Tsavo – Day 1 – 4/5/11
While there is a rush to get organized every morning we leave camp, expedition reduces everyone to a interesting state of chaotic hysteria. I normally get a breakfast plate and retire to somewhere away from the drama. This morning was no different but we managed to leave camp fully packed by 7:30am. Unfortunately we only drove 30 mins before stopping, hiking a very short hill, and having a lecture by Shem on “Potential Protected Area Model within the Tsavo-Amboseli Ecosystem”. The view from the hill was cool because it was possible to see all the way from Kili to Amboseli to the Chyulu Hills to the edge of Tsavo. The lecture was interesting but when I’m on my way somewhere it goes against the grain to stop and sit about before we even make a good start. However an hour later we were back on the road (bumpy and very dusty) and really started making tracks. About an hour and a half later we reached the border of Tsavo National Park where we stopped for a short choo break (choo = hole in ground used as a toilet) and the cruisers were swarmed by the usual collection of mamas and rosta boys selling bananas, jewelry, and carvings. Heading out again (we were game driving now so roof open and wind whiping our faces) we drove another 25-30 mins before we stopped at the Shetani Lava flow. The black rock was on either side of the road and stretched in a band about 300 meters wide in a twisting path across the grassland. Walking on it sounded like walking on a combination of broken glass and ceramic pieces. The edges were very sharp and clambering around, down and over the undulations in the lava was a delicate operation. From this spot we could begin to see the Chyulu Hills rising like green mountains out of the tan grassland and creating a dramatic difference in the landscape. Back in the cruisers we had just gotten started when we spotted three klipspringers perched on sharp rocks not 20 feet from the roadside. Klipspringers are these small goat-sized animals that can leap incredible high in the air and have amazing agility navigating the dangerous terrain of the lava flow. We lunched at Mzima spring under huge fever or yellow bark acacia trees while warily watching for vervet monkeys who would gladly steal our food. After everyone had eaten their food we trooped down the path to see the actual spring, hippos, fish, and hopefully an alligator. Most of the water going to Mombasa (and much of East Africa) comes from this spring whose waters are unbelievably clear. The midday sun was glinting off the surface and burning intensely down on us so I quickly moved along to the more shaded portion of the trail which winds along the stream following it in its downstream course. The KWS (Kenyan Wildlife Service) has recently installed an underwater viewing area (sort of felt like a huge sunken barrel with windows) where we were able to get face to face with the remarkable sucker fish that spend countless hours grooming the resident hippos. This big blue green looking fish swam unconcerned right past our faces and the water was clear enough for us to see a fair distance under the water surface to other fish further out. Out of the viewing barrel I spotted a huge alligator sunning itself on the opposite side of the stream and as we watched it for a few minutes he silently slipped inside the stream and sank below our viewing range. There was one other look out site where we could see the hippos relaxing in the water probably 200 meters downstream from us. In the parking lot waiting for our drivers to start the cruisers we were entertained by the bold vervet monkeys leaping onto the cars and trying to steal food. The rest of the drive to our campsite was very scenic as we wove our way through the increasing large hills and tried unsuccessfully to spot animals. This campsite is larger than our Serengeti campsite and much more in the bush. Quickly setting up our tent I claimed the spot on the right and dragged our communal duffel bag in to begin unpacking. Once I was all settled I got to wander around and see what the facilities were like. The bathrooms were all choos and the sink has plenty of pressure but was lacking in the drain department (it did drain it just took a long time). The kitchen was a brick and stone two room building that our two cooks Mama J and Suzana had already put in order and started making our dinner. The staff tents again were in clusters around the small circle of student tents next to the big camp fore that was now happily burning. Everyone opted for the drive up to the KWS Rangers station to watch the sunset over the Chyulu Hills which was magnificent. To make my evening even better a herd of perhaps 20 impala emerged from the bush as the sun sank and the sky turn red and orange creating a wonderful scene. Back at camp it was dinner and a long game of Mafia before hitting the sleeping bag.
