DAY 142. MON 25/06. Nairobi. 52 kms. Total 28239 kms. Jungle Junction. S1 17.325 E36 45.635

Left Jungle Junction this morning after long goodbyes to Rich and Sasha with the intention of heading back to the airport to get the carnet stamped in and then east towards Mombasa and the coast to perhaps rendezvous with Andrew and Bronwyn at some stage, although nothing had been arranged yet. However on the way to the airport we got a text message saying their landy, Gnu, had been delayed in the middle east and wouldn't be in Kenya till 9th July so they were flying to South Africa for 2 weeks before coming back to Kenya. So we immediately changed our minds about going to the coast as it would have been a long round trip to get back across to Masai Mara. Eventually managed to get the carnet stamped in, after 1st enquiring at the airport, thinking that maybe Bron and Andrew would be transiting Nairobi to get to Jhb and we could meet them seeing as we were there anyway but we were not to be that lucky. Also made the mistake while we were there of using some expensive "airport price" internet for a few hours which was like 5 times the usual price which we only discovered when it was time to pay. The carnet was finally stamped in the low brown customs building across the road from the grey multi storey freight import building where Rob had tried on Friday and again today 1st before being sent across to this building. Tried at one more office here before finally finding the right place/department - "valuation department", where it was finally stamped in without any problems - just needed to find the place! By then is was getting quite late in the afternoon and with traffic building up already decided to head back to Jungle Junction for one last night in Nairobi. On the way stopped at another shopping centre near the camp, Ya-Ya Centre (S1 17.572 E36 47.262), to find some faster, cheaper internet as we still needed to finish updating the website. Ran into Rich and Sash and the PE brothers in the internet café who were somewhat surprised to still see us in Nairobi as we had told everyone we were off earlier this morning. Lastly picked up some fresh mince which we had for dinner once we got back to camp after dark.

DAY 143. TUES 26/06. Nairobi to Lake Navaisha. 171 kms. Total 28410 kms. Fisherman's Camp. S0 49.567 E36 20.050

A bit like groundhog today, saying goodbye again to the same people we said goodbye to yesterday morning before heading off to Lake Navaisha on a good tar road, mostly back along the way we had 1st traveled in to Nairobi from Nyahururu. Again it was quite misty so again the views of the rift valley along the way were not quite what they could have been. Not very far so arrived at Lake Navaisha fairly early after stopping for lunch at a farm stall. Drove along the lake and past Fisherman's Camp towards Crater Lake (S0 46.967 E36 15.724). Along the way, in game sanctuaries on either side of the road we saw lots of animals, all for free (e.g. giraffe, buffalo, eland, zebra) which made the drive worth it on its own. When we got to Crater Lake (& game sanctuary) it was only 200Ksh pp and 100 Ksh for the car entrance fee so we decided to go in. (Prices have since increased - almost doubled?) Game sanctuary was a bit disappointing but views of Crater Lake and flamingoes were superb from the rim of the crater and well worth a quick visit. Also a nice but quite expensive lodge on the edge of the lake where you can have a lunch or drinks as a visitor. But we would definitely recommend just taking the drive or walk out along the road towards the entrance of Crater Lake (S0 46.426 E36 15.477) as you will see animals along the way for free. Back at Fisherman's Camp we ran into John and Jill (from EL) and Klaas (now accompanied by his wife and friend) again, who were both surprised to see us after having left Jungle Junction before us thinking we would be heading for the coast. Also a huge group of SA overlanders (mainly from GP & WP) on an organized tour or some sorts as well as another 2 couples from the Eastern Cape, whom we would meat again later. So campsite was quite full of South Africans! Also met and chatted to an interesting American/Hawaiian character traveling on his own with a bicycle through Africa. Excellent campsite though. Great hot water showers, nice bar/restaurant and right on the lake under huge trees. They have a low electric fence in between the camp and the lake which they connect up at night to keep the hippos out and we were treated to at least 4 grazing out in the open on the grass in front of the camp. After hearing them munching away we could just about make out their dark shapes with the torch before hearing one bellowing away and charging up and down. So a bit of excitement before going to bed.

