As always, Antony was on the ball, checking with his fellow guides and friends there to find a great sighting before e even arrived at our lodge for lunch!  He and 1 other guide got permission from a range to offroad to a recent lion kill! 

And the very full and satisfied dinner companions,  resting under a nearby tree in the heart of the day.

Our lodge there, the Lake Nakuru Sopa Lodge,  was spectacular, with expansive views of the Lake

And more Spectacular views at sunrise

After lunch, and our usual afternoon rest, we went out for another game drive

Plus

As we left the lodge this morning, we hurried to a spot where 2 black rhinos were spotted, but the scene was even more spectacular than we imagined.

What an amazing sight … without moving the safari vehicle we could watch all these animals.  

As we left the park on our way to Lake Naivasha, we stopped at Lake Nakuru for the flamingo flock, some herons and plovers.

And we found these spectacular birds

You remember the duffles bags we packed with gifts?    On our way to Lake Nakuru, we stopped at an interfaith orphanage for abandoned HIV positive children.  We brought soccer balls, pens, toy cars, jump ropes, and more.  Spent an hour as the children sang and the caregivers told us the heartbreaking story of the need for such an orphanage.

It was a very moving and rewarding stop! Our guide, “Uncle Tony” to them, has a connection to this orphanage and set up our visit for us. We are very grateful for the opportunity. I hope and pray each small gift blessed someone there, and we pray for each of those 105 children in their care and the wonderful caregivers.

On our way to visit the chimpanzee rescue center, our guide Antony heard about a pride is lions at a large reservoir, watering hole. We arrived when there were Zebra drinking and 4-5 lionesses watching and waiting.

The Zebra suddenly noticed her, stampeded away, but a couple wondered back, alone, and a perfect chance for the lions to charge! She missed them, but it was exciting to see an attempted hunt!

We visited this center today and we able to observe a few of the chimpanzees who have been rescued from human situations over the years since it was established by Jane Goodall in 1973. She started with 3 chimps, brought another 9 a couple years later, and over the years, the population in the Sanctuary has grown to 35. Five young have been born, showing these abused and damaged animals are recuperating, living a more normal life than the situation from which they were rescued. Six were found in a box when an attempt to smuggle them out was thwarted at the airport… but 2 died. One was living in a very small cage for 9 years at a gas station. They are learning to be chimpanzees again in a healthy environment, but they will not be able to be released. Because of the psychological damage they have experienced, it is feared they would not survive. Their nutrition is supplemented here, and they are cared for medically. They are not natural inhabitants of Kenya, more the jungle areas of Congo. It was a very interesting visit.

This is a group of 2 females and 2 young males, a 1 year old and a 5 year youngster.

The enclosure for the chimps is for their protection as well as ours. Should one escape and be threatening, there is a safe space for us in the viewing area. Maybe schools need these safe spaces!?

Known for the large population of Southern white Rhino and Cape Buffalo, we saw both in one scene as soon as we entered Olpejeta. There are still many Grants Gazelle impala, and antelop, plus some new ones we haven’t seen before here. The Zebra here are Common Zebra.

There are photos uploaded to our snug mug and it will have them added as we encounter new ones.

Tonight, we are took a night time safari drive. We missed the lions, it seems they had a kill yesterday and we sleeping it off! But we did see hyenas and jackets finishing off the remains of a Zebra

We also had a sighting of a very elusive stripped hyena, but he wouldn’t pose! Fabulous day in Kenya!

Today, we left Samburu for the Olpejeta Preserve, and Sweetwater Serena Tent Camp. Our new camp is inside the preserve so when we leave for game drive we are already in the park

In case you wonder, we are eating well!

The trip between campus can be a interesting ad the wildlife drives around real preserve or park. We passed thru an area of a Muslim tribe. Passed a bit north of Mount Kenya.

As we entered the olpejeta private game preserve we immediately saw a different environment and different animals! We are a higher altitude, Right on the equator but color than Samburu area which is very low and hot.

Some animals we recognized but worth a little variety. The Zebra here are Common Zebra, not Grevy Zebra . Can you see the difference in the stripes?

But there are also reticulated Giraffe, Grants gazelles and Impala here

After lunch and a rest we have our first real game drive here, but we feel that the view of the water hole from the whole camp includes most of the species we will see!

Today we got to sleep in…. To 5:45AM! We were even able to eat breakfast before our first drive of the day! And it was a fabulous drive. Antony, our guide works hard to make sure we see as many animals as possible. He heard there were 2 male lions in an area several km away so he drove there as quickly as possible. The guides communicate and Share great tips on rare sightings! On the way to, we had to stop and see a pair of elephant twins!

When we arrived at the area the 2 male lions had been sighted, there were already 4-5 vehicles vying for a good position. But the lions were resting in deep brush, nestled among the plants. Lying low! We were able to see them move when both of them tried to make a quick get away altho we couldn’t photograph them running. We found a great position to see the head of the lighter color one…. and caught a photo of him eying us!

After a half hour or so, Antony heard of a family of cheetahs, so we decided not wait out the lions any longer. And we were rewarded!

We saw a group of elephants and 2 giraffe drinking at the river and it was wonderful to watch then a while

And the contortions the poor giraffe have to do to drink!

A Small herd of Impala ran down to drink too and a couple Bachelors had to joust a bit!

For more pictures.

Our highlight of this afternoons game drive was a troop of baboons at least 200-300 strong! There is a video on the FB Group.

We also saw our first dikdik, giraffe, Zebra and lions!

We also saw more elephants

Another stunning sunset

For the full gallery, go to https://susandemaggio.smugmug.com/Samburu-Day-2-afternoon-drive

At Samburu we left at 6 for an early drive. Here are a few highlights with note at our smugmug group.