The Simple Life in Lake Naivasha

Amit and I jumped on an early matato to Naivasha from Nakuru. There we shoved and pushed into another matato heading passed Fisherman's Camp. It's mentioned in the Lonely Planet guide, so every Kenyan in the area has heard of it. "Wha yu goh? Fischamahn??!" was a common set of questions.

Fisherman's camp was picturesque, to say the least: on the lake, green, huge trees with monkeys running up and down them (one type of monkey was black all over but had a crown of foot long white hair down both sides of its back and from its tale, and white fur around its jaw - Amit said it looked like a Rabbi - oh how we chuckled) and a small open front, slightly pricey, restaurant.

The bandas (cabin) were too expensive in this picturesque camp, so we opted for the cheaper option known as Top Camp. We told it was on the side of the road...in fact, the uphill trail to the top camp started on the other side of the road. We skipped the main road by using a short cut straight up...walking through spikey bushes, savannah style dry bushes and tall cacti. I'm sure I heard one cactus say to the other "You think they're lost?". We found a Brit that seemed to be doing some sort of carpentry or DIY who pointed us in the right direction: keep walking up, through more bushes.

We came through the last bush onto a small patch of land with a few huts. A woman showed us to a vacant room...I think they were all vacant though. The hut was made of bamboo with a tin roof and two neatly made beds. The showers and toilet were outside. It was a campsite, simple and basic.

Since I knew I would be pressed for time the next day, I decided to go straight to Hell's Gate National Park that afternoon. I rented a bike that would have been easier to ride if it had been made of concrete with square wheels. I cycled 2 or 3 km to the entrance, paid my $25 fee and bike surcharge (pssstt whatever) and I was in.

The scenery was amazing. It started with some simple rolling hills, then a hill or two start to separate off, starting with a 5 metre cliff and ending with one that seemed 100 or so (my estimates are subject to my bird's eye view). All of this was caused by the seismic activity that I mentioned in the Great Rift Valley post below. Cycling along the straight dusty road, cars rolling by, leaving me coughing in their subsequent dust storms, I came to Fischer Tower, a colossal tower of rock caused by a volcanic jet of molten rock however million of years ago. A second at the end of the cycle road marks the gorge. Being so tired and only having the afternoon, I decided not to go down.

Cycling along, there were fields on both sides populated by giraffe, zebras and warthogs running across the road in front of me, looking up checking me out. Though slightly hyperbolic I know, It was like being in Jurassic Park - much like that first scene when Sam Neill sees all the Bronchosauruses and other dinosaurs milling around the water....kinda.

I was pretty tired on the way back...it was all uphill. I decided that I did not envy the guy I met in Nairobi cycling from Cape Town to Ethiopia where he will cross to Yemen...and keep going.

After dinner, Amit and I went down to the lake where hippos (otherwise known as hip-hop-potamuses) were grazing behind the electric fence. They're like big grey water-dwelling pigs.  They're quite scared though which makes them all the more endearing....but what out! They are statistically the most killer animal in Africa, mostly due to human stupidity.

Amit went to Hell's Gate this morning and I proceeded to wash my clothes in a bucket and lay them out to dry. I was very slightly pleased with myself at this simple task. I then grabbed some chipatti (Indian fried flat bread) for lunch and jumped on the next matato to Naivasha, then Nairobi.