Diary: November 2001

Thursday 1st November
Sipi Falls – Mbale – Malaba - Kitale
Woke to find thick mist. We could not even see the Falls which were only 100 metres away. Decided to move on to Kenya. Chose to use the tarred road as the recent rains would have made the drive around Mount Elgon a bit hairy but, more importantly, with the low cloud/mist we would have had nothing to see. Stopped and Mbale again and had a great time shopping around the market. Walked away with bags and bags of fruit and veg. Wendy is a bit of a shopaholic when it comes to local markets. The border at Malaba was horrendous. It was gridlocked with trucks – all stuck in the mud. We got the runner to do our paper work for us and guide us around the lorries. Stopped at a police road block. Had a quick chat and were waved on. Woops! One of the stingers was not fully pulled away. I ended up with two flat tyres! We got the punctures repaired in a nearby garage. On to Kitale where we stayed at Siri Kwa Safaris. It is ok but very expensive. Bumped into Terry and Doreen – a South African couple I had met previously in Lusaka. They had drived round Mount Elgon in the past couple of days and said it was horrendous. Think we made the right choice taking the tarred road. Terry is not well – got malaria. 

Friday 2nd November
Kitale – Marich Pass
Into Kitale for money. Can use ATMs again. First since Zambia I think. We went back to Siri Kwa Safaris where we had arranged to buy a pair of binoculars. After chatting to the owners it looks possible to enter Ethiopia on the west side of Lake Turkana. So we are going to give it a go and head north. The drive north through Marich Pass was wonderful. We camped at a field study centre and had more veggie curry.

Saturday 3rd November
Marich Pass – Lamut – South Turkana National Reserve
Shared our breakfast with the local goat herder. Eggie bread. Made with a nutty bread which settled like lead in your stomach. Quick check over of Maggie and changed some tyres around. We decided to investigate the local markets at Lamot. We had been told it was a good place to see the Pokot people. It was a one hour drive but well worth it. Got some great photos of the Pokot with their huge, disc-like necklaces. Spent a few hours wandering around the market. Bought a gourd, two stools, a bracelet and loads and loads of mangoes. Driven away by an irate preacher who did not like us chatting to the locals while he was trying to ‘spread the word of God’. Back to the field study centre to get our washing off the line. Just in time. It is raining again! Decided to move up the road 30 kms to South Turkana reserve. There are no entrance charges at the reserve and no official camp site but we were made very welcome by the park officials who found a spot for us to camp. More veggie curry!! 

Sunday 4th November
South Turkana National Reserve – Lokichar - Lodwar
Early-ish start for us. We were on the road by 8:30 am. Scenery changes quickly from dense bushland to arid desert. At 10 am we see our first camels. First I have seen since Egypt I think. The road is very poor. It has been wrecked by the over laden aid convoys heading to Southern Sudan. Stopped in Lokichar to mend another puncture. You are supposed to travel in convoy to Lodvar but we have managed to evade them so far. On arrival in Lodvar we pulled in to a petrol station where we were met by Michael. Turns out to be a very useful, interesting guy. Turns out he has just helped a Dutch girl get clearance/paper work to enter Ethiopia and he says he can do the same for us. He is based at a place called Ellmoilo Curio Shop if you are looking for him. He ran around town with us getting provisions and then arranged for us to meet up with the police DC next morning. Went to a great camp site just outside town. Stayed in a banda again. It was only £2.50 per person – spotlessly clean and included breakfast. We spent the morning touring various police stations to get the necessary paper work to enter Ethiopia. It was at this point that we had a change of plan. I am sure it would have been possible to enter Ethiopia via the west of Lake Turkana. The police were very accommodating but time was against us. We decided to give it a miss as we felt we would be rushing things. I have also decided to leave Maggie in Africa and come back with Wendy in the New Year for a longer trip. My travel insurance is expiring and my passport is full and I could also do with earning a few pennies. We decided to spend a few days relaxing at Lake Turkana instead. 

Monday 5th November
Lodwar – Eliye Springs
We decided to take Michael with us as a guide. I am sure we could have found the road to the Lake ourselves but we felt we owed him the chance of making a few shillings. Road to Elie Springs (Lake Turkana) soft sand in a few places but nothing to cause any trouble. The Lake is brown and not jade which is rather disappointing. Did some sun bathing, had a shower in a hot spring – very refreshing – and beef curry and a ugali (maize meal) for supper. The place we are staying at – Elie Springs – was once a lodge but is very run down now. They have got a swimming pool which they are filling for us!