DAY 144. WED 27/06. Lake Navaisha. 0 kms. Total 28410 kms. Fisherman's Camp. S0 49.567 E36 20.050

Bit of a low key, quiet day really. Woke up fairly late by which time the large group of SA overlanders and the 2 EC couples, none of whom we had really met, had all left already! Had a great leisurely breakfast of bacon, egg and toast. Said cheers to John and Jill who were also off, heading towards Uganda, so overnight the campsite had really emptied out - just us and Klaas left! Cleaned off some of the muck from Cathey's roof rack before taking a short walk down into the village to pick up a few fresh supplies from the market. After lunch back at camp we had a few vervet monkeys clambering all over Cathey, including one that climbed up the steps to the roof top tent. One cheeky one even swiped the rest of our avocado pear off the table from right underneath our noses before we could stop it! Later we sat in the bar for a while writing a bit of the blog and having a few drinks. Also took some photos of the unusual resident black and white colobus monkeys in the campsite. Made a fire in the evening to make "klossies"/(toasted cheese, tomato and onion sandwiches cooked on the coals) which we had been craving for a while on the trip but only now in Kenya, with access to regular normal bread, have we been able to make them. Really delicious! Really quiet compared to last night with no hippo noise or sightings!

DAY 145. THURS 28/06. Lake Navaisha to Kericho. 196 kms. Total 28606 kms.Kimugu River Lodge. S0 22.065 E35 17.788

Left Lake Navaisha with the aim of heading west towards Kisumu on Lake Victoria. A horrendous detour/diversion due to road construction between Navaisha and Nakuru, which we didn't know about as we hadn't driven this route before, slowed us down though. A terrible gravel road with buses and trucks all driving badly which did not help.

Finally made it to Nakuru (for the 2nd time) where we filled up all our diesel tanks for the journey down into Tanzania as it is slightly cheaper in Kenya. This time at the Shell - even cheaper than last time:64.49 KSh/l - the cheapest we found in all of Kenya! Also did some shopping for provisions, internet-ing and bought some more US$ from Barclays Bank. (S0 17.157 E36 03.797) Left Nakuru later than hoped for and unfortunately the road heading west did not improve! This time just badly potholed tar roads. Also very steep and mountainous still with mist and rain in places making conditions even more treacherous and slow. Rob clipped a slow moving sheep driving through a small town which limped off with hopefully no serious damage done. (1st time we have tagged an animal while driving and closest we have come to contributing to the road kill levels) We realized we wouldn't make it to Kisumu so when we arrived at Kericho, a highland town surrounded by picturesque tea plantations, and one of the main tea growing areas in Kenya, we started looking for a place to stay. We had no references of where to stay at all but luckily straight away we stumbled upon a place with decent camping facilities and hot water showers: Kimugu River Lodge. Best thing about the place was the bar and restaurant with mainly Indian style food where we had a couple of drinks and a lovely curry meal, naan breads and baajies. Not quite as good as a UK curry (which we had both been missing along the way) but still a great surprise and treat for us.

DAY 146. FRI 29/06. Kericho to Kisumu. 92 kms. Total 28698 kms. Kisumu Beach Resort, Lake Victoria. S0 05.792 E34 43.979

Road mostly downhill leaving Kericho, as you descend from altitude down towards the lake, which was one good thing. However still in very bad condition all the way to Kisumu. Potholes so bad in places that it's better to drive alongside the road in the rough gravel tracks. Stopped in at another Nakumat supermarket in Kisumu (S0 06.454 E34 46.215) to stock up with a few more supplies before arriving at Kisumu Beach Lodge around lunch time. A rather run down place on the shores of Lake Victoria but with decent facilities (hot shower) and electricity points and lighting in little shelters next to where we camped. Were able to plug in the fridge to the mains using the new extension lead Rob had assembled using cable and plugs we had bought a few days ago in Nairobi for this purpose. Had lunch and a few beers in the camp and a leisurely afternoon relaxing and doing some laundry. A few sundowners at the bar overlooking the lake in the late afternoon before dinner and a DVD before bed. Watched "Constant Gardner" which was filmed in Kenya - quite a thrill after just recently having come down from Lake Turkana and Loiyangalani, which features extensively in the movie.

