Great getaway for animal lovers

The couple on the settee were wrapped in blankets and cuddling close. The woman passed a camera to a waiter and asked him if he would take a photo.

“We want to show people back home in England that it can be very cold in Africa – even on the Equator!” she said.

We were in the lounge of the Sweetwaters Tented Camp managed by the Serena Group at the Ol Pejeta Conservancy, close to Nanyuki. And, yes, it was a very cold sun-downer drink we were having. On the Laikipia plateau, the Conservancy is about 500 feet higher than Nairobi, and there was a chill wind blowing.

But the Sweetwaters Camp is so comfortable, the food so good, the staff so attentive – and there had been so much action out front of the tents that afternoon that no-one, I’m sure, was in a mood to complain about the chill in the air.

Fun trip

We had driven there from Nairobi that morning and had arrived well in time for lunch. Then the youngsters were eager to immediately go out on a game drive. I advised them to relax, watch things from the verandas for an hour or so, and take the drive later in the afternoon. They wouldn’t listen to that. Instead, they dashed off to unpack. But when we caught up with them at the tents they all excitedly had binoculars to their eyes.

“Look there!” my son Jan said. “Look – there are three cheetahs in front of those bushes!”

The cheetahs were in a hunting mode, moving stealthily towards a small herd of Thompson’s gazelles. But when they sprang, the targeted gazelle was too fast for them. The cheetahs regrouped and took up an alert position, waiting for some other prey to come from the bushes. Instead, 12 giraffes emerged. They were not at all fazed by the presence of the cheetahs; in fact, a couple of the younger giraffes were curious enough to edge very close to them.

There were many subplots in that drama during the afternoon; many other actors at the waterhole and on the grassy plain – buffalos, elands, impalas, waterbucks, zebras and warthogs.

Yes, Sweetwaters is set where, if you are patient, the animals will come to you. But if we had stayed there we would have missed some very special action. When we went for our before-breakfast drive, only the peak of Mount Kenya was in cloud. But as the sun came up the mountain doffed its cap for five or so minutes, and so our guests got their first sighting of the mountain’s snow.

Rare sighting

Then, later that day, when we drove with picnic lunch boxes to Ol Pejeta’s western plains, we got our own first and very rare sighting. We came across a pack of nine African wild dogs that had just made kills of two young warthogs. There was squabbling over the tasty bits – occasional tugs of war. And three jackals were circling, hoping for leftovers ...

It is a wonderful place, Ol Pejeta – a model of good practice in conservancy. Once owned by the Arab arms dealer, Adnan Khashoggi; then by the British Lonrho company, when it managed hotels in Kenya; now by the American Fauna and Flora International, as a not-for-profit business – it is 365-square kilometres of open grasslands and Acacia belts along its water courses.

It has the world’s largest herd of Boran cattle, which are thriving alongside an amazing variety of wildlife that includes the “big five” of elephants, buffalos, rhinos, lions and leopards. It also contains sanctuaries for chimpanzees and rhinos – but I will say more about those next week.

The Serena Group also manages Ol Pejeta House, which was a holiday retreat for Adnan Khashoggi. With six ostentatiously designed rooms, a collection of eccentric art, giraffes in the gardens, it makes an excellent place for a flamboyant party or an elegant brainstorming.

Back at Sweetwaters, we were fortunate to be in the new line of Morani tents. But they are not what being under canvas normally implies. Yes, they are clad in canvas, but they have also been erected with a discrete use of concrete with an attractive blend of carved wood. They are surprisingly spacious – and they have all the comforts you would find in a top-flight hotel room. The water bottles in the beds at night were also very welcome.

The main dining room, bar and lounges, are being rebuilt. So temporary canvas structures have been put up. It was all cleverly done, and none of the guests seemed to mind. As for the food, it was plentiful, varied and very tasty. The offering of champagne at breakfast was a nice way to start the day, too.

I asked James Odenyo, the General Manager, how he would argue his case for Ol Pejeta with fellow Kenyans.
“Well, it’s great place for a weekend away.” He then said with a broad grin: “It’s at least half-a-day closer than the Mara – and certainly much easier to reach!”

John Fox is Managing Director of iDC Email: [email protected]