Wednesday, June 6, 2018

Final day in Kenya

We got up early and had breakfast at the wonderful lodge inside of the Nakuru game park that Catherine had booked for us. We checked out and were driving the three vehicles through the trails in search of the pink flamingos. About half of the team rested the previous afternoon following our arduous nine hour journey from Masai Mara,  so they now got to see the beauty of this place and its wildlife. We never did encounter the flamingos but saw a wide variety of bird and animal species including zebras, giraffes, hyenas, water buffalo, storms, pelicans, plovers and many more. Our abbreviated two and a half hour safari was capped by a stop at the Baboon Cliff high above Lake Nakuru. It is a great vantage point for surveying the entire lake and wildlife refuge below. I got some great pictures of a Cliff Chat, a really cool looking bird that lives in the rocks and trees poking out of the sheer cliff. Stay tuned for pictures of this little guy.

We made our way out of the park and headed for Lake Naivasha, our original destination we had planned on for our last morning before travel difficulties changed things up. We arrived at the lake around noon, donned life jackets and boarded three small skiffs for our final photo safari.  We were right among a pod of hippos for a few minutes,  always an eye opener for newcomers and veterans alike. I got many shots of the wide variety of shore birds this place is known for. African fish eagles were in abundance and our guides were able to coax 4 of them to fly down and snag fish they had thrown their way. I've been there on 3 hour tours when none responded,  so this was very special.  Some great photo sequences will be published as soon as I can get my feet on the ground back home. Due to finishing up our boat ride as 1:30 pm approached,  we skipped lunch and headed for Nairobi, since you never know quite how long it will take to get back.  Many in the team were very hungry after a full morning of fresh air, but when the lake lodge restaurant let us know it would take an hour and a half to prepare and eat lunch, we had to move on. I gave a bag full of Payday candy bars to Yancy to distribute to everyone for the ride and we headed for the Little Daughters of St. Joseph convent  for pizza and much appreciated showers. Catherine came and joined us and I went over vision clinic details and told her tall tales about our safari experiences before we left for the airport.  More to follow about the trip home. Blessings everone!

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