TSAVO - KENYA scouting trip JUNE 2017
Posted by Wild4 Photo Safaris on 11th Jun 2017
In June I went on a scouting trip to check out both East & West Tsavo National Parks in Kenya.
These are just some of my thoughts on the two locations, and some photographs. I also stoppd at Amboseli for a couple of nights, staying at Amboseli Serena Lodge.
Firstly Tsavo East - this I found to be a great park and I did get some great images here. It is very quiet on the tourist side so it has a wonderfu atmosphere of true adventure. We stuck to the rivers a lot as there are not that many game drive roads. All the general game species are there, but a great find was the Lesser Kudu which are common in Tsavo and I think one of the most beautiful of the African Antelopes. We were lucky to find Lions too. It is good for bird life and the “Red ELEPHANTS” are spectacular to see. It seems like a place that can surprise you, you just do not know what is around the next corner. I would go back, but it is not a park I would visit on my one and only to trip to Africa. It is different to other parks so I weould visit it if you wanted to see something different and had already been on other safaris before.
Tsavo West was completely different to East as far as the terrain goes, very hilly and higher in altitude with some spectacular views from “Roaring Rocks” and “Poachers Lookout” (what great names too ) Tsavo West also have the very visible Lava Fields that only flowed around 200 years ago, and it has Mzima Springs, the clear water spring , famous for its underwater hide where you can be lucky to see Hippos and Crocodiles beneath the surface. On my visit there were a lot of fish and a Crocodile.. I also saw the Fringe Eared Oryx for the first time, and Tsavo is very good for birds, there were a number of species that you also find in Samburu, including one of my favourites, the Golden Breasted Starling, a stunning bird and common in Tsavo.
I think Tsavo West is perhaps a tiny bit more interesting due to is terrain.
We will be running a new trip in June 2018 to Tsavo, Amboseli and the Mara.. doing a combination of these three parks will offer a different experieince and different photo opportunities.
Enjoy some photos from the trip.
Kind regards
Stu
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We recently travelled to South Africa for a safari led by Wild 4 African Photographic Safaris. To put things simply, we were completely blown away. I had been on safari before, and had expectations that I thought were reasonable, but Wild 4 completely exceeded those expectations in so many ways.
First of all, Justyna handled all of our travel and trip details with exceptional professionalism and always responded to even our most basic questions quickly and in a very detailed manner. Once we had arrived in South Africa, we were met by our guide Stu Porter, who I cannot say enough good things about. He is so organised and cordial. Stu was spotting things that we couldn’t believe that he was spotting, which almost always led to an amazing wildlife experience that we never saw coming. His knowledge and understanding of the wildlife and ecosystem was outstanding, and he went to great lengths to insure that we had the best chance of capturing a great photo, without compromising the rules of the park or the integrity of the animals and ecology within it. His understanding and respect for the wildlife and surroundings made the trip so much more than just a “drive around and look at whatever we see” kind of experience.
I know that you can never predict what kind of experience you will have when you go out into the wild, and often it’s up to nature to decide what events you will be a part of, but in all honesty, I can’t imagine a better guide than Stu Porter. We will be doing our future trips to Africa with Wild 4, and cannot recommend them highly enough. Thank you so much for what a lot of people call “the trip of a lifetime”, although we feel that this is only the beginning of many trips of a lifetime. Thank you, Wild 4!!
James Smith, USA
The Wild 4 team made my trip to South Africa a truly memorable experience. Photographing some of the orphaned captive animals at the private game reserve on the extension was a great way to start the holiday, and Stu's tuition on techniques, composition and familiarity with your gear was the foundation for the rest of the trip.
In Kruger we had some wonderful sightings - including the 'Big 5' all in one day on two consecutive days! The highlights were spending 20 minutes with a leopard cub in a tree no more than 30 metres away, and on the last day watching a pride of 14 lions stalking a herd of zebra for more than an hour - just wonderful experiences! I'm sure the quality of the shots I took was infinitely better than if I'd gone on a regular safari, as the whole focus of the experience is expertly designed to maximise photographic opportunities - including only 3 photographers in the specially designed vehicle.
Stu's knowledge, enthusiasm and patience were boundless, and Ann's spotting and catering skills were also priceless! I hope to visit Africa again soon, and without doubt Wild 4 will be my first option.
Greg Morgan, UK