Tsavo – Day 2 – 4/6/11
Alarm went off at 5:30 am to the pitch black morning sky. As a sleepy group we were in the cruisers and leaving camp by 6am for our early morning game drive. Like yesterday we saw a whole lot of nothing for perhaps 25 mins but the scenery made up for it. All around us is very thick bush which is almost impossible to see through to spot animals. However the hills rising sharply out of the bush were magnificent with craggy rocks poking through the bushy vegetation at the peaks. The sun was rising and a heavy fog was lifting from everything so the hills were surrounded in misty gray fog with the sunlight cutting through it. Giraffes (Swahili = twiga) thankfully are tall enough to be seen and we soon passed by a group of about six. We also saw hartebeest, waterbuck, and elephant (Swahili = tembo) covered in mud which made them look red from the astonishing red dirt found here. As we drove along we kept startling groups of yellow throated spurfowl which ran and made very loud shouting noises like they were scolding us for driving too fast. As we passed a pond beside the road we saw a herd of impala with the young ones racing around in their early morning exuberance. Their hooves were covered in dew and their noses glistened. Around the pond we saw Egyptian geese (the female was escorting a group of babies), a beautiful white stork fishing, and a spoonbill pelican preening. Here we turned around and headed back to camp for our breakfast. About 15 mins of driving and we saw lots of tourist vans pulled over which indicates something exciting. We joined the crowd and saw it was a cheetah (Swahili = duma)!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Strolling along not 50 ft from the road. We of course took lots of pictures and I was extremely glad I had decided to bring my binoculars. We watched him/her until she found a nice rock to lie down on and virtually disappeared in the high grass. We continued back to camp but I was the only one still standing up. Upon getting back to camp I sat back down and began organizing my stuff to get out and my cruiser-mates all gasped. I had turned completely orange from the dust thrown up by our other cruisers and stuck to my sunscreen face, throat as well as the front of my shirt, my arms, even my hair looked red, and hands. This means that instead of immediately getting in line for breakfast like everyone else I had to go take a bath in the sink. Newly returned to my white self I discovered that someone has taken the plate and my camping cutlery which meant I had to borrow from the kitchen, definitely not how things are suppose to work. At 10 am we had an hour long lecture on Tsavo National Park management before breaking into groups and preparing to compare the management of Tsavo-Amboseli ecosystem to the Manyara- Tarangire ecosystem. My group talked through all our points but no one wanted to stand up later and present them to the rest of the students and the faculty. In the US we might have drawn straws. In Africa we drawn acacia thorns. Erin (or as our professor incorrectly typed Ervin-its her new nickname now) drew the short thorn and then the lunch bell rang. It is really hot here in Tsavo so after lunch we were given two hours to relax and not move around in the high heat of the day. I was reading by book under a different acacia tree when Erv came up and begged (literally…it was a bit unnerving) for my help. I of course got up and we went back to her notes to go over our group points which she felt unprepared to talk about. After 20 mins of talking to her it was clear the thought of presenting was simple freaking her out so I offered to do it for her which she readily accepted. The presentation was all right but I always feel awkward talking in front of a bunch of people. The group before us had turned their presentation into a skit which was absolutely wonderful yet still conveyed the information well. The minute we were done we all got back in the cruisers and headed to the maneater gift shop (if you don’t know about the Tsavo man-eating lions look them up). At the gift shop they also had a mini museum attached where they had skulls, preserved specimens, and dung samples on display. I ahd hoped to get a maneater shirt but none of them were very good so I got a chocolate bar instead and nearly cried in happiness after the first bite. Back in the cruisers we went out of the park to a town call Miti Andei to a gas station to get ice cream and stroll through the vendors gathered on the side of the road. I got a small ice cream and wandered but none of the carvings caught my eye and my feet are too big to get the beaded sandles they were selling. Two girls got two wooden spoons and called them friendship spoons from this funny old lady who was a master salesmen. The ride back to camp was nice and as usual the evening light turned this wonderful place into a masterpiece. Dinner and the usual brushing of teeth under incredible stars while the sliver of the moon rises.
