Dottie Sayward Wylie

The Kenya story continues...

NOTE:If you haven't read SEGMENT I and the SLIDESHOW that goes with it, I would recommend you do that that first. 

On the right side you will see BLOG ARCHIVE. Go to the September posts and read them in order. The first slideshow is at the end of SEGMENT I.

And before that post is the RAYS OF HOPE post which also has wonderful pictures of Maureen and tells the story of our trip to the Clinic she helped to start and has supported.

...or just scroll down from here and you will see all the posts.

SEGMENT II: Kenya Stories and Slideshow:

SEGMENT I and the first slide show ended with our small charter plane departure from the Masai Mara and Kicheche.

Just prior to the chasing of the zebra and wildebeest off the dirt landing strip in our safari vehicle, James and I had our breakfast sitting in the vehicle within 10 feet of a pride of at least 15 lions, all sleeping and dozing after a kill the previous day. It was surreal…

Now onto our next stop! Sarara is located in over 800 thousand acres of wilderness, called the Namunyak Wildlife Conservancy. Namunyak means “Place of Peace” in Samburu. It’s chief architect, Ian Craig, realized in the 80’s that the elephant population was being virtually wiped out; all the rhino were killed. He saw that there was no future for the animals unless the community was fully engaged in their protection and the conservation of habitat. Initially local herdsmen were provided with radios to report poaching and, over time, the community began to understand the benefits of having wildlife on their land. Visitors came, and with them a valuable source of income. Sarara itself was built 15 years ago by a couple who had lived in Kenya many years, understood and loved the bush, the animals and shared Ian Craig’s vision There were many setbacks and difficulties, but the result is a beautifully designed structure settled on a hillside, looking out over the Matthews Range. An artistic combination of tent structures, curved wood and plaster, and thatched roofs are all constructed from local materials and made locally. Anything that could not be made was flown in.

Even more amazing is that now the ownership and management of Sarara has been turned over to the local community and the Conservancy Board of Trustees. The establishment of Sarara provided the key to tourism revenue, and now contributes to the local economy through the conservancy. The people have learned that careful management of their land provides a sustainable income for the community while also providing security for themselves, the animals and their habitat.

I found it astounding to discover that in almost a million acres there are only 12 visitors at any one time. The guests at Sarara, maximum 12, are the only humans outside of the local Samburu tribes who are ever staying in the Conservancy.

It is a place of serenity, rest, stillness and waiting…

Our early morning drives with Malachi and Mark revealed baboons, elephants, eagles, gerund, all kinds of birds, monkeys, giraffe, and numerous other small creatures, termite mounds, strange nests and the insistent feeling of the hidden presence of the leopard, cheetah and lion…

The various tribal people live in peace now, with the largest group being the Samburu. I spent considerable time talking to the guides, both here and in the Masai Mara region. They speak very good English, having learned it when they are first sent to school at a young age. There are both government and private schools. I was intrigued they are given Christian names, along with their Samburu or other name. They faith is mostly that of their native heritage, mixed with strong cultural and spiritual beliefs. Customs are changing, such as the traditional arranged marriage. The young men told me that it’s now a mutual decision, but that, in the end, if the parents don’t agree it will not happen.

I want to describe our visit to the “Singing Wells” as we were not allowed to photograph any of it. You will see in the slideshow that the elephants come to these wells in the evening, and send their trunks down deep into the well for water. This can be quite dangerous, as the wells are very deep and if an elephant falls forward into it, it is almost impossible to rescue him or her. It has been done, however, with the help of the Sarara vehicles.

One morning we drove to same area of the dry river bed where we had seen the elephants. It was filled with tribesmen, women and children, their cattle, goats and some donkeys. This was their only source of water, and they had come from miles away. What I saw was how at each well several of the men, totally naked, were precariously balanced with their feet on small ledges down inside the well. The one on the bottom filled a bucket with water, handed it up to the man above him, who handed it up above to another until it reached the top. There the last man turned the bucket into a trough where the animals drank. There were others, mostly younger men and boys who kept the cattle from pushing and shoving too much, and seemed to know exactly which cattle were theirs and not someone else’s. If one that didn’t belong managed to squeeze in, it was quickly shoved away. Meanwhile the women were also collecting the water in containers that were then lashed onto the sides of the donkeys to be carried back to their village. They were also washing clothes and they were laid out to dry all over the bushes and rocks of the riverbed.

I had learned in the Masai Mara that the cow is considered sacred and a gift from God to the Masai…and probably the Samburu think the same. In fact, they believe that ALL cows, anywhere, are given to them.  I wish I could have explored this further with them. What I did understand is that the cow provides everything for them: the security of  food, a livelihood in the meat they can sell, an income for their education and other needs, and a measure of their own personal wealth.

Here is the most amazing thing I witnessed. In the midst of a riverbed full of cattle, goats, etc. the men were always singing. Their songs were specific to them, and the cattle recognized the song of where they belonged! They stayed with the group near to where they were hearing “their” song! And thus they were all there when it was time for them to go to the well itself.

All this was witnessed only by the two of us and two others.

                                     

“Nothing to do, no schedule to keep…

To witness a sunrise in its’ entirety.

A step into eternity.

To wait, past the time you must go.

A step into possibility.

Wild dogs appear, in the almost darkness.

So rare, so strange.

A step into stunning mystery.”

“Rising spreading peach glow

light returns once more

illuminating a world of wildness, balanced

on the fragile edge of nature’s truths…

Beauty walks mirrored in watery

reflection pools drinking in the rising sun…

May I know such beauty

Carry it in my life,

See it in every sunrise,

Live it in every breath…

Every moment holds the potential for totality…

A hologram of completeness…”

Another small charter plane took us north and to the Lewa Wilderness camp in Lewa Downs, within sight of Mt. Kenya at 7,000 feet. This well established Conservancy of 62,000 acres was formed in 1995. In the 1920’s it was a cattle ranch, but when poaching  threatened the existence of wildlife a conservancy was formed, and now the animals co-exist with the cattle. Again, the local people see the advantage of supporting wildlife and habitat, understand the value of tourism, and are involved in all of this through employment in many different aspects of the conservancy and the camps, becoming trained as guides and for the security patrols. Poaching is on ongoing problem. Lewa holds  a population of 88 rhino, an endangered species, and in spite of the armed security, the monitoring and care for their well-being, they are killed. There are only 2000 Grevy Zebra left in the world, and 600 are here at Lewa.

We saw Cape Buffalo, lion, elephant, leopard, rhino, waterbuck, zebra, cheetah, birds, eland, white giraffe, African geese, many kinds of eagles and a crocodile! I spotted the crocodile!

The slideshow will show you much more about Sarara and Lewa...

Be sure to click on the "SHOW INFO" icon on the top right of the slideshow in order to see the captions. AND click "OPTIONS" to set the speed to SLOW.

http://www.flickr.com//photos/87229554@N05/sets/72157631702013089/show/