Naivasha to Kakamega – June 10

Kearsten, Katie & Sarah

After another night of intense games of mafia around the fire with both bonding and (healthy) discord we caught one final glimpse of a hippo grazing out of the water. We’ve made some progress in holding back screams of excitement when spotting them. Key word, some. Before going to bed, we all helped the Bunduz crew take down our large tent and tables which was an arduous task – but many hands make light work! Many of us also made our final phone calls to families and friends before losing service for the next 4 days as we venture into the afro tropical rainforest.

In the morning we awoke bright and early to take down our tents and pack our bags before breakfast at 7am. The hadada ibises and Egyptian geese formed a cacophony in the background as always. They will be greatly missed (not by Olin) as we partake in the next leg of our journey to Kakamega forest. The Bunduz crew made us yet another delicious breakfast and this time there were pancakes!! It was Lauren and Kearsten’s favourite part of breakfast and they made sure to eat as many as possible before the 7 hour long road trip. There was also some arrowroot which was a new food item for some of us – it tasted like starchier potatoes and had cool purple streaks in it. Then we all got together to pack our lunches for the road – there was a huge selection of options for sandwich creations and snacks kindly prepared by the Bunduz crew. While loading the bus, we played the ultimate game of Tetris carefully loading everything onto the bus to begin our long day on the road. The silly little vervet monkeys wasted no time in coming to take care of all our garbage and leftovers. At first Katie attempted to fend them off but to no avail – she eventually had to admit defeat and succumb to their mischief. The monkeys then took this time to try and steal Mikaela’s lunch, but had no success. 

During the bus ride most of us slept, but some of us gazed out the window at the changing scenery. Before Nakuru we stopped at a gas station for a quick break – some of us went to use the washroom which was very different from such facilities back home – with a simple porcelain system on the floor with no raised toilet – an interesting experience. The rest of us went to buy some snacks (Chili boom boom and tingly salt and vinegar chips)! Back on the bus we noticed Lake Ementaita in the distance – ten thousand years ago Lake Ementaita was part of one large lake together with Lake Naivasha and Lake Nakuru, but today they are all separate lakes. We also saw many areas with road repairs after the significant flooding of the past few months. Some smaller tea plantations dotted along the side of the road were another notable aspect of the drive’s scenery. While some towns seemed to rely on more traditional ways of life, others seemed to have a much more successful economy. Some towns seemed to rely on more physical labour and various methods of farming, while others had large houses, malls, and shops. We saw some people chewing on pieces of sugarcane outside of stalls selling long stalks! After this long bus ride some of us will be relying on Victoria’s back cracking and Renee’s back massaging skills for some relief. 

We finally arrived at the campsite in Kakamega at 5:40pm and hastily set up our tents and unpacked before nighttime fell upon us. The bathroom at the campsite was again somewhat rustic with a simple hole embedded in porcelain – we will need to get used to this over the next 4 days! Afterwards we gathered at the tables under the cabana and Job (our new guide for the next few days) introduced himself to us – He has lived in Kakamega his whole life and he can identify any bird we hear by their call even if he can’t see it! Some of us played some cards games and caught up on our field books while waiting to eat. After our delicious dinner, exhausted from the long drive and set ups, most of us decided to pack in early in preparation for an early start tomorrow on a bird/forest walk with Job. Stay tuned for pictures from our walks tomorrow!