Tuesday 6th November
Eliye Springs
Got up for a sunrise photo shoot. Had breakfast then arranged a fishing trip with the locals. Hired one of their little boats. I did the fishing whilst Wendy paddles. Don’t get me wrong, I am not that lazy but if there is a boat with a paddle, Wendy wants a go! When we were white water rafting, as well as the raft, she also rowed the oar boat and had a go in one of the kyaks. These dragon boaters, I don’t know. Caught a cat fish and something else. Then had a swim in the pool which was by now half full. Wendy spent half an hour rescuing the frogs that had fallen in. Bought a few curios from the local women – baskets trinkets etc. Cooked fish cakes for supper but Michael had made a poor job of filetting the fish and we had to spend an hour de-boning the fish mixture first. There was no breeze and the flies are horrendous. We have decided we will move on tomorrow. 

Wednesday 7th November
Eliye Springs – Lodwar – South Turkana N.R.
We packed up and left at 9:30 am. Going to try to drive south along the lake shore to Lokichar. We needed to cross a river but closer inspection on foot revealed it was definitely a ‘no go’. The river was low but the muddy silt on the bottom was too much to risk. Still, we had great fun driving around on the river bank and walking through the mud barefoot looking for places to cross. Returned to Lodwar to drop off Michael. If you are in town and need some help or a guide, go to Elmoilo Curio – they are a great bunch. Back down south again. Popped to South Turkana Reserve to collect a gourd we had left behind. They wanted us to travel in convoy from Kay Muik to Marich Pass. It was only 10 kms. Wendy tried to sweet talk them but they insisted we wait for the convoy. It was getting late, so we went back to South Turkana Reserve to spend the night. Beef curry, fruit salad and bed.

Thursday 8th November
South Turana N.R. – Marich Pass (Field Studies Centre)
Managed to avoid the convoy this time and went back to Marich Pass field study centre where we bumped in to Terry and Doreen again. He has got over the malaria. Swopped some info – especially the crossing into Ethiopia. Decided to go for a short walk to a cave. Not so stunning but the view of the valley and the Charangani Hills is wonderful. Think we may go and do some exploring of the hills. Back to the camp site where we made a failed attempt to bake bread. Discovered why – we had used maize meal instead of flour. 

Friday 9th November
Marich Pass – Sigor – Chebemit 
A slow morning. We left camp site at mid day, having bought more curios – a quiver, some arrows and a spear. Having seen the Charangani Hills from our walk yesterday and with some encouragement from Terry and Doreen, we have decided to drive up into the hills. Road was ok but muddy in places. It is a shame about the weather. Occasionally we get glimpses of what on a clear day must be some of the most impressive scenery in Kenya. We reached a height of 3,100 metres and it got quite chilly. We were looking for a wild camp site but it is a very agricultural area with lots of sheep and, therefore, lots of fencing at the road side. We bought half a kg of lamb from one of the butchers. We ended up in the car park of an hotel. Note – African hotels are generally just restaurants, they have no accommodation, just food. Took a walk to the nearby lake and back to supper in the restaurant. The owner, John Mack, is a nice guy. Made us feel very welcome. He supplied us with a charcoal stove to keep our feet warm whilst eating supper and is going to show us how to make chappatis and mandazi tomorrow morning. 

Saturday 10th November
Chebemit – Kabernet – Lake Bogoria
Left at 10 am with our cooking lessons with John Mack. It was a good laugh and we left him with some pasta – which he had never seen, let alone cooked before. Next stop, Iten. The view down in to the valley below is wonderful. On to Kabernet for more money and food. The ATM was working – until I put my card in! And Wendy went crazy again in the market – another 15 kgs of fruit and veg. We decided to spend a few days at Lake Bogoria. At the entrance to the park we had a problem. They would only accept Kenyan shillings and we told them we only had US dollars (lie). They have agreed to let us in if we pay in US but we will not get a receipt. Works out much cheaper. Stopped at the lake shore for a walk and some flamingo photos. It is a soda lake and there are thousands of flamingos. We stopped off at the hot springs on the way to the camp site. Again, we are the only visitors to the park and we have the camp site to ourselves. It is a beautiful spot on the lake shore. We have already decided we are going to spend another night. Lamb kebabs and veggie soup for supper. 

