Masai Level

Day 1 Arrive into Nairobi International Airport. Met at the airport and transferred to a delightful, romantic bed and breakfast hotel on the outskirts of Nairobi for the night.

Day 2 Collected after breakfast by your driver/guide and head out for your camping exploration of Kenya. Spend a stunning two hours driving through the Great Rift Valley escarpment. The Rift Valley is millions of years old, more than 5,400 miles long and a sight not to be missed!

In Kenya, seven lakes are found in this valley: Magadi, Naivasha, Elementeita, Nakuru, Bogoria, Baringo and Turkana. Only Naivasha and Baringo are fresh water lakes, with the other lakes draining through volcanic rock, collecting minerals and alkaline soils. None of the lakes have an obvious outflow and evaporation has deposited so much alkaline soil and minerals in the other five lakes, that the waters are highly saline and undrinkable. This is a bonus for posterity though, as the highly mineralized and alkaline soils around these lakes, both past and present, are a superb medium for turning bones into fossils and are one of the reasons so many ancient archeological sites are located within the Rift Valley.

Arrive at your campsite at the Lake Nakuru National Park in time for lunch. After lunch spend the afternoon exploring this superb little park with its population of rhino, lion, leopard, hippo and of course, the famous flamingos. Dinner and overnight at the campsite.

Day 3 After an early morning game drive in the park, have breakfast before heading further up the Rift Valley to Lake Baringo. A spectacular fresh water lake, Baringo is home to the Njemps fishermen whose livelihood depends on their skill in building boats made entirely out of reeds.

The Njemps Tribe is a tiny sub-group of the Maa speaking Nilotic language group. Their closest cousins are the Masai and Samburu, yet isolation has turned them from nomadic cattle herders to sedentary village fishermen. The Njemps Tribe builds their boats out of the long reeds found growing on the edge of the lake.

Related to the Egyptian papyrus reeds, these reeds soak up water without sinking, providing a damp, but floating platform for fishing boats. Virtually unsinkable, these tiny and unstable looking boats are used by this tribe as they brave hippo-infested waters to land the daily catch. The fish in this land-locked lake are a clue to the past as well, as they are closely related to the Nile River and lake Victoria fish species.

It seems that at one time, Baringo must have been connected to the Nile. Enjoy an afternoon bird walk along the base of the 100-foot cliffs that provide stunning views of the lake, after setting up camp in a Tortillis tree Acacia Glade. You'll have a good chance of seeing hippo, crocodile, and fish eagles hunting before you head back to camp to try your hand at traditional open fire oven cooking with your camp chef.

Day 4 You'll spend this day with the Njemps tribe, exploring the local village, trying to build your own reed boat, helping the village ladies with their fish preparation and learning about the culture of this little known lakeside tribe. If a boat is available, you could even try your hand at local fishing before enjoying a trip onto the water in a slightly more stable, modern boat to search for hippo.

Days 5 - 7 After breakfast it's time to break camp and leave for Mount Elgon, via the Kerio Valley, which provides some of the world's most spectacular scenery, to the rich highland farming area around the Mountain. Spend the afternoon settling into camp with a gentle walk in the evening before dinner and overnight at the campsite where you will spend the next 3 nights.

Mount Elgon is a National Park famous for its elephant caves and walking safaris in the Saiwa Swamps in search of the webbed foot Sitatunga Antelope. This rare little antelope is extremely shy and quiet tracking is required to find it. But the sight of this elegant brown antelope 'running across water' is simply magical!

Mount Elgon is a large, extinct volcano that straddles the border between Kenya and Uganda. No one is sure, but it last erupted millennia ago. Reaching a height of 4,320 meters and extending over 100 km in diameter, Mount Elgon is the largest, although not the highest of Kenya's mountains. On the Kenyan side of the border, 340 square kilometers of the mountain has been set aside as a National Park, preserving a wide range of natural vegetation in an otherwise intensively cultivated area.

The mountain invites exploration, as you wind your way through a mixed forest of deciduous and evergreen trees, including magnificent specimens of the East African Cedar and the Podo, both reaching upwards of 30 meters tall. Branches are frequently festooned with gray and green lichen and a tangle of purple, white and pink wild orchids.

With luck, one will observe black and white Colobus and the Blue Monkey, as well as the Giant Forest Hog, and Red Forest Duiker. The Colobus are a very special monkey, being totally arboreal. Their hands are not adapted for use on the ground, only for gripping trees, which makes them extremely slow and vulnerable to predation if on the forest floor.

Many leopards inhabit the park, as do buffalo and waterbuck, which resemble shaggy reindeer. Look out for the twitch of spotted tail dangling down from a branch; frequently this is the only clue to the location of this elusive and beautiful spotted cat. A wide range of birds, including the rare Forest Francolin make Mount Elgon a bird watchers' delight. Francolins', although able to fly, are basically ground dwelling birds, about the size and shape of a small guinea fowl. They are frequently found only by their quite noisy, chattering call. The flora of the forest floor is also interesting for botanists where many rare species of flower may be found. With your campsite located inside the park, you have a good chance of spotting a number of these animals from the comfort of the camp!

Mount Elgon is also well known for its four explorable caves, formed by the action of water on ancient volcanic ash. These caves play a vital and unique role in the lives of forest animals. Families and sometimes entire villages of the El Gonyi, a Masai tribe, lived for centuries in the caves with their cattle.

The minerals contained in the rocks of the caves are vital to the well being of cattle and other grazing animals. High rainfall in this area has denuded the soil of natural salts and minerals and the caves provide the only source of salt. A fascinating area, Mount Elgon National Park is one of the few parks where walking explorations are possible and the area is especially enjoyable for hikers and bird-watchers. Your Kenya Wildlife Service guides will introduce you to the local flora and fauna and also explain the history and culture of the El Gonyi tribe.

