The Trip Back to Nairobi

 The Trip Back to Nairobi

On Friday around 10 am we loaded up into the tour bus and left the Bogani Camp for the last time. The trip to Nairobi takes about five to six hours. We had two planned stops, one in Narok for lunch and one at a Great Rift Valley overlook spot. The first forty five minutes were on the dirt and rock road back to the highway and then we were on pavement for the rest of the trip.

Joyce gets into the bus for the last time.

There was one unplanned incident during the trip. On a stretch of high way before Narok, there was a police checkpoint where we were pulled over and held for about 20 minutes. Our trip leader, Wilbur, told us that they were looking for a bribe and that they claimed the bus did not have the proper insurance for the number of passengers. After a while, and apparently without payment, they let us get on our way.

This is pretty typical of  the larger business buildings along the main highway.

Along the way we saw these Oriole nests. They have entry holes on the other side. I remember seeing these types of nests on the nature shows I would watch as a child.

Along the way we saw some baboons hanging out pretty nonchalantly on the sides and middle of the highway as cars sped by or braked for them. It seems they hang around the highway looking for handouts from passing motorists. The bus had to stop to wait for them to get out of the road for a minute or too. I had an eerie sense of déjà vu!

Always watch for baboons in the road when driving in Kenya!

Another interesting part of the trip was driving through a combination dust/rain storm between Narok and Mai Mahiu. One would think these two types of storms would not naturally occur at the same time, but one would be wrong. We also saw some pretty well developed dust twisters leading up to the dust storm. The rain was actually nice because it did seem to control the dust in the Great Rift Valley, and we were able to get nice pictures of the valley, which had been greatly obscured on our way out to the camp nine days earlier.

A dust twister we saw along the way.

On the way home we drove through a dust/rain storm

Kenya has a lot of beautiful views 

I spotted a large satellite dish 

There were many buildings under construction along the way.

Trash seemed to be a problem along the highways. The San Jose recycling scavengers would have a field day!

The Great Rift Valley is the largest mammal migration route in the world. Millions of animals travel along the north-south route following the seasonal  rains each year. Today the migration route is threatened due to development.

A view of the Great Rift Valley in Kenya

The silvery light shining through the clouds onto the valley was a sublimely beautiful sight.

Paintings on a stone wall along the highway.

We finally reached Rosslyn, an outskirt of Nairobi around four or five in the afternoon. We had a few hours to freshen up and have dinner before leaving for Jomo Kenyatta International Aiport around 8:30 pm. Around this time, it began to rain heavily which turned some of the streets near downtown Nairobi into flowing waterways. It took us about two hours to make the 45-minute trip.

One last group shot: In the bus on the way back to Nairobi.

The security at Jomo Kenyatta is heavy and we went through three security checkpoints before ticketing and at least two more, including dogs before we made it to the gate. After an hour or so wait, we said Kwa Herini Kenya! Natumaini Kurudi!

Kwa Herini Kenya! Natumaini Kurudi!