feature
I always find the air to be one of the most enduring memories of a Kenyan safari. When we started up the rise out of the gorge, we were greeted not only by the sweet air of the savannah, but by a sweeping expanse of scrubland dotted with small herds of gazelle and impala – among which, I’m sure, lurked the odd lion. The Photo © Camerapix
park’s main gate is actually called Elsa Gate after the lioness that won the hearts of George and Joy Adamson, who released some of their famous charges here. Hell’s Gate was also one of locations for the filming of Sheena – Queen of the Jungle and The Lion King. The main locations for Lion King, including Pride Rock and the Gorge, are modelled after Hell’s Gate National Park. Apart from the wondrous wildlife and the marvellous people, I always find the air to be one of the most enduring memories of a Kenyan safari. The air here seems to contain the entire
you have spent most of yours stuck in areas where the meanest predator is the neighbour’s cat. Our next port of call was the cloudy peak of Mount Longonot,
essence of Africa, spread out beneath some of the world’s
which is called a mountain but for serious climbers probably
biggest and bluest skies. In Hell’s Gate, I will always remember
constitutes little more than a big hill. I personally felt like I was
the wind, which was of the variety that sweeps all the cobwebs
scaling the windy heights of the Himalayas. As we began our
from your mind. According to the obnoxious lady, it carried the
ascent, the sun tentatively began the day’s assault, making for a
pestilence that will kill us all. After a brief rest, it was time for our trek into the game park, unarmed and covered only in Spartan clothing to brave the wild creatures and plants of Hades. We managed to pass a menacing group of buffalo without incident, only to be speared by a vicious variety of grass. Although the idea of walking through a park can be quite daunting, rest assured: there has not been a single
climb in pleasantly intense heat. We left behind the steamy gates of Hell for the lofty blue heights of Heaven. At first, we arrogantly struck our way up the modest incline, but after an hour’s climbing our confident strides were reduced to a miserable shuffle, which for some of us ceased altogether. The path was dusty and the dust seemed to have only one purpose: to inveigle itself in every noon and cranny of our sweaty bodies.
animal attack on a human in Hell’s Gate for the past decade.
The vegetation was thorny and scrub-like, and, our guide happily
Or so our guide told us. Either way, the walk through the park is definitely an experience that will attach itself to your memory for life – particularly if, like me,
Above:
told us, probably concealed a few more ravenous animals. That thought alone managed to induce a new, revitalised spring in our step. Before we realised it, we had arrived at the first peak. Here we found a beautiful vista awaiting us, which could only
Volcanic
have been created by a very magnanimous god. Sitting with the
crater of
park spread out like a green and yellow carpet before us, we felt
Mount
like the proprietors of Heaven itself. Antelope and zebra could
Longonot
be seen placidly wandering in the park. As if on cue, a ray of
characterised
sunlight broke through a cloud to stroke a finger of gold across
by lopsided
the ground. On the wavy horizon, the waters of Lake Naivasha
knife-edge
shimmered in the sun.
crater rim
After half an hour exploring our nest in the sky, we began an
and eroded slopes.
uneventful descent. I began to wonder if the animals in the park
Right:
they were in Eden. Not even a single rush by a disturbed leopard!
were actually there or if they had somehow become as tame as Taking the beaten path down to our campsite, the whole group
Mount Longonot and Hell’s Gate National Park.
Photo © Camerapix
Giraffe,
lapsed into a reverent silence, like so many pilgrims returning from the roof of the world. Even a slight drizzle of rain could not dampen our enlightened spirits. And, for once, the annoying lady had nothing bad to say.
may – july 2011 | asante | 33