Sunday 11th November
Lake Bogoria
Decided to try out our new cooking stove making chappatis and pancakes. Sat at the lake shore, reading and watching the flamingos. Saw one of them die before our eyes. Thought it was a bit strange but then again with so many thousand birds in front of you, I suppose the chances are the cycle of life must end at some time for some of them . Took a short drive to Fig Tree camp site but although our guide book said it was the ultimate site, we were not too impressed. The tetse flies were awful. Trying to drive whilst having your feet bitten or eaten is not easy. Ended up camping at an unofficial site which had a great view up the lake. Veggie curry for supper.

Monday 12th November
Lake Bogoria – Lake Baringo
Pancakes and bananas for breakfast. Also made loads of chappatis for our guacamole which has become our lunch time staple diet. Wendy is very good at making it. The sun is out at last. We have been unlucky with the weather since Wendy arrived. Do not think there has been a single day without rain. But, sure enough, at mid day, the cloud rolled in again and we packed up hastily. Saw Grant’s gazelles, greater kudu, zebra, warthogs and tortoise and, of course, thousands of flamingoes on our way out of the park. Bought some more beers and coke at Maraget. Then on to Roberts camp site at Lake Baringo. Bird life is amazing. Saw paradise fly catchers, red and yellow barbet, whopee – all within ten minutes of arrival. Decided if it is not raining we are going to do a bird walk at the nearby cliffs in the morning. Veggie curry – again! Raining, so book and bed. 

Tuesday 13th November
Lake Baringo – Rumuruti (Bubong Campsite)
We were up at 5:30 am to pack and head off on our bird walk. Our guide William is very knowledgeable. He has studied ornithology in Nairobi for four years. Not as many spectacular birds as I had hoped for but we did see – woodland green whoopee, brown headed kingfisher, buffalo and sparrow weavers, a golden oriol and laner falcons. Back to the camp site for breakfast and journal writing. We have decided to head to Maralal just for the hell of it! We missed the turning and wasted an hour. The scenery was ok – semi desert. Got another puncture and it has started raining. Very heavily. The road turned into a river within half an hour. At one stage on the road there was a waterfall running across as the water drained from a huge field into the valley. I am glad Maggie was quite heavy as I certainly would not have attempted crossing in a lighter vehicle. As the weather was so bad, we decided to give Maralal a miss and head south towards Rumuruti. Camped at a great spot called Bubong. It is a cattle ranch but also organises camel safaris. Another veggie curry for supper. Again it is still raining but we have a shelter to cook under. 

Wednesday 14th November
Rumuruti – Nanyuki – Naru Moru Lodge
Breakfast and a coffee with the owner of Bubong. She has got a five month old orphan Ververt monkey called Mezee. He likes picking nits from your hair – but is wonderful fun!. Got the punctures repaired in Rumuruti. We have decided to go and have a look at Mount Kenya so it is on to Nanyuki. The road was muddy as hell and corrugated. I lost control at one stage and spun Maggie in to a ditch. Quite frightening. I tried to turn in to the skid but on the corrugations, nothing was happening and I decided the best course of action was to drive in to the earth bank at the side of the road. Thankfully, we came to a gentle stop but Wendy and I both looked at each other – and said simultaneously – Christ, that could have been a lot worse! We bought 1 kg of fillet steak in Nanyuki for £2.50. Decided we needed some meat in our diet – or in our veggie curry! Got another puncture. I don’t know, I only had one puncture in approximately three days of rain prior to picking Wendy up. Camped at Narumoru Lodge. Had fillet steak with cheese sauce and baked potatoes. Steak is wonderful – melts in the mouth. 
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Thursday 15th November
Naru Moru Lodge - Nairobi
Fixed the puncture and had Maggie washed. She is filthy. Road to Nairobi is good. First stop is a travel agents to get a flight back home. Wendy has lost her return ticket. Is this girl jinxed? She is in the process of reporting it to the police etc etc to get a replacement when I say lets get to a camp site and turn the car upside down before you go any further. Sure enough within half an hour of looking she finds the ticket in a trouser pocket. She has not worn the trousers since arriving in Entebbe. I think the normal place to stop in Nairobi is Upper Hill camp site but I have been told of another one called Nairobi Park Services. Where, I have been told, I may be able to store Maggie. The place is not much of a camp site. It is more a service depot for overland trucks but it does have space to store Maggie, lock ups for my equipment and, most importantly of all, a good bar. We drove in to Nairobi that evening for an Ethiopian meal. It was the one thing both of us had really regretted about not going to Ethiopia – the food. We both love it. Wendy and I are sick of the rain and we have decided to head to the coast/Mombasa for a week or sos sunbathing etc.

