Dave Taylor's African Safari: Dave Taylor's Safari Diary - Kenya: Samburu and Buffalo Springs, Days 11-12

Dave Taylor's Safari Diary
Kenya: Samburu and Buffalo Springs, Days 11-12
Page 10

The Political Situation

Kenya, in the summer of '97, was in the throes of democratic revolution. Since the death of Mzee Jomo Kenyatta in 1978, the country had been ruled by His Honor Daniel arap Moi. Upon ascending to the presidential position, he declared himself president-for-life. Little opposition has been tolerated. International pressure to reform and democratize Kenya had been growing since the mid-80s.

International outrage over the declining elephant population due largely to poaching syndicates, often located within the Kenya Wildlife Service and government, led to the appointment of paleontologist Richard Leakey to head up the wildlife service. For a few short years, things looked rosy. The poaching all but ceased and the elephant herds recovered.

But Leakey's presence on the world stage quickly overshadowed Moi's. It wasn't long before the two were on a collision course. Factions within the party wanted the "empire building" Leakey gone from his powerful position. His world acclaim was such that he was virtually untouchable. Then, the unthinkable happened. Leakey was piloting his plane when it crashed. He survived, but he lost both legs. His recovery meant spending several months hospitalized in England.

When he returned, he was no longer head of the Kenya Wildlife Service. An accident? A coincidence? Certainly, conspiracy theories exist but they remain unproved. It is a fact that when he ran for office against Moi's party after his accident he was physically attacked. He is no longer active in Kenya's politics but remains a resident.

Given this background of political unrest and struggle, it came as little surprise to us that violence flared in the summer of '97. Several university students were killed before our arrival in Nairobi. They were agitating for democracy. Let me say that we never saw any of it but when we were in Tanzania, CNN International carried reports of the deaths of several more students in riots at the University. A visiting diplomat was also attacked by a machete-wielding supporter of Moi's party at the airport.

Heading Out

When we arrived back in Nairobi from Tanzania we were anxious to get on our way. The city was tense and police were evident everywhere. Armed officers patrolled our hallways in the New Stanley Hotel. Our tour operator for the Kenya portion of the trip was Kenya Wildlife Trails Ltd. You need to deal with two companies as Kenyan companies cannot work in Tanzania (the opposite is also true).

We were glad to leave the city and head north driving around Mount Kenya (altitude 5 200m/ 17,060 feet). At 12:30 we crossed the Equator for the first time by land. You know you are at the Equator because there is a large sign saying that you are. Coincidentally, there are also shops full of vendors waiting there to sell you carved giraffes, bead work, spears and other souvenirs.

Turn right at the Equator sign and you are on the road to the late William Holden's Mount Kenya Safari Club. Holden and his partners bought the land and converted it into a wildlife sanctuary. It harkens back to the days when the British ruled the Kenya colony. The Safari Club was elegant and richly appointed. We were there only for lunch but Jim and I did have time to visit the onsite zoo and see its rare collection of bongo antelope. The others chose to shop and wander the grounds.

Then we headed to the Northern Frontier District. I first read of the NFD in Joy Adamson's book "Born Free". When they acquired the lioness Elsa, her husband, George, was a Game Warden working out of a small town of Isiolo. Today, the road is paved to the end of the town but the NFD remains a wild and potentially dangerous place. All vehicles are required to stop and report their departure into and return from this dry land. Technically, Kenya is at war with neighboring Somalia over a border dispute. Rebel bands of shiftas roam parts of the area and can be a threat.

To be honest, we were not the least bit worried about this. It was a non-event.

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