Day 1: Nairobi (arrival)
Arrive at the JKI Airport to be met by your guide.
Birding starts right away from the stairs off the plane
as the Little, African Palm Swifts and the Superb
Starling appears common while the Red-winged Starling
whistles to remind you to have your binoculars ready.
Transfer to the hotel for a rest, followed by a visit to
the Nairobi National Museum’s birds, ethnography,
geology, prehistory galleries (among others) as well as
the Snake Park.
This is the right place to learn and see many of the
Kenya's multifacets of culture, pre-history and it's
natural resources. Birding continues around the museum’s
botanical garden or elsewhere depending on the time.
Overnight in Nairobi
Day 2: Samburu Game Reserve
After breakfast drive to Samburu Game Reserve stopping
at Thika for a short bird-search that "could" yield the
Green-capped Eremomela or a Purple-crested Turaco,
Green-headed Sunbird.
Drive further through the pineapple plantation and make
some few more stops. On the way we'll try out the
Hinde's Babbler, another kenyan endemic among many other
localized species.
Overnight at Samburu
Day 3: Samburu Game Reserve
Samburu National Reserve in the northern Kenya, an arid
bush country with beautiful riverine forest along the
Easo Nyiro River that harbors over 400 species of
indigenous and migratory birds. We can hardly miss the
Somali race of the Ostrich with bluish legs and neck
here. Birds of prey are also at our disposal, including
the Martial and Bateleur Eagles, Pygmy Falcon, and
Secretary Bird. Here and there calls can be heard to
remind you that the Yellow billed, Von Der Decken’s, and
Red Billed Hornbills are around.
Among other birds could be Coursers, Sandgrouses, the
dry country Larks, and the Northern race of the Zebra –
Gravy, Gerenuk, Recticulated Giraffe, large herds of
Elephants, Beisa Oryx, among other big games are common.
Overnight at Samburu
Day
4: Mt. Kenya National Park
After a morning game/birddrive we'll head for Mt. Kenya,
a highland/montane forest with species including the
Narina Trogon, Abyssinian Ground Thrush, Alpine Chat,
Tacazze, Variable, Bronze, Malachite, Eastern and
Northern Double-collared Sunbirds, Montane,
Yellow-whiskered Greenbuls, African Hill Barbbler, and
Chestnut-throated Apalis among many forest species.
Overnight at the slopes of Mt. Kenya
Day 5: Lake Nakuru National park
After breakfast we'll have a morning birdwalk before
leaving for Lake Nakuru National Park. We'll have a
number of stops on the way to collect a few more lifers.
With good views of the Aberdare Ranges and several stops
that includes Thomson’s Fall for a picnic lunch, where
we hope to get a few rewards like the Stone Chat.
We'll descend down to the Great Rift Valley through the
Subukia Escarpments and witness the marvels of the
conventional currents working on the earth’s crust and
try to find the Lynes’ Cisticola at the rim of Menengai
Crater (if time allows) before heading to Lake Nakuru
National Park.
Overnight at Lake Nakuru
Day 6: Lake Nakuru National Park
Whole day birding and game viewing in Lake Nakuru
National Park, which has been referred to as the "the
greatest ornithological spectacle in the world" with the
Flamingoes sometimes exceeding 1.5 million individuals.
The alkaline habitat supports thousands of resident and
migratory birds, over 450 species. Some of the common
birds includes the Little Grebe, Great White Pelican,
Black-winged Stilt, Gull-billed, Whiskered Tern,
Grey-headed Gull, Cape and Red-billed Teal, Southern
Pochard, Long-crested, and African Crowned Eagle,
White-fronted Bee-eater, Arrow-Marked Babbler, Little
Rock Thrush, Wailing Cisticola, Ruppell's Long-tailed
Starling, Lilac-breasted Roller, Cliff Chat and many
species of waders.
In
addition, the park is rich in big games that includes
the Giraffe, Buffalo, Waterbuck, Eland, Hippo, both
Black and White Rhino, Lion, Leopard, Spotted Hyena
among many small mammals.
Overnight at Lake Nakuru
Day 7: Lake Baringo
In
the morning do bird/game drive in the park and later
leave for Lake Baringo Conservation Area, another one of
Kenya's birding hotspots. Lunch at Lake Baringo club.
After lunch, visit the cliffs not far from the lake,
good for Hemprich’s & Jackson’s Hornbills, White-faced
Scops Owl, Bristle-crowned Starling, Brown-tailed Rock
Chat, Green-winged Pytilia, and Red & Yellow Barbet, Bat
Hawk, Three Banded Courser, (among many others). Birding
along the camp site and the hotel could yield the
Verreaux's Eagle-Owl, African Pigmy kingfisher,
Black-headed Plover including many species of waterbirds.
