DESTINATIONS KENYA AFRICA


SAMPLE PRODUCT


Knighton Reeve offers a nine-day Endangered Species Safari


from £8,495 per person, based on a group of six passengers sharing the


aircraft, or £9,295 for a group of


four. The price includes flights from London, private flights within Kenya, access to experts, full-board accommodation, game drives and park fees. The accommodation includes Asilia’s Encounter Mara, Mara Naboisho Conservancy; Loisaba Tented Camp, Loisaba Conservancy; Elephant Watch Camp, Samburu National


Reserve; Lewa Safari Camp, Lewa Wildlife Conservancy; National


Geographic Lodge Sarara


Camp, Namunyak Wildlife


Conservancy; and OneFortyEight, Nairobi.


knightonreeve. co.uk


66 travelweekly.co.uk 26 July 2018


ABOVE: Elephant and calf


LEFT: Loisaba Tented Camp


Saba Douglas-Hamilton and Frank Pope of Save the Elephants (STE). At their long-running project, they work closely with the local communities, as well as explaining to visitors the level of ivory poaching and what they are doing to combat it. STE is also a pioneer in tracking, designing and testing the first-ever elephant collars. With the help of state-of-the-art technology, the organisation can map the routes of dozens of elephants, gaining insights into their habits and just how far they will travel in search of food and safety. Tourism is also playing its part.


“Tourism is an economic driver to protect the elephants,” said Frank. “When we create employment here, we show people the benefit of conservation, and create elephant ambassadors at the same time.”


w COMMUNITY CONSERVATION Poaching has decimated Africa’s rhino population but the highly successful Rhino Conservation Programme at the pioneering Lewa Wildlife Conservancy in central Kenya currently protects 87 critically endangered black and 79 white rhino. “Rhinos have distinct personalities.


They’re passionate, sensitive and very intelligent,” said rhino scientist Ian Lemaiyon, as we watched three, tank- sized white rhinos hoovering up grass.


Save the Elephants maps the routes of dozens of animals, gaining insights into their habits and how far they travel for food


“We haven’t lost a rhino since 2013


but protecting and nurturing them takes up to 50% of our annual budget,” he explained. Along with donations, tourism provides valuable income, as do rhino naming and adoption schemes.


Security is key and Lewa’s


operations centre is manned 24 hours a day, with rhino rangers, military- style anti-poaching units and close cooperation with local communities, which are the first line of defence against poaching. Lewa began life as a cattle ranch;


today it’s a model for successful conservation, supporting neighbouring communities with progressive farming initiatives, education and healthcare, as well as protecting the endangered species that roam among its forests of yellow-barked fever trees, marshland and granite peaks. These include the endangered Grévy's zebra, which is stockier than the more common plains zebra. Lewa is home to 14% of east Africa’s remaining wild population. In just over a week, we’d not only


travelled in grand style – with dazzling wildlife encounters matched by equally stunning flights – but we’d also discovered an enormous amount about Kenya’s wildlife and the myriad threats it faces, from knowledgeable and engaging guides and wildlife experts. There’s no one-size-fits-all solution, but with community involvement and the dedication and passion of the experts that I met, there is certainly hope.


PICTURES: SILVERLESS/ELEWANA; SCENIC AIR SAFARIS


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