TSAVO NATIONAL PARK, KENYA: Not Your Typical Safari, Guest Post by Owen Floody

Tsavo River, Tsavo National Park, Kenya

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Our friend Owen Floody has recently returned from an unusual safari in Kenya, a walking trip across Tsavo National Park. Owen has been to Africa numerous times and taken incredible photos of African wildlife (see his other posts at The Intrepid Tourist) but this trip was a first on foot. I thank him for providing a new perspective and sharing it with The Intrepid Tourist.

Most African safaris exploit vehicles for their ability to move people quickly and easily while not scaring the wildlife.  But some may think this approach too easy or unnatural.  If this is your view, have I got the safari for you! 

It is modestly called The Great Walk of Africa and is the creation of Kenya-based Tropical Ice.  Even it devotes some time (1-2 hours late most afternoons) to game drives.  But the safari revolves around a hike of approximately 100 miles across the two divisions (Tsavo West then East) of Tsavo National Park in southern Kenya.  The hiking is concentrated on 10 days of the 14-day trip, for an average daily distance on those days of 10 miles.  However, the actual daily distances varied between 5 and 14 miles.

Galana River, Tsavo National Park, Kenya.

The route follows the Tsavo and Galana Rivers as they flow through the park.  This coincidence has at least two major consequences.  First, it results in a relatively flat route and relatively easy hiking.  Or it would result in this in a normal season.  Unfortunately, our February 2022 safari encountered atypically hot conditions and I can tell you that hiking 14 miles in temperatures at or above 100 degrees is not easy.  Given the locations of park roads, a second consequence was the placement of the hiking route and nightly camps on opposite sides of a river.  This added 14 river crossings to the hiking, further increasing the trip’s variety and challenges.

Elephants along the hiking route.

Because of these and other factors, one would want to choose such a trip with completely open eyes. One obvious thing to be aware of is the effort the trip requires.  Perhaps less obvious but also worth considering is the fact that walking across African plains and rivers can create conflicts with animals, conflicts that may stress the humans but could terminate the animals (we were accompanied by armed guards at all times).  In fact, every effort is made to avoid such conflicts and to peacefully defuse any that do arise (e.g., the elephants were angered by our presence, but they trumpeted, we trumpeted, and everyone went away a winner).  Still, no system is perfect.

Given these issues, why choose to tackle the Walk?  First, the difference in perspective is huge.  On a typical safari, you’re always a human tourist viewing animals.  On the Great Walk, you are essentially one of the animals, moving on foot along game trails, looking out for other animals, and constantly in intimate contact with your environment.  You are not going to come away with photos comparable to those you get from a photo blind on wheels.  But you will come back with some photos and a large number of indelible memories.   

Napping lioness.

For me, one unforgettable experience (and one of which I do have a photo) was that of sneaking up on a lioness peacefully snoozing under a bush roughly 50 ft away (above image).  This didn’t last long, and the lioness was off in a flash as soon as she detected us, but the experience was unique and powerful.  Still, my most memorable experience was that of watching a group of 20-30 elephants amble across our path, only 30-40 ft ahead.  Just fellow animals out on a stroll.   

Second, it is not just the animals that you view differently while on foot.  The differences across the habitats we passed through were striking.  For instance, the two rivers are very different (see typical views of Tsavo and Galana above.)  

Three views of vegetation away from the river.

Likewise, the character of the vegetation away from the river changed radically over the hike, as seen in the images above, taken toward its beginning, middle and end^.

What all this suggests is that what we lump into one park is, in fact, much more varied and complex.  Perhaps even complex enough to deserve the close inspection you can better provide on foot. After all, can one fully appreciate animals without some awareness of where and how they live?  And plants slapping you in the face would seem to convey this awareness incomparably better than plants slapping your Land Rover in the face.

Note: You can use the search function to find Owen's many other excellent posts at The Intrepid Tourist, including other trips to view African wildlife.