Hornbill Level

Day One You are collected from Nairobi and drive via Namanga (a beautiful hilly drive) to the Amboseli National Park at the foot of Kilimanjaro. Lunch at the Amboseli Serena Lodge before an afternoon game drive, dinner and overnight at the Serena Lodge.

Amboseli is a fairly small National Park of 392 square kilometers, originally opened in 1948. It is however, amazingly rich in both flora and fauna. Amboseli is a designated International Bio-sphere reserve and is the home of a large number of world famous researchers, especially with regard to elephant.

Amboseli, meaning "Salty Dust" in the Masai language is an important rangeland in the Masai culture. The area surrounding the park is made up of Masai ranch areas, which offer a wide variety of game viewing and walking safari options, not found within the park itself.

The 'salty dust' is volcanic ash from Mount Kilimanjaro eruptions a millennium ago. The dry, arid plains covered by this dust form heat wave mirages in the dry season. Endless herds of animals seem to waver in the distance, interrupted only by the real herds of zebra and wildebeest hovering in front.

This arid landscape belies the reality, as Amboseli has an endless water supply from the ice caps of Kilimanjaro. This water forms two clear water springs in the middle of the park that provide a permanent water supply, even in drought.

Amboseli is probably most famous for its photographs of elephant with Mount Kilimanjaro in the background. The mountain is situated on the boundary of the park and Amboseli is certainly one of the finest locations for mountain spotting with Mount Meru also being seen with ease.

The elephant themselves are of course a major attraction in Amboseli. The bull elephant here have some of the largest tusks in Kenya. Cynthia Moss and her assistants have followed and studied these elephant for over 20 years, providing some of the most detailed knowledge of these magnificent animals available. The elephant are generally found in larger herds than most other areas and are quite habituated to people, allowing excellent photography, even for us amateurs!

Most of the cat species, including leopard, lion, cheetah and caracal may be easily seen in Amboseli, as are the plains antelope and migrating wildebeest.

Day Two Early morning game drive, breakfast at lodge, morning game drive, lunch and afternoon game drive. Dinner and overnight at the lodge.

Day Three Breakfast at the lodge, drive through Rift Valley to Lake Naivasha. Enjoy a late lunch at the Country Club and then an afternoon boat trip to Crescent Island in the Lake. Dinner and overnight at the Club.

The Rift Valley is one of the wonders of the world, stretching from the Middle East, down through Africa, reaching as far as Mozambique. The staggering view, as you approach from Nairobi, Kenya is quite unbelievable. The ground suddenly disappears from under you to show the huge expanse of the great rift, stretching for thousands of miles in either direction. Whilst this stunning introduction to the Rift valley is amazing in itself, actually descending and exploring the Lakes area of the Rift in Kenya is a "not to be missed" opportunity.

The first lake approached is the beautiful, deep-green Naivasha. Whilst not a National Park or Reserve itself, the Lake Naivasha Basin holds two small National Parks, both of which are well worth a visit. Naivasha of course is well worth a visit despite not being a National Park! Excellent bird watching, a large population of hippo, good fishing and a wide range of superb hotels, camps and lodges make Lake Naivasha a favored spot for weekend breaks.

The first Park in the area, the Mount Longonot National Park is based around a young volcano, which rises up to 2,776 meters. Created amongst the massive eruptions that formed the Rift itself, Longonot has beautiful V-shaped valleys and ridges covered in forest, which are a haven for a variety of birds and animals. With hiking, rock climbing, and biking joining the more normal game viewing activities, this park is perfect for the more active visitor.

The second park is the Hell's Gate National Park. Famous for its natural hot geysers, eagle and vulture breeding grounds, obsidian deposits and extinct volcanoes, it is possible to walk, game drive, camp, cycle and rock climb within the park. Beautiful rock gorges and natural steam vents add to the beauty of this tiny, 68square km. Park. Game to view includes hyrax, buffalo, giraffe, eland, hartebeest, lion and leopard. As with all of the Rift Valley Parks, Hell's Gate is also an ornithologist's dream. The cliffs of Hell's Gate are the breeding grounds for vultures, Verreaux Eagles, Auger Buzzards and thousands of swifts.

