Home of the Born Free offers a cocktail of wildlife and adventure
What you need to know:
- Visitors can see the endangered black rhino.
- Meru park inspired a movie that took Hollywood by storm and helped Kenya defeat poachers.
The Meru National Park is a shining gem in the upper eastern region.
It has overcome endless cases of poaching and insecurity associated with the shifta era in the 80’s and 90’s and is now teeming with wildlife, a magical place with a unique spiritual ecosystem.
The Big Five of elephant, buffalo, rhino, lion and leopard can be spotted here as well zebras, kudus, impalas, elands, oryx, giraffes, hippopotamus and many others.
It is in this park that George and Joy Adamson, the subject of the popular movie Born Free, released to the wild Elsa, a lioness they had rescued and nursed back to health.
At the camp, George used to take care of lions with feeding problems, gave them medication and released them after they recovered.
After releasing them, he would still follow up to check their health status.
It is reported that every morning and evening, he called the lions for an assembly for inspection. He died in 1989 and was buried in the park after Kenya Wildlife Service and the government signed an agreement to inter his remains there.
The 870km square park continues to live up to its reputation. With its well marked tracks, the park allows visitors to easily navigate the vast area. But if you do not get lost, then you have not had any fun.
A 24-hour rhino conservancy is one of the park’s attraction. It is here that the endangered black rhino species is closely guarded by KWS rangers.
While on a visit of the expansive park, it is normal to find the armed rangers on a regular patrols.
A KWS plane regularly hovers around the park to ensure that the wild animals are secure. The open savannah land and luxuriant swamps in the park offer quite an exquisite view of flora and fauna, with the famous wild cats lying lowly in the huge grassland waiting to pounce on unsuspecting prey. The park is ideal for a family getaway as there are activities for all age groups.
This includes rock climbing, mountain trekking, and forest adventure excursions among others. Those who wish to spend a night or two at the park can do so at Leopard Rock lodge), Elsa’s Kopje lodge or the Ikweta Inn Lodge.
Meru National Park is accessible both by road, choppers and small planes thanks to an airstrip located inside the park.
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