Overnight at Lake Baringo Club
Day 8: Kapedo
We
drive north of Lake Baringo about 75km to Kapedo lying
on a semi-desert and the specialties around this area
could include the Magpie Starling, Chestnut-headed
Sparrow-Lark, Pigmy Batis, Somali Sparrow, Somali
Fiscal, Pale Prinia, Mouse-Coloured Penduline-Tit, among
others.
Overnight at Lake Baringo Club
Day 9: Kitale
Take a boat ride and explore the lake for water birds
like the Goliath, Grey Heron and later after the
breakfast go birdwatching along the cliffs for more
species. Before lunch we leave for Kitale where we spend
the night looking forward for tomorrow birding down the
Kongelai Escarpment.
Overnight Kitale
Day 10: Kongelai Escarpment
We
drive down the Kongelai Escarpment on the west of
Makutano (Kitale - Turkana Road). This is yet another
excellent birding area where we expect local specialties
such as the Yellow-billed Shrike, Lesser Blue-eared
Starling, White-crested Turaco, Chestnut-crowned
sparrow-weaver, Dark Chanting Goshawk among many other
interesting species.
Late afternoon we leave for the Kakamega Forest.
Overnight in Kakamega
Day 11/ 12: Kakamega Forest
Kakamega Forest, the only rain forest remaining in
Kenya, which was once a continuation of the
Guinea-Congolian rainforest, rich in species nowhere
else to be seen in Kenya.
Spending a few days here we hope to see a good number of
these forest species that could include the Blue-headed
Bee-Eater, Red-headed Malimbe, Green Sunbird,
Grey-winged Robin, Yellow Spotted, Yellow-bellied
Barbets, African Blue Flycatcher, African
Shrike-Flycatcher, Snowy-headed Robin, Common,
Jamesson's, Chestnut and with much luck the
Yellow-bellied Wattle-Eyes, Shelley's, Joyful Greenbul,
among many others.
Overnight at Rondo Retreat Centre
Day 13: Kisumu (Lake Victoria)
Birding before breakfast and after, later drive to
Kisumu City just-by the second largest fresh-water lake
in the world. Visit Impala Sanctuary and the Sewerage
Works that could yield a Southern Red Bishop,
Black-billed Barbet.
Overnight at Kisumu
Day 14: Masai Mara Game Reserve
Today we take an early morning boat ride along the
Papyrus vegetation at the Dunga Beach (an old fishing
village/jet) with expectation to see some of the
specialties like the Papyrus Canary, Papyrus Gonolek,
Swamp Flycatcher, Slender-billed, Northern
Brown-throated, Jackson's Golden-backed, Yellow-backed
Weavers, Greater Swamp Warbler e.t.c.
After this we leave for the world famous Masai Mara Game
Reserve.
Overnight in Mara
Day 15: Masai Mara Game Reserve
Masai Mara Game Geserve is a plain of rolling grassland
dotted with a mixture of acacia trees and the plain game
which includes large herds of Elephants, Zebras, Topis,
Hartebeests, gazelles, Impala’s not forgetting the well
known Mara/ Serengeti Wildebeest’s migration, Lions,
Cheetah among other cats. We'll stay on the western part
of the reserve along the Olololo Escarpments blended by
river, swampy, grassy and forested habitats.
Specialties could include the Tabora, Rock Loving
Cisticola, Wattled Plover, Rufous-bellied Heron,
Penduline Tit, and Pale Wren Warbler, among others.
Those interested with Balloon Safari- this is the place
to view Mara and her wildlife by air. we'll spend
sometime in the afternoon to visit the Masai Village for
a cultural dance.
Overnight in Mara
Day 16: Nairobi
En
route game drive on our way to Nairobi while searching
for more bird species especially the Magpie Shrike and
others on the eastern part of the reserve. While on the
way to Nairobi (if time allows) we'll drive to kinangop
plateau in search of yet another Kenyan endemic Sharpe's
Longclaw, later heading back to Nairobi.
Overnight in Nairobi
Day 17: Olorgesaille
Leave early in the morning for Olorgesaille (towards
Lake Magadi) stopping en route for these semi arid dry
country birds such as the Cut Throat, Blue-capped Cordon
bleu, Northen Crombec, Banded Parisoma, White-bellied
Canary, Crimson-rumped Waxbill among many others.
Return to Nairobi where our tour ends with a dinner
before the transfer to the airport.
