kenya
From right to left: Najin and Fatu, the last two surviving female northern white rhinoceroses in the world at Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Laikipia; a huge baobab tree, Tsavo East National Park; Maasai men dressed in traditional clothing images: Will Whitford; awl images
Around October, they repeat it all on their return to the Serengeti. Unsurprisingly, the Mara is far more crowded during the migration, and this is when neighbouring conservancies come into their own. Away from the crowds, they may be further from the river, but many will offer full-day game drives for the experience.
Second only to the Mara for wildlife, Laikipia is a high-altitude plateau, upon which sits a patchwork of vast private ranches and conservancies lying in the northern shadows of Mount Kenya. This is Kenya’ s rhinoceros country, with many conservancies involved in remarkable successes. The best known is Ol Pejeta, home to East and Central Africa’ s largest black rhinoceros sanctuary, with over 165 of the critically endangered pachyderms.
In southern Kenya, the Tsavo ecosystem spans 16,000 square miles, roughly the size of Switzerland. It includes Tsavo East and Tsavo West national parks with a tapestry of conservancies and ranches. Kenya’ s biggest national park, Tsavo East, has vivid terracotta-coloured tracks cutting a swath through vast plains that stretch for miles to the Sagala Hills. Its smaller sister, Tsavo West, is a hilly, wooded wilderness interspersed with lakes, volcanic lava flows and iconic views of Kilimanjaro towering in the distance. Along with diverse wildlife that includes buffalo, hartebeest, zebras, lions and leopards, nearly 15,000 elephants roam these plains, a staggering 40 % of Kenya’ s entire population, all tinged red from Tsavo’ s soils.
Other regions worth visiting include Meru National Park, the former home of Elsa the lioness, raised by George and Joy Adamson, whose story is told in the film Born Free. Wildlife-rich Amboseli in the south is hilly and lush, set against the backdrop of snow-capped Kilimanjaro and home to huge herds of elephants.
spring 2025 • 39