A day around Nairobi (Day 5) Nairobi national park, elephant orphanage, giraffe center

Gracepatt Ecotours Kenya +254720803821

-Nairobi National Park, Elephant Orphanage, Giraffe Center

- $ 190 a peice

-Rating (Tour and Guide)- 4/5

National park

At 6am we got picked out to start our day around Nairobi tours. Our first one we went to was the Nairobi National park. We were there early enough to not have to wait in line long and able to get into the park at sunrise!

Nairobi National Park is the oldest park in Kenya, it was gazetted in 1946. The only fenced-off parts are the areas closest to the city. in the 20th century as Nairobi grew conflicts between humans and animals increased. Carrying guns at night became normal for the residents in the city. Zebras and other such animals would ruin and destroy vegetable gardens and flower beds. The colonial government set aside the west and south of Nairobi as a game reserve since that's where the animals originated from. This area later became the Nairobi National Park. The park is only 4.3 or (7km) away from the city of Nairobi being the closest national park in the world to a city! Because of this, there are no elephants in this park, they were moved out of this area for their own protection, to reduce animal and human conflict this is one of two parks that does not have elephants Lake Nakuru being the other.

When we first got into the park we were welcomed to the site of the city skyline being awoken at sunrise. Being so close to Nairobi there are some amazing photo opportunities with the animals. Seeing the towering skyscrapers of the city and the world's tallest animals together is quite an amazing sight.

As we drove around more and more people and tours began to join us, this is one of the few parks that locals are starting to accompany as well. Most locals think safaris and tours are just for tourists and few have ever been themselves one person we meet has lived along the coast his whole life and said he has never even seen a rhino before. Though that doesn't help them respect it anymore. As we were going around we saw a local family all hanging out of their car windows and throw trash on the ground like it was nothing. Our guide told us this is quite normal especially because that's what they do around town and on the roads. But they are trying at the park to get people to respect it and the animals more. (We may or may not of reminded the car as we passed them of this little fact.)

Our driver then brought us up against a tree that a few other tour cars were around too. He told us there is a lioness that just had some cubs that likes to hid around this area. When we got close to the tree he pointed and said there they are. It took us some time and some zooming in with our telephoto lenses but then we found the first little cub hanging out in the tree. Then after going around the tree we found two more, by this time our little hiding cubs became known and we weren't able to go back to the first spot we were in for better face pictures but we got a few.

See the three little butts and tails?

The next really exciting thing we got to see was a lone male rhino laying down in the grass not too far from the path we took. Though he looked more like a huge rock bending in the brush we still stayed and took some pictures. Our guide then pointed out that further back there was another one keeping its distance. I went to take a picture and noticed what looked like another rock next to her, but then the rock moved! It was a little baby! I got only one or two pictures where you can tell what it is, they were quite far away so even with my large lens it was difficult. We then could tell that the male was protecting them for he got up and put himself between us and the further group so we decided it was time to go.

Our last stop in the Nairobi park was on our way out at one of the most important sites in Kenya! This site is right inside of the park and one of the most important landmarks in the New Yorker Annals of conservation, the ivory burning site! In 1989 Kenyan president Daniel Arap Moi made a dramatic statement to poachers by setting fire to 11 tones of seized ivory. Turning the tide against poaching in Kenya this event improved the image at a time when East African wildlife was being extinguished by poaching.

In 2016 Kenyan president Uhuru Kenyatta destroyed over 105 tones of elephant ivory from around 6,500 and 1.35 tones of horns from 450 rhinoceroses. Setting the largest pile ever of ivory ablaze for destruction in the Nairobi national park. All ivory has either been confiscated from poachers, illegal trade, or from personal collections. As President Kenyatta said in a speech early Saturday, the burn is meant to send a strong and clear statement to the world: “For us, ivory is worthless unless it is on our elephants.” a quote from the national geographic. “There’s a passing of judgment from some that we’re doing the wrong thing, because Kenya is a poor country, and we could use the $150 million-odd dollars that they claim the ivory is worth to develop our nation,” President Kenyatta said. “But I would rather wait for the judgment of future generations, who I am sure will appreciate the decision we have taken today.” More about this day and the decision to make one more step towards the end of poaching, in this National Geographic article, as well as a video.

