Elephants, Elephants, and Elephants of East Africa CONTACT US NOW FOR 2013!
Join acclaimed elephant author and photographer Daryl Balfour (African Elephants – A Celebration of Majesty) on a safari taking in the very best elephant viewing areas in Kenya in February/March 2013 (dates to be finalised according to preferences).
This special Daryl Balfour safari, which will specifically be about elephants, photographing elephants, seeing elephants, tracking elephants and everything you ever wanted to know about elephants, visits three of the continent’s best areas for seeing and experiencing truly wild elephants. (Of course, we will see other wildlife on this safari too!) We will spend quality time with scientists active in the field of elephant research while optimising our opportunities to see and photograph elephants in the remote and scenic northern sector of Samburu National Reserve, the wild corners of Tsavo East National Park and the spectacular Amboseli National Park, where we will hope to encounter elephants on the open plains beneath the stunning backdrop of the snow-capped Mount Kilimanjaro. The snows and glaciers of Kilimanjaro are disappearing at a rapid rate, so this is a scene that is unlikely to be around for many more years, but the timing of our safari in late February or March offers a good chance of snow on the peaks…with countless elephants on the plains below!
If time allows we will also arrange a special visit to the elephant orphanage where Dame Daphne Sheldrick has done such remarkable work with baby elephants orphaned by poachers, and attempt to find some of the young elephants she has returned to the wild in Tsavo East.
This special Daryl Balfour safari, which will specifically be about elephants, photographing elephants, seeing elephants, tracking elephants and everything you ever wanted to know about elephants, visits three of the continent’s best areas for seeing and experiencing truly wild elephants. (Of course, we will see other wildlife on this safari too!) We will spend quality time with scientists active in the field of elephant research while optimising our opportunities to see and photograph elephants in the remote and scenic northern sector of Samburu National Reserve, the wild corners of Tsavo East National Park and the spectacular Amboseli National Park, where we will hope to encounter elephants on the open plains beneath the stunning backdrop of the snow-capped Mount Kilimanjaro. The snows and glaciers of Kilimanjaro are disappearing at a rapid rate, so this is a scene that is unlikely to be around for many more years, but the timing of our safari in late February or March offers a good chance of snow on the peaks…with countless elephants on the plains below!
If time allows we will also arrange a special visit to the elephant orphanage where Dame Daphne Sheldrick has done such remarkable work with baby elephants orphaned by poachers, and attempt to find some of the young elephants she has returned to the wild in Tsavo East.
Elephant Watch Camp, Samburu
Baby elephants at play in Samburu.
Our first stop, after a morning flight from Nairobi, will be the stunning Elephant Watch Camp (which you can see in a great article in the September 2008 issue of National Geographic) in northern Samburu. Started and operated by Iain and Oria Douglas-Hamilton, Elephant Watch runs in parallel to Iain’s Save the Elephants foundation. Our time at Samburu will be spent visiting the elephants and chatting to some of the scientists currently doing research here.
Samburu National Reserve offers shelter to 66 known elephant family units numbering 900 elephants in total. These 66 families, which typically consist of a matriarch and her offspring, are assigned to one of three groups: the “Residents,” the “Migrants,” and the “Sporadics.” As the names suggest, the Residents remain in the Reserve for most of the year, the Migrants move between Samburu Reserve and other areas, and Sporadics only pass through the Reserve from time to time.
Each elephant family is named, and each elephant within that family is named accordingly. For example, Queen Elizabeth, Cleopatra, and Anastasia belong to the Royals, (Residents) who are the dominant family in the Reserve, while Babylon, Jerusalem and Nazareth belong to the Biblical Towns, (Migrants) making random visits. Then Naivasha, Natron and Turkana belong to the Rift Valley Lakes (Sporadics) and only visit the Park in July and August.
In addition to all these families, are the “bulls,” the adult males numbering 200 who live in solitude and wander far and wide in search of food and females, a high risk and gain strategy, and these bulls often get shot by poachers for ivory or because of crop raiding. We have already lost some of Samburu’s biggest bulls, Mungu, Picasso, Martin Luther King, Gorbachev amongst others, to the poachers’ bullets.
