The group ride to Moyale was amazing! The taste of Shiro still in our mouths, Nyawira and I camp by Ewaso Nyiro river at Archers Post. From here, I want to explore Samburu and Laikipia with friends. Equally excited and nervous to take my new bike off-road, because this means sand!
To see the pics from the Moyale ride, have a look at Part 1 here!
Day 4 – Samburu’s beautiful nature
From here, we will take it off-tarmac. Grace and her friend join us at Archers Post. They are so excited for the hike up Mt. Ololokwe and the dusty roads for the next few days. But first we enjoy the beautiful scenery by the Ewaso Nyiro river and the pool!
Then Nyawira heads out for futher escapades in the Mt. Kenya region. Clearly she’s the extrovert in the squad, making new friends everywhere!
After lunch, the remaining trio heads over to Sabache Camp and we arrange ourselves for the hike. We plan to camp on top of the mountain.
Our local guides were not bothered by this snake. We later seek an identification on an expert facebook forum: Cape Wolf Snake (Lycophidion capense), harmless, non-venomous.
Incredible nature and views as we slowly make our way up the 800m mountain. We arrive with the last sunlight and pitch the tents at the cliff. What a luxurious meal, prepared in the campfire!
The views at sunrise are breathtaking. This is my third time on this mountain, and definitely one of my favourite spots in the entire country. Watching the birds enjoy their flight in early morning sun is just so peaceful!
Day 5 – Offroad to Koija Star Beds
Riding with Grace there’s one thing you don’t have to worry about: Route Planning. She knows every road in this area. How amazing when someone makes their hobby and passion their career!
We start by taking the main road to Wamba. Luckily it was recently graded and we don’t get many corrrrrugations. We get a long sandy lugga, and boy it’s tricky with the heavy bike! I can’t say I’m very skilled, correctly geared or courageous on the throttle. And slow rarely works well on sand but even less so at 320kgs 😮
Samburu is green atm and the scenery amazing.
After the Wamba junction we take beautiful smaller side roads, crossing many sand rivers. Some rivers have concrete bridges, as well.
I’m indebted to my co-riders for sharing tips for riding on sand, and lending their muscle power every time the tricks don’t work!
All in all we do about 120km until we get to Oldonyiro, a small shopping center where we meet our fourth rider Topo, yet another nature lover and motorcycle tour guide, and top up on food supplies.
Today’s destination is Koija Starbeds, a community run eco-lodge at the Ewaso River, about 20kms further into the bush. The route is a little messed by floods and we end up passing through backroutes around sunset time. No, we don’t get lost, we just find new ways that aren’t leading to the destination. But every time we pass by fresh heaps of elaphant dung, we confuse the gods by praying that we meet them but don’t really meet the giants.
On arrival, we make some amazing dinner, and relax at the bonfire. Oh, the full moon!
Day ? – Somewhere between Naibunga and Loisaba Conservancies
The concept of the starbeds is so clever! A huge, comfortable bed is mounted on wheels, so you can push it out on the balcony of your banda. Under a thick duvet and a tight mosquito net, I watch the moon and stars and the sunrise. The banda also has solar heated shower and a very clean toilet! In the morning a monkey family comes to play in the tree next to my bed.
The place has a well equipped kitchen (even a freezer, toaster and coffee plunger!), a rain water tank for drinking (nearly empty), river water supplies for washing, and a friendly team who takes care of house keeping and cooking. I’m astonished how well kept it is, given it was built in 2002 and how much care wood needs out here.
Naibunga Conservancy is community-owned and part of Northern Rangeland Trust. Limited funding makes it challenging for them to repair the roads and riverbeds soon after every rain, but the place is well accessible with a 4×4 car or the right bike. Simply book through Big North, who connect community-owned accomodation with tourists, here.
The dirt bike riders go out to look for elephants while I enjoy a quiet day by the river, more coffee, tuna wraps and conversation with the team.
And elephants they found!!!
Final Day: Exploring Laikipia towards Nanyki
Today we’re doing some easy riding, mostly on graded roads with a few short dry river crossings. There are various conservancies here, some private-run and some community-owned. We also pass by the power line coming from Ethiopia.
It’s about 100km today, pleasant riding when spotting zebras, various giraffe species, elephants, different deers and birds. As we get close to Nanyuki, the road gets more busy and passes between conversancy fences. Not soooo exciting, but the thought of a tasty Somali lunch in town keeps us going.
A week very well spent!
If you’d like to try out such a motorcycle tour, I highly recommend reaching out to Grace’s and Topo’s companies for some tailored options.
- Grace runs Thrillblaze: website link
- Topo runs Topo Safaris: website link