A Day Trip To The Shimba Hill Reserve

Boarding the ferry

After a day or two in Mombasa the earlier idea was to head north to the medieval town of Lamu but then I dropped it due to overwhelming factors making it a lot less attractive. First, the road was fairly bad and it was a good 7 -8 hours on dusty roads. My initial estimate of four hours was grossly off the mark and had we embarked on that journey it would have been very tiring for the family.

A Kenyan Navy ship

Reserve Entrance

Secondly, things in Mombasa were volatile enough due to the killing of the preacher (or terror suspect, which ever way you may want to look at it) so going to a place fairly close to the Somalia border under such a tense environment seemed imprudent. Thirdly, I got a feeling that the family might not appreciate the charms of a medieval town like Lamu since none seemed particularly interested in history except probably my mom to a small extent. The most importantly factor however was that they all just loved the vacation home. As I look back, it seems to me that the relaxing time they had at the vacation home was probably their highlight in Kenya and its amazing how their perception of a great vacation differs so much from mine. All the while I was desperately planning activities so that they won’t get bored and the activity that was supposed to be just a stopgap turned out to be a real highlight.

Yellow Baboon

We had one additional day left before we returned back to Nairobi and head north but in keeping with the relaxed theme of our time in on the coast, I planned a half-day activity in the Shimba Hill Reserve. To get there we had to cross onto the mainland aboard a massive ferry, the biggest I have ever seen. It could probably fit in about 50 vehicles and hundreds of people and were remarkably efficient with little to no downtime.

Cape Buffaloes

Picturesque Shimba Hills National Reserve

Lesser Kudu

Warthogs


The Shimba Hills Reserve was unlike the typical savannahs expected in East Africa; it had a coastal rainforest ecosystem being just 30 odd minutes from the Indian Ocean. The lush green flora and the red soil momentarily felt like the jungles of Gabon but alas this reserve at just over 300 sq.kms. is no Central African wilderness. The greenery, rolling hills, great lookout spots with wide panoramic views make up slightly for the lack of easily visible wildlife.

A ride in the meadows of Shimba Hills

A lone buffalo

We were greeted into the park by a pack of yellow baboons and with their slender frame and long limbs it was easy to differentiate them from their bulkier Olive cousins. Through the thicket and small patches of tall grass we did however spot some wildlife. A bunch of Cape Buffaloes, Warthogs and Yellow Baboons were quite easily spotted but the highlight for me was seeing the Lesser Kudu and the Bushbuck for the very first time in my life.

I had previously seen the Greater Kudu in South Africa and Swaziland where the seemed abundant but I had never seen the lesser of the species and although the Bushbuck is not threatened in the endangered species list, it was good to see a big one at close quarters.

A Camel, a dhow and lots of people

Bushbuck

Even though the Reserve was reputed to have a large population of elephants and leopards relative to its size, we did not see any so the hunt for the Big 5 for the family continued.

On the way back to Mombasa, we decided to stop by the beach for an evening drink but the beach was incredibility crowded with what looked like school kids. It seemed as though the kids from all of Kenya were there that day. Atleast my mom found it funny enough to pass a comment that it felt like a “Jatra”, (means Fair in my mother tongue).