Friday 16th November
Nairobi - Makindu
My car insurance needed renewing. So went in search of the insurance agency. I got another month’s insurance. It was fairly straight forward but was gone mid-day by the time we left Nairobi. We knew it would take two days to drive to Mombassa and the road on the first day was awful. It was tarmaced but that was about all you could say for it. We stopped to look at a craft co-operative en route and found that they had rooms for Kenyan shillings 150 per night - en suite too! They were very clean and it saved putting the tent up. Behind the craft shop we found the wood carvers busily at work and had a great evening chatting to them. I ordered some stuff for collection on return to Nairobi. A large bau game and some salt and pepper pots. Fillet steak sandwiches for supper – extravagan or what? 

Saturday 17th November
Makindu – Monbassa – Tiwi Beach (Twiga Lodge)
The road to Mombassa improved suddenly. It appears to have been paid for by the Chinese. It was superb until Voy and then poor again all the way to Mombassa. Dropped off at Voy for a cup of tea. Found a Barclays ATM on the way in to town and stopped for some money before getting the ferry. There were loads of hawkers at the ferry and we ended up buying cashew nuts and a 2002 Africa calendar. We decided to relax at Tiwi beach for a few days and ended up camping at Twiga Lodge. We camped right next to the beach and met Pete and Kiki an English guy and his Dutch wife. Had the last of the steak for supper and a few drinks with Pete and Kiki.

Sunday 18th November
Tiwi Beach
Went snorkelling after breakfast in some nearby rock pools. Although the pools were very large and quite deep, there was little to see but one of the pools had a striking resemblance to Africa in profile, and it even included Madagascar which you could swim through to in a submerged tunnel. Returned to the beach to read our books. Then Pete and Kiki dragged us off to the nearby Forty Thieves bar for a Sunday afternoon beer – or two. Met Matthew a young English guy. He is thinking of overlanding through Africa. We gave him a few tips before returning to Twiga Lodge for sausage curry. I have got a bad cold. 

Monday 19th November
Tiwi Beach
Read and sunbathed all day. Bought some produce from the locals and made a superb prawn and mango curry for supper.

Tuesday 20th November
Tiwi Beach
Pete and Kiki set off to Tanzania. They had left us a huge pile of books to read. Great! My supply was getting low. Apart from a raid on our food box by the monkeys, the day had no other highlights – just reading and relaxing. 

Wednesday 21st November
Tiwi Beach – Kilifi(ish)
Returned to Mombassa where Wendy re-confirmed her flight and we did a spot of e-mailing. Stopped at another craft co-operative – Bumba Lulu – it was a co-perative of disabled people. There was some really beautiful and unusual stuff. They take credit cards so we are going to get our Christmas presents here on the way back. We ended up driving around in the dark trying to find a camp site called Timeless. We gave up eventually and ended up parking in the grounds of a nice hotel. 

Thursday 22nd November
Kilifi(ish) - Watamu
We are tempted to stay at the hotel for another day. It is right on the beach but we feel we should get on and go and see something. We drove north to Gede where we toured the ruins with our guide, Justin. Wendy wanted the guide (Kenyan shillings 300) and I wanted a guide book (Kenyan shillings 50). Conclusion – go for the book! Justin was a nice guy but not very knowledgeable. On to Watamu to find another camp site. We first tried Mrs Simpson’s guest house where our guide book said camping was allowed. But it was expensive a thousand Kenyan shillings per person. It did include three meals but there was no real camp site. We moved on to Ocean Sports Hotel which at Kenyan shillings 300 was a much better deal and a more pleasant camp site. Had corned beef hash for supper and then played Bau and drank Pims on the hotel terrace (frightfully English of us!!).

