7 Day / 6 Night Horseback Safari
Arrival into Nairobi - Take any day time flight from London Heathrow or another European city to Nairobi (JKIA). Guests should aim to spend their first night in Nairobi to rest.
Day 1- Nairobi to Chyulu Hills (Lenkiliriti)- Transfer from the hotel early in the morning to Wilson Airport in Nairobi to catch the Safarilink scheduled flight at 0730 to the Chyulus (or to a private charter from other safari destinations in Kenya if desired). Guests will be met by Patrick and Nicola, Ride Kenya’s guides and hosts, and transferred to the first camp site.
After lunch in camp, guests have a chance to catch up on sleep before heading out for an afternoon ride at about 4 o’clock. The horses will already be in the camp waiting for you upon arrival. Having received detailed information on each guest, Patrick and Nicola will have chosen a horse for everyone. This afternoon’s ride is designed to give guests a taste of the safari to come and to ensure a perfect match between horse and rider before the safari departs.
The ride will meander through a spectacular volcanic landscape, known as Lenkiliriti to the local Maasai. We are likely to come across klipspringer, baboon, Coke’s Hartebeest, rock hyrax and gerenuk who reside in and around the volcanoes. The ride will emerge onto a vast plain where we will end the day with a sunset drink in a picturesque location. We will then return to camp for a hot shower, drinks by the fire and a three course dinner. Anyone who is not happily paired with a horse has a chance to change horses on this first day.
Day 2 - Macaruru - After a delicious breakfast at the camp, guests and their guides will set out on a five-six hour ride through an area of Chyulu East National Park, known as Macaruru. This is a wild and untouched area of Kenya, where the scenery is incredible. The ride will take guests through a spectacular and wild landscape, with a picnic lunch to break up the riding. Guests will be met by a vehicle for lunch. Under the shade of a sprawling acacia tree, guests enjoy cool drinks and a picnic before continuing with the ride back to the Lenkiliriti camp.
On the ride today, guests might be lucky enough to come across signs of black rhino, which reside in the park. These are the last truly wild black rhino in Kenya, and it is possible to find fresh tracks to follow on the ride.
Other wildlife which can be seen on today’s ride includes eland, kudu, giraffe, coke’s hartebeest and mountain reedbuck, a rare antelope which resides in the hills around the park.
Tonight guests can try their luck on a night game drive, as the area around this campsite is excellent for viewing nocturnal wildlife such as hyena, bat-eared fox, serval cat, porcupine and much more.
Day 3 – Crater Camp - Today’s ride leaves camp after breakfast and proceeds through the acacia forest up towards Chyulu East National Park. En Route, the ride will trek through seemingly endless stands of whistling thorn acacia as we begin our ascent into the Chyulu Hills. As we make our way, there are ample opportunities to canter, gallop and jump.
Deep in the forest, guests are likely to come across some of our exceptionally large, resident, bull elephants browsing. As we ride, we are likely to meet zebra, wildebeest, giraffe, oryx, gazelle, cheetah and even lion.
Over the course of the day, the ride ascends about 2,000 feet above the plains with stunning views stretching for 90 miles on a clear day. On the way, we will have a picnic lunch before making our final ascent into camp.
Today’s camp is nestled into a forest next to a large volcanic crater. It is situated over looking the quintessential East African plains that lead up to Mt. Kilimanjaro.
Upon reaching the camp, guests are invited to spend the late afternoon climbing the volcanic crater in pursuit of the very rare Verreaux’s Eagle which nests in the nearly inaccessible rocky outcrops that line the rim of the crater.
As an alternative, guests can opt to explore the lava tubes that lie within walking distance of the camp. These jagged caves stretch for miles as they lead away from the crater and have been used by hunter gatherers for generations as shelter.
Guest return to camp before sun-down for a shower, drinks and dinner.
Day 4 - Mist Forest - Today’s ride ascends another 2,000 feet higher into the Chyulu Hills. A noticeable change in climate and temperature occurs as you reach over 7,000 feet above sea level. The ride is dominated by incredible views of the vast wildernesses of Tsavo East National park to the east and Mount Kilimanjaro and Amboseli national park to the west.
Today’s riding traverses steep slopes and valleys and leading of the horses may be necessary at times. Due to the altitude of the area, clouds often sit on the top of the Chyulu Hills. This consistent moisture has given rise to miniature jungles that dot the summits of the hills. Today’s ride takes about four hours and ends at one of the largest mist forests in the hills.
Whilst the horses get sent back to the Crater camp, guests and guides have a chance to enter the mist forests on foot, in pursuit of the buffalo, leopard, syke’s monkey and giant forest hog that reside within it. We will have a picnic lunch on the edge of the mist forest, overlooking the vast landscape below. After lunch guests will be driven back to the camp, where they can enjoy a relaxing sundowner, hot shower and dinner.
Day 5- Kopjes- Today the ride descends out of the hills, through a sprawling acacia forest and on into a large, open, sandy lugga. Over the years, wind erosion has exposed these ancient soils in which archeologists have discovered stone tools made by some of the first hominids to walk the earth. Stone chips and simple stone tools known as hand axes have been collected in this region. As we ride, we always keep our eyes out for signs of artifacts used by our ancient ancestors.
In this area, we will also keep our eyes out for signs of lion. Although, it is highly likely that the lions will be fast asleep deep inside the shady lava flow, we will be able to get a picture of their most recent activity by the tracks they have left the night before. With these tracks, we will be able to formulate a plan to come back after dark, in a vehicle with a spotlight and try our best to locate the lions as they come out to hunt.
After about a five hour ride, guests will arrive at the new campsite which is set on the plains, with a view of some spectacular granite rocks, or Kopjes. This evening we aim to enjoy sunset on top of the rocks themselves, with a stunning view of Mount Kilimanjaro.
Day 6- Kopjes - For our final day’s ride we plan to explore the vast wilderness out behind the Kopjes, heading towards a dry river bed. As it can be hot riding in the area during the midday heat, we suggest a dawn ride, enjoying the wildlife early in the morning, and watching the sunlight catch on the summit of Kilimanjaro as the sun rises over the Chyulu Hills.
On this ride we can expect some sightings of large groups of elephant, which dig in the dry riverbed for water. Riders will love the chance to canter up and down the banks of the riverbed and can let their horses gallop through the soft sand. We are also likely to encounter some local maasai herdsmen, who also survive in this area by digging into the dry riverbed for water.
Today’s five hour ride will finish back at the Kopjes camp for lunch, after which guests can plan to enjoy a last game drive or bush walk, or both.
Day 7- Airstrip-After breakfast, guests will leave on the Safarilink schedule flight, at 0830, (or private charter) to Wilson airport in Nairobi. From Nairobi they can go on to their next Kenyan destination or leave from the international airport that evening.
