spirits which echoed that of the animals after the rains.

The guides have done exceptionally well recently. Here are some of the highlights:

Jimmy saw an aardvark on his way home with the spot light- the first we’ve seen in the area and more remarkably the first for Rekero in 10 years.

John set off in a different direction the following evening with the Rudaizky group from South Africa , and found an aardwolf with her cub. This is the second aardwolf sighting since Kidogo opened and really goes to show how much can be spotted after dark, something which isn’t possible in the Reserve.

Jackson wasn’t to be outdone and was rewarded with a leap of three leopards, which he watched with his guests for an amazing five hours! This has been a great reward for our most senior and experienced guide. Yesterday he also saw a caracal with two cubs on Kerepuut Luga, just next to Kidogo. All pretty remarkable things and we’re really pleased that our guests have had the opportunity to see such rare sights.

For those who love walking and a bit of adventure we’ve had some fantastic expeditions up and down the Emotoroki (meaning Egyptian goose in Maa) gorge, just north of the camp. It really is a wonderful place; with wild flowers, deep pools and bird song all around. Today we came across a troupe of vervet monkies, making a terrible commotion as there was a leopard near by and we came back to a well- deserved brunch and delicious bloody marys.

All of this would not have been possible without the hard work of the whole Conservancy team, and they must feel justly rewarded for their efforts when they hear of the excellent game viewing we’ve been experiencing in the area. The pride of 11 are becoming habituated, as are the other animals and there are so many other activities on offer that we feel Kidogo and this Conservancy is the way forward for conservation and tourism in Kenya.