Friday 23rd November
Watamu – Malindi - Watamu
Took a matatu in to Malindi and arranged a deep sea fishing trip for Sunday. Had lunch at a beach front café and back to Watamu for swimming and beach combing. Tuna pasta for supper. This we would later discover was a mistake. 

Saturday 24th November
Watamu
Another lazy day of R and R. Watched England versus South Africa on the TV in the evening and had a few beers at the bar. 

Sunday 25th November
Watamu – Malindi - Watamu
Up at 5:30 am to go sea fishing. It was a great day out. We caught 24 tuna – ranging from 6 to 16 kgs. I lost a sail fish which is rather disappointing to say the least. We had some hassle on our return to the port. We had been told we could keep two of the fish and that the rest should go to the fisheries department. We selected one large one for ourselves and gave another to George the guy who had organised the trip for us. The guys at the fisheries department got rather jealous I think and tried to take the fish away from him. I was getting sick and tired listening to the arguments going on so I walked up to the boss of the fisheries department and said ‘I am allowed two fish, yes?’. ‘Oh yes he replied – two fish but for you’. ‘Fine, I replied’ picked up my two tuna wandered off round the corner and presented George with his fish. Africa can be bloody frustrating at times. Back to Watamu to watch Wales versus Australia on the TV. Tuna steaks for supper. We have got so much of it, not sure if we will be able to eat it all before it goes bad.

Monday 26th November
Watamu 
Wendy got up early to go diving. I am giving it a miss. Still suffering from a bit of a cold and am not really in the mood for getting too wet. Wendy said the diving was superb and I regret not having gone. But there are plenty more fish in the sea to see.

Tuesday 27th November
Watamu – Mombassa - Makindu
We had a long day’s drive ahead of us, so we were up and moving by 9 am. Stopped off at Umbulubu craft co-operative to buy our Christmas presents, then the long road back towards Nairobi. Stopped at a roadside café for chicken and ugali. The ugali was ok but the chicken was like rubber. We returned to the wood carvers’ co-operative where we spend the night in the bandas again and collected our bau game and salt and pepper pots. They are very nice and we are very pleased with them. More tuna for supper and gave the rest away to the locals which they were overjoyed about. 

Wednesday 28th November
Makindu - Nairobi
On the road early again to get to Nairobi by mid-day. I went and collected my flight ticket and then we went to a food store at the main market for goat stew and ugali. Decided to stay at Upper Hill camp site this time. Spent the afternoon unpacking Wendy’s stuff in the car and ramming it all into her rucksac. Went back to the Ethiopian restaurant for supper again. We had been told there would be lite Ethiopian music but we had finished eating by 8 pm and were told the music would not start until 10 pm. As Wendy had to catch her flight early in the morning we returned to Upper Hill for a beer. Spent the evening chatting to an American guy – I forget his name. He had spent a couple of weeks in Rwanda and had some interesting tales to tell. Sounds like an interesting place. People sound wonderful. Perhaps next year.

Thursday 29th November

Got Wendy to the airport by 9 am for her flight. Her baggage was right on the limit which does not surprise me with all the curios we have been buying. Had a coffee and a bacon sandwich, said our farewells and arranged to meet up in Amsterdam in a couple of weeks. 


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And that’s as far as I’m going with the diary for this trip. I return to the UK in five days. In the meantime Maggie is having some serious modification work done in Nairobi. More details of which later. 
My reasons for going home are many:-
I’ve become travel weary, “All Africa’d out” is the phrase I think. I’m becoming a bit apathetic to the sights and sounds etc. and need to build up some more enthusiasm.
Passport is full. 
Travel insurance expires in 10 days and they want a fortune to extend it again. 
But the main reason is Love. I’ve met my soul mate in Wendy. We get along great, and want to continue our travels together. So, No my trip isn’t over in fact I think it’s just beginning again. We plan to come back out to Africa in 6 months and head off into the Bundu again.
It has been the journey of a lifetime, and I have “seen things you people wouldn’t believe” but that in itself is a problem It’s addictive, and I want more, but not just yet.