Tsavo – Day 3 – 4/7/11
I was excited for today so I helped put breakfast out and was the first student in line for food. Quickly throwing together the usual packed lunch we drove out for Chyulu Hills National Park and Chyulu Hills West Conservation Area which borders Tsavo. We got on the main road via the ice cream gas station from yesterday and turned down a bumpy dirt track to head back into the local community. We passed a primary and secondary school and the kids chased the cruisers are we hung on over bumps and huge potholes. The track got rougher and rougher. Until it got to the point where this monster golden grass was taller than us and we were standing on the seat in the cruiser!! Here we stopped for a brief field bathroom break because apparently its gets tougher up ahead. And boy did it get rough! It was the most fun I have ever had in a car. We literally were rock climbing in vehicles!! I honestly can’t explain what it was like. We were ducking under tree trunks, dodging vines and not looking over the side which dropped away very steeply (we have plenty of videos for proof). I was on the right side so the right side of my waist and hip are very sore from being repeatedly thrown against the hatch sides. Eventually we emerged into this wonderful field where the track was again visible and fairly smooth. Chyulu Hills rose on either side of us creating a magnificent pathway to our destination. We parked next to these shabby buildings that house the two on duty rangers up there before walking up a short but very steep hill to have a quick lecture. We talked about how these hills are a water catchment area for Mombasa which is why the government strictly conserves them and no one is allowed to use them for anything. However the Maasai have used these hills for centuries as dry season grazing lands. Lots of conflict and frustration on both sides and made for an interesting lecture. I stayed on the hill and ate my lunch enjoying the view before climbing back down. I had time to lighten my backpack and reapply sunscreen before we began our optional hike up to a stand of trees on one of the taller trees. I was right behind our KWS ranger who lead the way up and we had a nice chat of him telling me where he is from and about his family. It was a strenuous hike up but the view was worth that hike ten times over. We could see the hills stretching away from us and the old volcanoes were clearly visible. I found my own patch of tall grass to sit in and was shortly joined by Chyulu Hills ranger Richard who sat and chatted with me for quite a while. He pointed the direction where Kili would be visible if it were not overcast, the lava flow we stopped at on the first day, and the old road used by the Germans during WW1 as they hid in these hills. Eventually it was time to go back down and pack up. We drove out the same way we came in just downhill this time. It was as exciting and exhilarating as going up but I think I may have been the only one in my cruiser that felt that way. We stopped at the gas station to get ice cream and have another shot as buying carvings, beaded sandals, and baskets. The last bit of driving back to camp I alone stood up to watch the bush fly past. The air was so cool it actually raised goose bumps on my arms.
