AAKY31 Birdwatchers Delight – 9 Nights (SP90)

Day 1 Nairobi – Aberdares (LD)

Drive to the Aberdare Mountain Range for a night in a tree lodge. Later this evening watch for animals as they come to the flood-lit waterhole to drink water and scratch for salt.

More than 200 species of birds have been registered in Aberdares. Among them the visitor may spot the crowned eagle, which feeds on monkeys, or hear the noisy silvery-cheeked hornbill. Sunbirds are represented by the violet Tacazze, the malachite or the scarlet tufted malachite in the high moorlands. Some species of doves and pigeons are usual inhabitants of the upper forest layers. Waterholes usually host black-headed herons, Egyptian geese, sacred ibis and yellow-billed ducks, among other species.

Overnight at Serena Mountain Lodge.

The only ‘tree hotel’ ever to be built on the slopes of Kenya’s legendary Mount Kenya, Mountain Lodge offers a matchless game viewing opportunity whilst combining a glorious panorama of mountain vistas with the primordial splendours of an ancient rainforest.

Day 2 Aberdares – Nakuru (BLD)

Drive into the Great Rift Valley and Lake Nakuru, arriving in time for lunch. This afternoon enjoy game and bird viewing in nearby Lake Nakuru National Park.

The park was first gazetted as a bird sanctuary in 1960 and upgraded to National Park status in 1968. A northern extension was added to the park in 1974 and the lake was designated as a Ramsar site in 1990. The foundation of the parks food chains is the cyanophyte spirulina platensis which can support huge numbers of lesser flamingo.

Overnight at Lake Nakuru Lodge.

The Lodge is an oasis of comfort and excellent service with commanding views of its surroundings and the animals which graze peacefully close to the lodge.

Day 3 Lake Nakuru (BLD)

A full day at Lake Nakuru includes morning and afternoon game drives in the park. Lake Nakuru is probably most famous for the over one million greater and lesser flamingos that gather at the lake during various times of the year. In addition, the tens of thousands of other birds make this a bird watchers paradise.

Overnight at Lake Nakuru Lodge.

Day 4 Lake Nakuru – Lake Baringo (BLD)

Travel north and stop near Lake Bogoria to see the hot springs and geysers. Then continue to Lake Baringo, a fresh water lake with over 450 species of birds. This afternoon enjoy a guided bird walk.

Same as in all the Rift Valley lakes, birdlife is plentiful and diverse in Bogoria. The lake is regularly visited by thousands of greater and lesser flamingoes, which gather at the shore opposite to the hot springs. The reserve also hosts among others vultures, bustards, larks and prey birds, worth to mention the fish eagles, which due to the lack of fish have learned to hover on flamingoes.

Baringo's fresh waters host a fish variety absent in the alkaline lakes, which attracts a broad range of waterbirds. The rocky isle of Gibraltar, at the eastern shore, is blessed with the largest Goliath heron population in all East Africa. Another place of interest is the escarpment which lies next to the town of Kampi ya Samaki, at the western shore, where a lucky watcher could find Verreaux eagles, Hemprich's hornbills and bristle-crowned starlings.

Overnight at Lake Baringo Club.

On the shores of Lake Baringo, 75kms north of the equator, the Club nestles amongst palm trees, green lawns and the clashing pinks, purples, reds and oranges of bougainvillea obviously thriving in the hot steamy days that characterise so many of the Rift's lakes.

Day 5 Lake Baringo (BLD)

Enjoy guided bird viewing before breakfast this morning. Later enjoy a boat trip in the Lake followed by an afternoon at leisure.

Birds are the kings and queens of Baringo. More than 400 recorded species make the visit to the lakeside a competition to achieve the highest numbers of species sighted, the world record set at 342 species in 24 hours. The experience is more rewarding during the rainy season, when many birds fly back to Baringo. If you are not an expert ornithologist, you will enjoy it in any case with a good field guide in your backpack and responding to the chants you hear.

South of Lake Baringo Club, along the road, there is an area in which you may find rare species such as the male paradise flycatcher in its white phase, the violet wood hoopoe, the grey-headed bush shrike and several kingfisher species.

Overnight at Lake Baringo Club.

Day 6 Lake Baringo – Lake Naivasha (BLD)

Drive via Lake Elementaita to Lake Naivasha, arriving in time for lunch. A boat trip on Lake Naivasha with a visit to Crescent Island is included this afternoon.

Lake Elementaita is home to millions of Lesser Flamingos, and also important as a stopover for over 350 bird species (recorded by the lodges’ two resident naturalists).

Spread out over 110 square kilometres, a pearl in the bosom of the Kenya Rift, the waters of Lake Naivasha glisten silver as the sun slopes swiftly towards the west. Purest and highest of all the Rift lakes, Naivasha is a bird sanctuary without peer. Over 400 species have been recorded here.

Overnight at Lake Naivasha Country Club.

The 55-acre property boasts green lawns shaded by mature acacias and spreading fever trees, that stretch down to the lake's shore. The hotel offers a wonderful mix of tranquility in serene surroundings and a varied number of activities.

Day 7 Lake Naivasha (BLD)

Enjoy early morning guided bird watching before breakfast. Later this afternoon, visit nearby Hell’s Gate.

Much of the Lake Naivasha is surrounded by forests of the yellow barked Acacia Xanthophlea, known as the yellow fever tree. The forests abound with bird life, and Naivasha is known as a world class birding destination.

Hell's Gate National Park lies beside the lake. This Park was named for its pair of enormous red tinged cliffs framing a geo-thermically active interior of steam vents and bubbling springs.

Overnight at Lake Naivasha Country Club.

Day 8 Lake Naivasha – Masai Mara (BLD)

Leave the Rift Valley and drive to the Masai Mara, arriving in time for lunch. Enjoy an afternoon game drive in the Park.

Probably the most famous of the reserves, the Masai Mara boasts an astonishing amount of game. Gazelle, wildebeest and zebra graze in large numbers and where prey is found so are predators. Not only is this a great place in which to find game, but the wide greeny-gold savannahs spotted with thorn trees make it ideal for photography.

Overnight at Siana Springs Intrepids.

Siana Intrepids occupies a lush indigenous forest watered by the largest natural springs in the Mara ecosystem - Siana Springs, or 'the plentiful springs' in Maa.

Day 9 Masai Mara (BLD)

Morning and afternoon game drives are included today.

The famous black-maned Mara lions are possibly the stars of the Mara show, but cheetah, elephant, kongoni, topi, Thompson's gazelle, waterbuck,hyena, and primates are all here too. As with the rest of Kenya, the birding is good.

Overnight at Siana Springs Intrepids.

Day 10 Masai Mara – Nairobi (B)

Drive back to Nairobi after breakfast, arriving around midday.