Early morning wake-up call

Our day started with a 5:30 AM wake-up “call.” At dinner the previous evening, they asked if we wanted coffee, tea, or hot chocolate with our wake-up call. At 5:30 AM, a camp staff member came by each tent to make sure we were awake and deliver our hot beverages. The sun was still down at 5:30 AM and it was very cold. The conservancy is at 6,000 feet above sea level, near Mt. Kenya, the second tallest mountain in Africa after Mt. Kilimanjaro. It is located just south of the equator.

We boarded our safari vehicle at 6 AM and headed out to see the sunrise. We stopped in an open area where we could see Mt. Kenya in the distance. On the way, we saw an animal called an eland, as well as elephants.

Mt. Kenya visible in the distance during our early morning drive

Sunrise over the conservancy

Eland

Shortly after, we came across a ton of animals including groups of zebras, giraffes, buffalo, gazelles, jackals, and warthogs. This was one of our favorite parts of the day. It was really cool to see so many animals all together and so close. It was very different from seeing animals in a zoo.

Buffalo

Jackal

Warthog

Impala

We also saw several rhinos on the morning drive. The conservancy has both black rhinos and southern white rhinos. We learned that the black/white distinction has nothing to do with their color. The black rhinos have a concave back and the white rhinos have a flat or slightly convex back. Each rhino is uniquely marked with notches on their ears so that they can be individually identified by the conservancy rangers. The rangers have to account for each of the rhinos every few days to make sure that they are all safe. Most of the rhinos have been moved here from areas where they are at high risk from poachers.

Southern white rhinos

A black rhino with an oxpecker bird on its back

A white rhino also enjoying the services of an oxpecker bird

We stopped for a picnic breakfast near a river. The drivers set up folding tables and we ate food that the kitchen had packed for us, along with drinks and coffee.

After breakfast, we ran into a large group of elephants including a little baby. They walked very close to our trucks and even smelled the passengers in Peter’s brother Collin’s car.

Lions

Our driver told us there had been a sighting of the lion pride that lives in the conservancy. We headed in the direction where they had been spotted. By this time, the sun was higher in the sky, so the lions were resting in the shade. They had killed an animal earlier in the day.

We found them in a more shaded area with bushes and small trees. Our driver told us that there are three brothers leading the pride. We saw at least six lions in total. It was a little hard to see some of them because they were resting in the shade and were not moving much. We were still able to get some good photos of a few of the lions. They mostly ignored the vehicles that were around them.

One of the male lions from the pride

Another male lion resting in the shade

A female lion from the pride

We then headed back to camp for lunch and then rested for a couple of hours.

Afternoon drive

We left for the afternoon drive at 4 PM. The weather had been quite warm in the morning and early afternoon but got windy and slightly rainy by the time we went out for this drive. Our driver provided heavy ponchos that kept us warm and dry.

Bundled up in our ponchos during the cold and rainy afternoon drive

We saw fewer animals on this drive. The highlight was seeing a den of hyenas. They burrow and dig tunnels in the ground. There were at least six baby hyenas with one of the mothers watching over them. While we were there, a warthog tried to approach the den. It briefly ran at the hyenas causing them to scatter and the babies to hide. Then the warthog thought better and decided to run away.

The hyena family at their den

Baby hyenas playing near their den

Mother hyena nursing her baby

Warthog confrontation with the hyenas

Sundown drinks and dinner

The rain stopped and we went to have our sundown drinks. Sadly, it was too cloudy to see the sunset. We headed back to the camp for dinner.

Dinner was similar to the first night. It was delicious. We were exhausted. Peter’s family asked us some questions about how we started dating. We also heard about Collin and Mary’s (Peter’s parents) first date.

Then we headed to bed in anticipation of another 6 AM game drive the next day.