DAY 147. SAT 30/06. Kisumu to Masai Mara. 254 kms. Total 28952 kms. Bushcamp 3kms before Oloololo Gate. S1 14.965 E34 58.345

Didn't fancy spending another day at Kisumu as we didn't have much we wanted to do so instead decided to head south to Masai Mara. Took the good tar road south along the lake towards Migori. Brilliant new tar road compared to the terrible roads of the previous 2 days. Stopped in Migori to top up with a bit more diesel and have some lunch before turning off east on the C13 road towards Masai Mara at the junction 4km south of Migori (S1 05.670 E34 27.373) sign posted to Kehancha. Tricky unsealed earth road with a few small stream crossings but most of the bigger rivers at least having concrete bridges. Last few kilometers were very slow as the road is quite eroded and the tracks are constantly veering off the main road to the side and back again around the bad bits, sometimes at quite a steep angle. We were within a few kms of the gate and with no camp sites nearby we decided to bushcamp up on the escarpment before descending down to the plains of the Masai Mara. Pulled off the road a few hundred meters to the left of the road and started making camp surrounded by zebra and impala. Got a fire going with dead wood collected from around the camp before being approached by a group of Masai women and children on the way back to their village. After they moved off we were soon approached again by a group of Masai men who questioned us about camping here. At first it seemed that they didn't want us to camp here for safety reasons to do with the wild animals and to rather stay at one of the villages but after a cell phone call to the chief of the area and after negotiating a fee (500 Ksh pp) with the land owner we were allowed to camp. Also offered us a guard for the night which we would have had to pay more for which we declined. After that we were left alone - animals included - and had a peaceful nights sleep.

DAY 148. SUN 01/07. Masai Mara: Oloolala Gate to Keekorok Lodge. 108 kms. Total 29060 kms. Camped at Park Rangers Office, Keekorok. S1 35.334 E35 14.155

After negotiating our way down the escarpment towards Oloolala Gate we were pleasantly surprised to see a herd of elephants on the plains in the distance before we even entered the park. Unfortunately for us, we arrived on the 1st day of the new park fees; 1st July! This meant 40$ pp park entrance, 10$ pp camping and 800 KSh for the vehicle - quite steep but still a bargain compared to what was coming for the parks in Tanzania! We were hoping to exit the park through the Sand River Gate in the south directly into Serengeti in Tanzania. All our guide books had suggested that this was possible. The staff at the gate confirmed that it may be possible and that instead of camping at the best public camp site near the centre of the park, Serena Public Campsite, it might be better for us to push on to Keekorok further south and camp there, leaving a shorter day tomorrow to Sand River Gate. We entered the park shortly before 11am and almost immediately came across a large herd of buffalos wallowing in mud pools that we watched for a while. Before we left we had to help 2 stranded young British lads in a rented 4x4 who had also stopped to see the buffalo and couldn't start the engine again - seemed to be some electrical wiring fault with the starter motor - so we gave them a tow to get them going again. On the way through towards Mara Serena Lodge we saw some elephant and waterbuck. Stopped at the lodge around lunch time to make some lunch and fill up our tanks with water. Decided to sample a bit of the high life and have a few drinks at the lodge around the pool, enjoying the awesome view over the plains, before moving on again late afternoon. Saw quite a lot of animals on the way down towards the Mara River, including elephants and hyenas. Stopped at one of the famous Mara River migration crossing points (S1 31.051 E35 00.981). Unfortunately the migration up into Masai Mara was late this year, still 2 weeks away, due to later than usual rains in Tanzania so all we saw were a few hippos and crocs - no wildebeest! Also stopped at Hippo Pool Park (S1 32.764 E35 01.247) and saw yet more hippos before making haste to reach Keekorok before sunset and the park's cut off time for driving. Unfortunately, contrary to what we were told at Oloolala Gate, there is no public campsite at Keekorok so we had to camp at the park ranger's office which was a bit disappointing considering what we had paid to camp. Would definitely have been better to camp at Serena or even at the picnic site just past the check point on the Mara River (S1 32.738 E35 01.082) where they had earlier asked if we wanted to camp.