Day Four Breakfast at the club, drive to the Masai Mara in time for a late lunch. Afternoon game drive, dinner and overnight at the Mara Simba Lodge.

Located to the south of Nairobi, and bordering Tanzania, the Masai Mara forms part of the huge Serengeti eco-system. The Mara spreads over 1510 square kilometers of rolling plains, sudden rocky outcrops, and green winding rivers.

Not only is the Mara blessed with this stunning landscape, but also its animal diversity is one of the greatest in Africa. Surrounded by the grazing lands of the Masai people, the Mara is a sanctuary for all of the "Big Five" animals: lion, elephant, buffalo, rhino and leopard. The sweet grasses and abundant water ensure a full compliment of plains game such as the Impala and Thompsons gazelle. The deep river pools provide homes for hippo and crocodiles.

Each year, generally in August/September, the Mara is host to the spectacular Wildebeest Migration, one of the natural wonders of the world! Literally millions of these awkwardly shaped ungulates move across the open plains in an endless stream stretching from horizon to horizon. The movement of this vast herd is fascinating in itself, but it is seldom that a day goes by without the added bonus of watching the predators that follow the herd. Lion, leopard, cheetah and wild dogs rely on the herd for food. Spotting one of these magnificent predators is more or less guaranteed at this time.

The breath-taking beauty of the Masai Mara and its astonishing diversity of wildlife combine to ensure that the Mara is one of the most popular stops on a Kenyan safari.

Day Five Early morning game drive, breakfast, morning game drive, lunch or picnic, afternoon game drive, dinner and overnight at the lodge.

Day Six Breakfast at the lodge, and then drive back to Nairobi for your international flight.

Includes: All transfers, all accommodation, all meals, water in vehicle, private vehicle and expert driver/guide, all park fees and local taxes

Excludes: International airfares, visas, drinks, personal purchases and tips

Contact Melinda Rees for more information on this safari.

Why travel with us? Because Eco-resorts is changing the world-one journey at a time.

Animals and people both need land. Ecotourism provides an alternative income for the people, leaving space for the migratory animals. Eco-resorts actively supports the villages and projects that are protecting East Africa's environment and culture.

We develop self-help eco-projects, which promote wildlife conservation. We also educate both our consumers and our partner camps with two free ezines. We use renewable energy products, reduce paper and plastic consumption in our office and have left the natural vegetation unscathed, resulting in duiker and monitor lizards visiting the office!

We donate 10% of all post-tax profits to fund community and/or conservation projects. Community projects are operated with the local villagers as the operators and managers; Eco-resorts provides advice and guidance when requested, but abides by local beliefs and traditions.

Our current projects include:

- The Children of the Rising Sun Orphanage, which provides accommodation, meals, medicine and schooling for 28 street-children. Our goal is to have a vocational job-training center operational at the home, for the kids and local villagers.

- The Arabuko Sokoke Forest Reserve, the last remaining tract of coastal lowland forest in Kenya, which provides the only refuge for several endemic birds and mammals, such as the golden-rumped elephant shrew and the Sokoke Pippet. Designated as one of Conservation International's 26 global bio-diversity hotspots (www.conservation.org) and surrounded on all sides by an ever increasing human population, the Forest is in danger of disappearing as trees are cut for carvings, land cleared for subsistence farming and animals trapped for food.

Eco-resorts hopes to ensure that the local villagers become the greatest supporters of the Forest. One of the many projects in the Forest trains the local villagers to breed forest butterfly species for export to the live butterfly market.

With two local butterfly farms already in operation, over 400 people in the area bordering the Forest now have an income that relies upon the continued health of the Forest. Our goal is to employ another 100 people.

Please contact melinda@eco-resorts.com for more detailed information on our ezines and the Eco-resorts community and wildlife conservation projects that your eco-adventure safari will support. Help us make a difference!