Going walkabout

Wednesday, 19th September 2007

Court, non-residents were only allowed access to the four ‘public’ beaches as the guest of a resident.

A game drive to Lewa or Borana offers rhino and big cats, but walking and fly-camping around Tassia (bush breakfast a speciality) promises a chance of Cape buffalo, elephant, hunting dogs, leopard, kudu and gerenuk (a rare long-necked antelope — of which 11 were seen in one morning, but sadly not by me). There are also giraffe, impala, genet, civet and caracal. At night you might see aardvark, aardwolf or spotted or striped hyenas. You can bump into a cheetah straight after breakfast.

Those who insist can walk to the top of Mount Lossos and paraglide down; Charlie can arrange camel safaris and Martin can fix a helicopter trip to a trout lake high on the slopes of Mount Kenya. But my advice is: don’t do it. Once you’ve seen Martin drop a fly like thistledown on the nose of a rising trout 50 yards away, you won’t need more vulgar thrills. It’s all in the walking — feeling Africa in your nose and ears and eyes and beneath your feet, and hearing the background orchestra change from day to night sounds as darkness falls. You return to Tassia dusty and tired, and shower in hot water from wood-burning stoves (only dead wood used), and have drinks and supper among people for whom this is not a job, but a life.

Email Martin or Antonia at info@tassiasafaris.com or www.tassiasafaris.com.