Tsavo – Day 4 – 4/8/11
I woke up before my alarm went off and crawled out of the tent to be greeted by an exceptionally beautiful sunrise. Today we headed through the park to the Ngulia Rhino Sanctuary. We waited at the gate through the electric fence, reading the information signs while waiting for the rangers to let us in. They arrived and unlocked the gate before leading us along the electric fence line down a red track that twisted and turned through the thick bushland enclosed. Our first stop was an artificial watering point created by pumping water over 19km from the nearby hills. Here we were introduced to the rangers. They were all so clean and neat I realized how dirty and scruffy we (and particularly me) looked. At this watering point we were told shown the water entrance from the hills, the bunker sunk into the ground that they conduct animal counts and other studies from at night, and the boxes that hold infrared camera in the center of the pond. Before loading up and heading on the head ranger took us around the pond and pointed out the rhino tracks leading from the bush to the water. As we stood around talking a herd of zebra raced past raising a lot of dust as they dashed into the bush. Back in the cruisers we continued down the narrow red tracks until we came to the base of a small rock formation with a stone house built right into/on top of the rocks. This building is rented to tourists as a guest house. The back of the house is integrated right into the piled rocks continuing up, and there is no path to the house just a broad expanse of rock face to walk across/up. The view from the wide porch looked over the entire sanctuary bush and the Chyulu Hills. We all settled on the low wall around the porch or on the floor to hear a three part lecture. The first part was given by our professor Kiringe on sanctuaries in general, while two of the rangers talked about the specifics of this sanctuary and rhino conservation. The talk was very interesting but African time made things go very slowly so we were hot and very hungry by the end. Jumping back into the cruisers we raced out of the sanctuary toward the Serena Lodge. If you forget what the Serena Lodge is go back and read my posts from Serengeti…it’s the same chain and we again were going for the lunch buffet. I must admit I was very embarrassed when an entire car of girls ran shrieking into the lodge and straight to the buffet. I decided to detour and made a beeline for the ladies room where wonderful things like hot water, towels, and sit upon thrones exist. Once I had scraped all the red dust off my face, neck, and arms I thought I could safely enter the eating area without scaring anyone. The food was wonderful. I will admit with no shame that I had three full plates of food before starting on the dessert table. They had a pasta station which was heavenly, beef something that was delicious, a salad bar, rice and many other things. The dessert table had a mixture of cheesecake, chocolate cake things, fruit slices, and strawberry mouse (my favorite of them all). After eating and the drinking of coffee there was a large exodus to the pool. I browsed the gift store and had a lovely chat with the man running it by the name of Wilson. I spent our remaining time there reading and taking pictures of animals at the artificial watering point created outside the lodge. I got some great pictures of elephants and impala and laughed at the baboon family in the trees above the water. Waterbuck and many birds also came down. Game driving back to camp, three girls sang Disney songs as the evening light created my favorite time of day in the bush. We had an early dinner followed by expedition debrief. The MOD Courtney had a fun game that we played before we all trooped off to our respective tents.
Tsavo – Day 5 – 4/9/11
I had packed most of my stuff last night so this morning would be less chaotic. Breakfast and packing lunch were done quickly before running back to pile bags by the back of the cruisers and break the tent down. My cook crew was responsible for helping the staff pack up but mostly we were in the way. The kitchen staff continues to amaze me with their speed of cooking, washing, and packing massive amounts of food. There was the usual confusion of finding everyone a space in the cruisers but we game drove out of camp by 8am. With my bandana tied around the lower half of my face and sunglasses and a hat I’m sure I looked like a bank robber but I prefer that to turning orange…again. It took no time at all to reach the front gate and the hatches had to be closed as we hit the “main road” and bounced our way toward KBC. Passing the lava flow we again saw klipspringers. Three again two of which were very close to the road and we were able to get excellent pictures before continuing on. At the border of the park we stopped briefly and had the normal selling swarm descend upon us. One carving caught my eye and I bought it even though my bargaining did not get the price very low. The rest of the trip back was uneventful as Christina, Molly, and I swapped stories of the various times we have been hurt in strange ways. While I had few stories to contribute the other two had plenty that entertained us. Back at camp the staff again shooed us out of the way and I retreated to eat my lunch on the porch. The rest of the afternoon we had free to unpack and I wrote my Wildlife Management paper on the specific habitat needed for leopards to thrive. The cold shower felt wonderful and sitting on a padded chair while eating dinner was a treat before everyone went to bed early.
Kilimanjaro Bush Camp – Day 17 – 4/10/11
Today was a non-program day but with two papers and our second round of exams two days away I wasn’t going anywhere. We had a late breakfast before I revised my WM paper and made a pathetic start on my Wildlife Ecology paper on vegetation assessment within the Maasai group ranches. Around two in the afternoon the cruisers ferried people to Kimana to the local bar for a break. I decided that I would stay at camp and watch one of the many movies I have acquired from various other students. It was a really nice way to not do work and enjoy the silence of everyone being gone. I went for a run when people got back from Kimana and attempted unsuccessfully to do more work. Dinner was good and I got a chance to catch up on all my emails before going to sleep.