The Kenya Wildlife Service is the official body appointed to monitor and preserve Kenya's natural heritage. The KWS rangers patrol the parks and reserves throughout Kenya, preventing poaching on one hand, and helping to develop tourism on the other. Frequently the KWS rangers are reformed poachers themselves, now providing their superb tracking skills and animal knowledge towards the protection of the animals and land.

Day 8 On the last day in this area, you'll explore the Kakamega market as you re-supply on fresh vegetables and fruit. Practice the traditional art of bargaining as you explore this vibrant market town. Kakamega is in the heart of Western Kenya, the most populated and most fertile are in the country. This market is one of the largest in the area and its wares include samples of virtually every produce that is available in the country. Bright red tomatoes lie next to yellow-green matoke bananas. Yellow, orange, red and black clad women saunter through the aisles, with huge kikapus (baskets) balanced on their heads. And all around there are the cacophony of voices bargaining in a multitude of languages.

Then continue into the Kakamega Tropical Rain Forest, the last remaining tropical rain forest in Kenya. Here you go on a guided nature walk of the forest learning about the numerous tribal medicine plants that have developed from this incredibly rich eco-system. Camp is set up deep in the forest, where you are able to experience the eerie sounds of the forest nightlife from the comfort of your tents.

Day 9 Further explore the wonderful variety of life in this unique eco-system with the local expert guides.

Days 10-14 After an early breakfast, depart south for the Masai Mara via the tea growing highlands with a picnic lunch en route, arriving in the late afternoon. This stunning area combines an introduction to what is arguably Kenya's most famous tribe, the Masai, with an exploration of its richest eco-system.

Mara means "contrast" in the Maa tongue, referring to the contrast of fair, savannah land and dark trees in the area. 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, which are of course, closely followed by lion, leopard and cheetah. The deep river pools provide homes for hippo and crocodiles.

You'll spend four nights camping in the Mara and in the Loita Hills areas at night as you walk through the bush with your Masai Guides during the day. Your days are spent with the local Masai in their Manyattas (villages), learning how to make the superb beadwork jewelry, weave baskets, thatch roofs, repair mud and reed huts and herd the cattle that form the entire basis of the Masai tribe's economy. If you are lucky, a walk through the plains with a medicine man proves that every plant and bush has a use, but be careful when tasting them, as some of the local plants are highly hallucinogenic!

Your moran (warrior) guide will take you through the Loita Hills in search of the wildlife, learning about tracks and spoor, plants and insects. You will also have the opportunity to game drive through the Mara Reserve itself in search of buffalo, elephant, lion, cheetah, antelope and the numerous other species that make the Mara area their home.

The Masai are arguably the most famous of Kenya's many tribes. With their fearsome reputation as warriors, they single-handedly kept the Arabic slavers out of Kenya's interior, providing a protection that much of the rest of East Africa did not enjoy.

The Masai are of the Nilotic language group, and descended into Kenya from the northern areas now known as Sudan and Ethiopia. They spread out over the rolling plains and savannah of the Mara area in what is believed to be the 17th Century.

The Masai culture is totally based upon their cattle. Their diet consists of fresh and curdled milk, carried and stored in long, decorated gourds, supplemented by blood tapped from the jugular vein of their cattle. Unfortunately this milk frequently carries bruchellosis, which often causes painful arthritis type pains in the joints and is a frequent disease of the Masai tribe. For meat the Masai will slaughter a sheep or a goat, and will only slaughter a cow or bullock for ceremonial purposes.

The Masai traditions of 'age groups', where all men born within a specific 12-15 year era are considered to be one group, will be explained, as will the traditions, taboos and responsibilities of each group. The Moran or warrior group is the best known, comprising of males aged from between 14 to about 30 years old. These are the men who herd the cattle through the plains and who live separately from the rest of the tribe. It is not until the Moran enter the next age group and become junior elders that they are allowed to take a wife, at which time the average age of the male is between 30-35 years of age. The girls on the other hand are generally around 14 or 15 years of age when married.

With the exception of eland and buffalo, the eating of wild game is forbidden by the Masai culture; therefore the Masai do not hunt. Instead their herds of cattle share the wilderness with the wildlife. Cattle are prime lion bait, which means that the lion is viewed as an enemy, but still only hunted if the lion has killed their cattle. However, the rest of the wildlife is not considered a threat and left alone. The relationship between the Masai and the wildlife is therefore one of harmony instead of competition, as they do not clear and fence land for farming, but share the land with the animals placed on it.

While in the Mara, experience time as a warrior, herding the cattle through grazing lands shared with all the wild animals, as you walk across the plains with your Masai escorts to the next village. Imagine walking on small cattle or game trails through open bush land, with only the Masai spear for protection! You are welcome to walk anywhere from 2-6 hours per day, depending on your enthusiasm! These days are flexible, with time spent exploring the villages and wandering through the wilderness as you experience the wilderness and the culture of the Masai.

Day 14 After lunch, bid farewell to the Masai and the Loita Hills as you head back to Nairobi and the Macushla House bed and breakfast hotel. Arrive at teatime in Nairobi and relax at Macushla House for your last night in the country.

Day 15 After breakfast, transfer to the Nairobi International Airport for your flight home.

Includes: This self-camping style safari provides the clients with their own vehicle, a driver/guide, a camp cook and helper and igloo style, two man tents with 3-inch mattresses for sleeping. They use public campsites in the areas visited, which would provide long drop style safari toilets. The camp staff will heat water for you and you are able to have traditional bucket style safari showers. Chairs, tables and all camping equipment is provided. All meals, water, park and camping fees are included.

Excludes: Sleeping bags, towels, personal purchases, tips, alcoholic drinks, visas and international flights.

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!