During our 3-night stay at Elephant Watch we will endeavor to make the acquaintance of at least some of these special animals. Samburu’s elephants are generally very approachable, and close-up encounters for intimate photography should be assured.
Samburu National Reserve offers shelter to 66 known elephant family units numbering 900 elephants in total. These 66 families, which typically consist of a matriarch and her offspring, are assigned to one of three groups: the “Residents,” the “Migrants,” and the “Sporadics.” As the names suggest, the Residents remain in the Reserve for most of the year, the Migrants move between Samburu Reserve and other areas, and Sporadics only pass through the Reserve from time to time.
Each elephant family is named, and each elephant within that family is named accordingly. For example, Queen Elizabeth, Cleopatra, and Anastasia belong to the Royals, (Residents) who are the dominant family in the Reserve, while Babylon, Jerusalem and Nazareth belong to the Biblical Towns, (Migrants) making random visits. Then Naivasha, Natron and Turkana belong to the Rift Valley Lakes (Sporadics) and only visit the Park in July and August.
In addition to all these families, are the “bulls,” the adult males numbering 200 who live in solitude and wander far and wide in search of food and females, a high risk and gain strategy, and these bulls often get shot by poachers for ivory or because of crop raiding. We have already lost some of Samburu’s biggest bulls, Mungu, Picasso, Martin Luther King, Gorbachev amongst others, to the poachers’ bullets.
During our 3-night stay at Elephant Watch we will endeavor to make the acquaintance of at least some of these special animals. Samburu’s elephants are generally very approachable, and close-up encounters for intimate photography should be assured.
Satao Camp - Tsavo East
Near Satao Camp; Tsavo
From Samburu we will fly due south to our next stop, Tsavo East National Park.
Tsavo East and elephant conservation are inextricably intertwined and the “Tsavo Story” is one of the classic tales of letting Nature take its course. We will tell you this story one evening at the fireside! Tsavo was where Daphne Sheldrick and her husband David resided, and where Daphne still to this day re-introduces and releases many of the young elephant orphans she rescues and revives. Tsavo is legendary for its massive elephant herds and big tuskers, and I have recently received pictures of a magnificent bull photographed here in September 2008 that must rank among the biggest in Africa. Of course, Tsavo is also famous (notorious) for the classic tale The Man-Eaters of Tsavo, seen on the big screen as The Ghosts of Darkness.
We have chosen the romantic yet rustic Satao Camp for its prime location with a popular elephant drinking hole right on its doorstep. When we arrive in Tsavo we will collect our own 4x4 safari vehicles which Phil and I will drive for the remainder of our safari. We will explore the magnificent countryside of Tsavo – this is where Phil spent much of his boyhood and he knows the area exceptionally well. We spend three nights in Tsavo East.
From Tsavo we undertake an interesting drive across wild country and past some amazing volcanic formations to our next stop, Amboseli National Park.
Tsavo East and elephant conservation are inextricably intertwined and the “Tsavo Story” is one of the classic tales of letting Nature take its course. We will tell you this story one evening at the fireside! Tsavo was where Daphne Sheldrick and her husband David resided, and where Daphne still to this day re-introduces and releases many of the young elephant orphans she rescues and revives. Tsavo is legendary for its massive elephant herds and big tuskers, and I have recently received pictures of a magnificent bull photographed here in September 2008 that must rank among the biggest in Africa. Of course, Tsavo is also famous (notorious) for the classic tale The Man-Eaters of Tsavo, seen on the big screen as The Ghosts of Darkness.
We have chosen the romantic yet rustic Satao Camp for its prime location with a popular elephant drinking hole right on its doorstep. When we arrive in Tsavo we will collect our own 4x4 safari vehicles which Phil and I will drive for the remainder of our safari. We will explore the magnificent countryside of Tsavo – this is where Phil spent much of his boyhood and he knows the area exceptionally well. We spend three nights in Tsavo East.
From Tsavo we undertake an interesting drive across wild country and past some amazing volcanic formations to our next stop, Amboseli National Park.