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/160430-kenya-record-breaking-ivory-burn

David Sheldrick Wildlife Elephant Sanctuary

“The Sheldrick Wildlife Trust embraces all measures that complement the conservation, preservation and protection of wildlife. These include anti-poaching, safeguarding the natural environment, enhancing community awareness, addressing animal welfare issues, providing veterinary assistance to animals in need, rescuing and hand rearing elephant and rhino orphans, along with other species that can ultimately enjoy a quality of life in the wild terms when grown.”

"About The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust: A Haven for Elephants and Rhinos".

Right up the road from the Nairobi national park, on the same reserve is The Sheldrick Wildlife elephant sanctuary. We got there early got good parking and a good spot in line, when we were first ushered in our guide brought us to the furthest part of the roped area that was under the trees. He told us this spot gets less crowded, stays cooler in the shade, rehabilitation, and is close to where they feed the bottles to the babies! Out came 7 babies at first running into the arena for their milk. The speaker introduced each elephant and told us some of each of their stories. Almost every one of them had a traumatic past that brought them to the orphanage. Next came out 12 teenagers who each got 2 bottles of milk as well as some of the branches that were scattered around for them. They all ran around having fun playing with each other and with in the mud hole.

Before they brought out the babies we were told some information on the sanctuary as well as the babies. The Sheldrick Wildlife Trust is a program in Kenya that operates an orphan elephant rescue and wildlife rehabilitation.

Daphne Sheldrick founded it in 1977 in honor of her late husband, David Sheldrick. Since 2001 both of them have passed and now the trust is being run by their daughter Andela Sheldrick. During Daphne's lifetime involvement with wildlife, she was recognized as the international authority on the rearing of wild creatures. Perfecting a mild formula for the infant milk-dependent elephants, she was the first to discover that coconut oil was the nearest substitute for the fat in elephant milk.

We learned it takes $900 a month to feed and care for just one of the orphaned elephants. And for just $50 a year, you can adopt one of these amazing creatures all going towards helping the orphans. Enkesha is the little one I adopted when she was making her rounds around the arena and stopped right in front of us to enjoy her twigs. She almost sat on us leaning up against the thin rope that separated us. Her story had a very sad beginning, she was found with her trunk nearly severed off by a snare. Her heard was still around her not leaving her side, making it hard for the field vets to get close enough to help her. They were able to get close only after using helicopters to move the heard away. After putting her to sleep under her mother's watchful eye who would not go too far away. The conclusion was made she would need to go in to get the trunk taken care of if she was ever going to keep it. Her trunk was operated on but she would not hold still enough to keep the stitches closed. It has healed more and more on its own with the support of the staff. When we were there she was just learning how to close the wound on her own so she could use it to drink!

Giraffe Center

Being able to feed an endangered giraffe is a once-in-a-lifetime experience. We got to give the Rothschild Giraffes little pellets, when they eat these their tongues stayed dry. This was a nice surprise to us, feeding lettuce to the giraffes back home ends up being quite a slobbery experience. While feeding them you need to feed quickly and stand back if they are not getting food they will start to headbutt you to get more from you. I turned for a moment to get a picture and got whacked good on my side of my head.

In 1979, the Giraffe Center, was started by Jock Leslie Melville. The grandson of the Scottish Earl, he and his wife captured two baby giraffes to start a giraffe breeding program on their Langata property (where the site is sill to this day.) Since then the program has been a huge success, introducing several breeding pairs of the Rothschild Giraffe in Kenya national parks. By 1983 they raised enough money to establish the Giraffe Visitor's Center as a tourist destination. From a raised observation platform, school children and visitors enjoy the main attraction of feeding giraffes.

The Giraffe Center is on the same property as the Nairobi giraffe manor. They are even the same giraffes that you get to feed at the manor that come to the center.