We are up early but not so bright as its still pitch dark as we pile into 2 matutos for our game drive round Lake Nakuru National Park. Our driver is Peter, and he has a great sense of humour and fantastic knowledge of the park wildlife. Today, we are on the hunt for black and white rhinos, and the elusive leopard. However, our first task is to track the other the matuto which went missing in the first half hour and did not arrive at the appointed entrance gate to the park. Eventually, we trace them to another entrance and set off through the park to meet them. At the other entrance, they are already being menaced by the monkeys, anxious to discover if they have any tasty titbits.
The game drive proper commences and our eyes are fixed on the acacia branches, looking for a swinging tail but there is so much as else to see that we are constantly distracted as Peter somehow manages to drive the muddy potholed route and point out the wildlife as he goes. Monkeys running from branch to branch, buffalo down by the lakeside, alongside the waterbuck and the zebras. Then we spot a couple of male lions, exiled from their pride, and almost immediately two black rhinos grazing just beyond the road. All the time, Peter is spotting the bird life, his speciality. We see white rhinos and giraffes and warthogs and more zebra, then down by the lakeside more white rhinos and thousands of flamingo and pelicans (there used to millions, Peter tells us). We meet up with the other matuto but they are not so happy. Their guide has got lost and has no idea about the wildlife and they have seen nothing but the two old lions. We suggest that their guide follows us and we point out the wildlife as we go. They have still not seen any black rhino so when we see one in the distance trotting towards the road, we happily point it out but carry on as we already have the photos. It’s some time later we realise they are not following. Peter reluctantly stops and waits for a while, then, even more reluctantly carries out a skilled 3 point turn to go back along the track to find them. A jeep tells us they had got stuck but are now out so we wait even longer. Still no sign. We’re getting worried. Eventually, an hour later, they arrive, both shaken and stirred. With the rhino rapidly approaching they had got stuck in a deep pothole, near some long grass (excellent cover for lions) and trees (leopards). Their driver, had insisted they all get out and that 2 of the guys go searching for branches to put under the wheels, before pulling (not pushing) them out. Despite another jeep towing them out once, he had managed to get them stuck 3 times in the same pothole and had only narrowly missed running the guys pulling over! After that we did not let them out of our sight.
The game drive proper commences and our eyes are fixed on the acacia branches, looking for a swinging tail but there is so much as else to see that we are constantly distracted as Peter somehow manages to drive the muddy potholed route and point out the wildlife as he goes. Monkeys running from branch to branch, buffalo down by the lakeside, alongside the waterbuck and the zebras. Then we spot a couple of male lions, exiled from their pride, and almost immediately two black rhinos grazing just beyond the road. All the time, Peter is spotting the bird life, his speciality. We see white rhinos and giraffes and warthogs and more zebra, then down by the lakeside more white rhinos and thousands of flamingo and pelicans (there used to millions, Peter tells us). We meet up with the other matuto but they are not so happy. Their guide has got lost and has no idea about the wildlife and they have seen nothing but the two old lions. We suggest that their guide follows us and we point out the wildlife as we go. They have still not seen any black rhino so when we see one in the distance trotting towards the road, we happily point it out but carry on as we already have the photos. It’s some time later we realise they are not following. Peter reluctantly stops and waits for a while, then, even more reluctantly carries out a skilled 3 point turn to go back along the track to find them. A jeep tells us they had got stuck but are now out so we wait even longer. Still no sign. We’re getting worried. Eventually, an hour later, they arrive, both shaken and stirred. With the rhino rapidly approaching they had got stuck in a deep pothole, near some long grass (excellent cover for lions) and trees (leopards). Their driver, had insisted they all get out and that 2 of the guys go searching for branches to put under the wheels, before pulling (not pushing) them out. Despite another jeep towing them out once, he had managed to get them stuck 3 times in the same pothole and had only narrowly missed running the guys pulling over! After that we did not let them out of our sight.
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