EXPERIENCE - SARARA TREE IN ACTION
ESCAPE - INTO THE WILD
Game Drives
Explore this vast 850,000-acre conservancy on unrestricted guided game drives – including night drives – alongside those who have loved Kenya’s northern frontier for generations. Through their knowledge and insight, you’ll be able to take a journey deep into the heart of the region and discover the awe-inspiring wildlife of the Mathews Range Ecosystem. Wildlife highlights include the endangered Reticulated giraffe and Grévy’s zebra, as well as leopard, wild dog, kudu and more. Twitchers will be delighted that the area boasts astounding numbers of endemic, migratory, and predatory birds.
Guided Walks & Hikes
As nomadic pastoralists, the Samburu have these landscapes etched into their hearts and minds – and the most captivating way to experience Namunyak’s beauty is to join them on foot. Moving quietly and slow, you’ll see so much more, and each excursion will leave you transformed. Various guided options are available – including a full-day experience up Mount Ol Olokwe.
Samburu Blacksmiths
Passed on through generations, blacksmithing is a skill that showcases the depth and richness of Samburu craftsmanship. Watch how various items – including spearheads – are fashioned over a fire, and hear more about the long apprenticeship of the age-old craft. You can also get a custom-made piece crafted for you. (Additional cost involved)
Visiting Reteti Elephant Sanctuary
As Africa’s first community-owned and -run elephant sanctuary, Reteti was also the first to employ female keepers. It’s impossible to not be moved by the resilience and bravery of the orphans, and visiting the sanctuary leaves you hopeful, inspired, and transformed. Watch the keepers bottle-feed and interact with each baby elephant, delight in their antics during mud baths, and share in the playful spirit that abounds. (Additional cost involved)
Ol Olokwe Excursion
A full-day excursion, leaving by car early in the morning from camp. You’ll ascend this sacred mountain rising 1,000 meters above the surrounding plains, and stop for a delicious packed breakfast and lunch along the way. The hike is long, steep, twisty, and fun – with spectacular views awaiting at the top! (Additional cost involved)
Sundowners
No sunset is ever the same and each remotely set sundowner spot offers the chance to feel completely connected to nature – surrounded by the magic of Kenya’s northern frontier. Watch the last glimmers of light as you reflect on the day’s adventures – winding down while evening starts setting in.
Horse Riding
A horseback safari is a wonderfully quiet way to explore this breathtaking landscape alongside Lenewalla, Sarara’s Samburu cowboy. With the bush ponies all living in close quarters with animals – sometimes sharing a stable yard with giraffes and zebras! – they are pretty familiar with the area's wildlife. (Additional cost involved)
Singing Wells (seasonal)
Experience one of the Samburu’s most significant traditions. With water being such a previous resource in the region, warriors dig deep wells to access drinking water. Scooping water from the bottom of the wells to fill their livestock’s troughs, it’s incredibly powerful to witness them singing and working as one.
Visit a Samburu Manyatta
Engage in authentic exchanges with this vibrant community at a homestead (manyatta) – which typically consists of 5-10 huts. Learn more about their culture, lifestyle, and the incredible spirit of unity that weaves through all daily activities and tasks.
Fly Camping
This exclusively tailored camp in a dry river bed includes a magnificent bush dinner, sharing fireside stories, the sounds of the wilderness all around, and falling asleep in beautifully appointed tents under Africa’s star-studded skies. (Additional cost involved)
Beading with Samburu Women
Join a circle of Samburu women while they’re beading and find out more about the cultural importance of the vivid jewellery of the ‘Butterfly People’. Take part in the session by also making your own piece, while sharing heartwarming cultural exchanges. (Additional cost involved)
EXPLORE - BUSH & BEYOND ON INSTAGRAM
“There are very few countries in the world where the community and wildlife are living so close to each other and coexisting. If every human being on the planet came to visit places like this, they’d be much more inclined to fight to protect them.”