Kilimanjaro Bush Camp – Day 18 – 4/11/11
Normal wake up and breakfast was followed by our final academic class of the semester. Our Environmental Policy class focused on the community based conservation idea in Zimbabwe called CAMPFIRE. Its based on the sale of hunting permits for game conserved within set aside conservation areas. The reason for its great success is that is directly empowers the local community by providing them with income and skills such as book keeping and game scouts. While lecture was interesting I had the added bonus of watching pair of doves build their nest on one of the walls all through class. We were free through lunch until 2 pm when we had our first meeting about Directed Research (DR). For DR we will assist in groups of 9 or 10 the projects currently being conducted by the professors. Each professor stood up and talked about their projects and the sort of work we, as the students, would be doing before we write our own DR paper. At the end of this meeting we were given slips of paper to rate our choices between the three projects. The last thing scheduled for today was a review session that was about 45 minutes long. The rest of the afternoon was spent studying for our exams tomorrow accompanied by the usual nerves and guessing what material will and will not be asked. Off to bed now so I can be sharp for tomorrow!
Kilimanjaro Bush Camp – Day 19 – 4/12/11
Falling asleep last night was not easy and I woke up very early. I reviewed the material and the review questions before breakfast at which point I put my notes away and helped arrange the tables for the testing period. Our exam started at 8:30 and gave us a full two hours to complete all the questions. This final exam will determine 10% for WE, and 15% for WM and EP grades. The questions were very fair but the full two hours were needed to complete all the questions. My wrists and hands ache from furiously writing on long pieces of paper. I took an hour to wind down from the exam and then really buckled down to finish my WE paper. After lunch we had another DR meeting, this time we spoke mostly about what should be included in various part of the writing process. As soon as this class was over I went right back to writing my WE paper. I had finished the first two parts of it but the third was going to be twice as long and much more in depth than the first two parts put together. I worked for the rest of the afternoon and into the evening only stopping to eat dinner. I hate crunch time but the paper was written completely by 8:45pm. I reread both the WM and WE papers very quickly before printing them out and turning them in. Its been a really long day so good night all
Kilimanjaro Bush Camp – Day 20 – 4/13/11
After breakfast we had a guest speaker in to teach us about GIS and mapping system to display information spatially. This guy works for the government of Kenya and he travels around mapping the wildlife density, livestock distribution, and human population in certain areas. They also use images from satellites in space, as well as photos taken from an airplane. By comparing these images with the maps created, the environmental degradation that is occurring from human encroachment is visible. This session was three hours long and a more boring three hours I have never spent. Clearly this guy knew this program very well but he only addressed the theoretical side of it what is can do. He showed us long slideshows of what his department does and why these are important issues. Of course we have been talking about these same issues in much greater detail since our arrival in Africa two months ago. I made an honest effort to follow his points and remain interested. I have rarely been so glad for it to be lunch time which was when this class ended. As we lined up to get food, EP professor can out and posted the DR assignments based on our ratings. I got my food before checking the DR board. I got my first choice: WM with professor Shem. For this DR we will be studying the viability of wildlife sanctuaries by doing animal counts, habitat overlap and suitability, and conflict between wildlife and livestock. After lunch we met in our DR groups to get started. Our group met outside under the giant yellow fever trees where we got a brief introduction to our work and began the extensive planning process. Within our DR group we broke into four groups so that we can cover more ground while doing field work in the coming days. My group is comprised of Jess (bandamate), Christina, and of course myself. We also created the Very Important Mwanafunzi (VIM) who will be responsible every day to check the water tanks and first aid kits in our cruisers before heading out to do fieldwork. Shem goes by the code name Chui Kubwa (Big leopard) while our main assistant Daniel is Chui Kidogo (Little leopard). I watched a movie for the rest of the afternoon before doing a little exercise, shower, and then dinner.
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