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Tsavo

Divided into East and West, Tsavo lies between Nairobi and Mombasa and is Kenya’s largest game park with a total size of about 21,000 sq km. Less-visited, it is a place to get away and imagine how much of Africa may have been. The two parks are separated by the railway line and the Mombasa Road.

Man-eaters of Tsavo
When the railway was being built 140 Indian workers were killed by two lions in one year. The workers thought that they were ghosts as they seemed to take their victims and vanish. Traps were set but the lions eludes their captors for a while until the chief engineer colonel J H Patterson trapped and killed the first, then the second was killed a short time later, but it took six bullets to kill the huge animal. The bodies can be seen in the Chicago field museum.

Tsavo East
Tsavo East is about 12,000 sq km and is a little over 200km south of Nairobi. Because the park is large and remote, it has had a massive poaching problem, which the Wildlife Service is trying its best to solve. The situation has improved in recent years and this park is now open again to the public. The landscape consists of massive deserted plains, swamps, waterfalls and the backdrop of the yatta escarpment is impressive. The park is home to the big five as well as giraffe, zebra, gazelle, impala, eland, and over 500 different bird species including eagles, buzzards and falcons.

Tsavo West
The park is about 9,000 sq km and has an array of different aminals, birds and landscapes; including rocky volcanic outcrops, swamps, watering holes, the shaitani lava flow and cones and caves (they are worth a visit so bring a torch). The park is home to the Ngulia Rhino Sanctuary which is about 75 sq km, where a lot of the remaining rhino has been moved to for protection. Of course this makes it slightly easier to see them, although it is also possible to see rhino in other areas of the park. It is also possible to see giraffe, zebra, leopard, impala, gazelle, jackal, hyena, cheetah; and at the Mzima springs there is a pool that has an underwater viewing chamber where you could be able to see hippo and crocodile, but unfortunately they spend most of their time at the other end away from spying eyes. Although it is possible though to see an array of fish species.