Western Kenya offers a rich menu for discerning visitor

Any visitor on an expedition to Western Kenya should consider visiting the King’wal Swamp Conservancy, which is home to rare aquatic antelopes only found in East and parts of Central Africa.

Located in Nandi County, some 40 kilometres off the Eldoret-Kisumu highway, King’wal is a natural habitat for the over 200 antelopes locally known as Sitatunga.

Covering over 10,000 hectares of wetland enclosed by an ever green canopy of papyrus, the conservancy is also home to different species of birds and reptiles.

To access the sanctuary, one can take the Eldoret-Kapsabet highway and branch off a murram road just past Chepterit trading centre.

However, the visitor should bear in mind that the shy antelopes prefer to come out of their hideouts in the evenings as they usually start to graze around 6pm.

The male Sitatungas are brown and larger than the females. They also have twisted horns and will use them sporadically fight for dominance.

“We have developed tourism infrastructure, mapped out a resources inventory in biodiversity areas and safeguarded the endangered Sitatunga antelopes to attract more tourists,” said Mr Joel Kanda, the regional KWS warden.

HUNTED

He lamented that in the past, farmers, who cultivate the land near the swamp used to kill the antelopes routinely, diminishing their numbers because the animals were also hunted for meat.

“Sustained conservation efforts have led to an increase in the population of the rare antelopes and boosted the number of tourists,” he said.

Besides King’wal, the endangered antelopes can also be found in Saiwa swamp, Trans-Nzoia County.

Not far from King’wal swamp is Keben springs, Nandi rock, the Kaptumek game reserve and Kibirong swamp where watchers can have a glimpse to various bird species.

“Most of these eco-tourism projects are community driven where they are empowered on environmental conservation to promote tourism as alternative source of income,” said Mr Kanda.

Other attractions in the western Kenya tourist circuit include the Cherang’any hills in Trans-Nzoia County and Kakamega forest in Kakamega County.

Besides game watching, visitors can also explore cultural sites such as the Koitalel Samoei mausoleum in Nandi Hills, which celebrates the legendary leader of the Nandi, Koitalel Samoei, who led the community to fight against colonialism.

The adventure would, of course, not be complete without a visit to the many sports camps in the region which is world famous as the home of accomplished athletes such as Kipchoge Keino, whose family originates few kilometres from King’wal.