Tortilis Camp - Amboseli
Elephant herd & Kilimanjaro, near Tortilis Camp, Amboseli NP
Amboseli is where those classic, iconic images of East Africa are taken – the spectacular conical snow-capped peak of Mount Kilimanjaro with wild animals in the foreground. These scenes are unforgettable – and are not difficult to achieve if your guides put you in the right place at the right time!
Tortilis Camp is one of my favourite locations in East Africa and a camp I visit every year, at least once or twice. Located on a small hill facing Mt Kilimanjaro, some of my best wake-up calls in Africa have taken place here, with coffee served on the tent veranda facing the gleaming white peaks of the highest mountain in Africa (and the highest free-standing mountain on the planet, too.)
Like Samburu, Amboseli is home to a long-running elephant research project, in fact the Amboseli Elephant Research Project is the longest study of wild elephants in the world. AERP works to understand the lives and ensure the future of nearly 1,500 elephants in the Amboseli ecosystem fed by the waters of Kilimanjaro. Studies here conducted by Cynthia Moss, Joyce Poole, Harvey Croze, Norah Njiraini, Soila Sayialel and others have created a database and knowledge of this elephant population unrivalled by elephants anywhere else in Africa. We are likely to see some of these researchers at work in the field and will endeavor to have at least one of them join us for an evening at our lodge to discuss their field work. Our days will be spent enjoying the incredible elephant viewing and photography this park offers, and we hope to observe some of the famous herds and matriarchs such as Echo and others. We spend three nights in Amboseli before setting off for the scenic drive back to Nairobi.
DATES AND COST OF THE SAFARI
The safari runs over 10 days in February/March 2012 and begins and ends in Nairobi, Kenya. We suggest that safari participants arrive in Nairobi the night before the safari and overnight there, as our flight to Samburu departs early on the first morning. We can assist with hotel or guest house reservations for that evening should you require them.
Our return to Nairobi will be about midday, early enough for most outgoing international flights departing that afternoon or evening.
The cost of the safari is TO BE QUOTED per person sharing, from Nairobi. All park and conservation fees, full board accommodation, internal flights & charters, house wines with meals, spirits, soft drinks and bottled water and the services of Daryl Balfour & Wildphotos Safaris are included in your safari fare.
Tortilis Camp is one of my favourite locations in East Africa and a camp I visit every year, at least once or twice. Located on a small hill facing Mt Kilimanjaro, some of my best wake-up calls in Africa have taken place here, with coffee served on the tent veranda facing the gleaming white peaks of the highest mountain in Africa (and the highest free-standing mountain on the planet, too.)
Like Samburu, Amboseli is home to a long-running elephant research project, in fact the Amboseli Elephant Research Project is the longest study of wild elephants in the world. AERP works to understand the lives and ensure the future of nearly 1,500 elephants in the Amboseli ecosystem fed by the waters of Kilimanjaro. Studies here conducted by Cynthia Moss, Joyce Poole, Harvey Croze, Norah Njiraini, Soila Sayialel and others have created a database and knowledge of this elephant population unrivalled by elephants anywhere else in Africa. We are likely to see some of these researchers at work in the field and will endeavor to have at least one of them join us for an evening at our lodge to discuss their field work. Our days will be spent enjoying the incredible elephant viewing and photography this park offers, and we hope to observe some of the famous herds and matriarchs such as Echo and others. We spend three nights in Amboseli before setting off for the scenic drive back to Nairobi.
DATES AND COST OF THE SAFARI
The safari runs over 10 days in February/March 2012 and begins and ends in Nairobi, Kenya. We suggest that safari participants arrive in Nairobi the night before the safari and overnight there, as our flight to Samburu departs early on the first morning. We can assist with hotel or guest house reservations for that evening should you require them.
Our return to Nairobi will be about midday, early enough for most outgoing international flights departing that afternoon or evening.
The cost of the safari is TO BE QUOTED per person sharing, from Nairobi. All park and conservation fees, full board accommodation, internal flights & charters, house wines with meals, spirits, soft drinks and bottled water and the services of Daryl Balfour & Wildphotos Safaris are included in your safari fare.
