Kenya 2023: Chapter 7 – Into the Rift

The A8 highway from Nairobi traverses the flank of the East African rift, descending about 1,000 feet down into Naivasha. It is one lane with sharp corners, limited guardrails, and heavy truck traffic interspersed with impatient drivers. Last time it provided some edge-of-our-seat driving as we were hemmed in by thick fog.

This time though, the weather cleared as we exited Nairobi to Limuru and we were treated to clear blue skies and a warm morning. The Rift Overlook is a popular place about halfway down and Lenny suggested we stop there. Ed haggled for a necklace (not for himself) and by the time we left, the lot was full of trucks and tourists from all over.

 Down the mountain, Naivasha is a bustling city full of butcher shops, phone stores, markets, motels and hostels, domestic animals, motorcycles zipping by, and colorful matatus or small van buses. We saw one with Chuck Norris’ face on it with big flashy lettering. “For the younger generation, if you don’t pimp out your ride, you won’t get any customers.”

 Naivasha

Now on the valley floor we crossed through a very pastoral countryside with corn, soybeans, and small orchards. Shepherds tended flocks of skinny cows, goats, and wooly sheep. Rolling hills dotted with trees stretched to the horizon, the rift escarpment diminishing behind us. We likened this area to southeastern Oregon, or perhaps parts of Minnesota. 

 Kenya has a population of about 55 million people. 5.5 million people live in Nairobi and the suburbs. Narok, now considered a city in the south-central part of the country, has a population of 1.2 million. We stopped for gas at a Shell station along the main road on the edge of the city. A man selling souvenirs chatted with Ed in Swahili for a few minutes before wandering off, knowing he wasn’t going to make a sale. 

We traded gifts with Lenny before we headed out. Porini/Gamewatchers had gifted us hats as return customers and Lenny had gotten us water bottles. We got Lenny two travel mugs, a hat, and some very American beef jerky.

 From Narok, we turned southwest from our westerly course and through a more arid rural area. Gone were the lush fields full of crops. Scattered thorny trees scattered the landscape and mixed herds and herdsmen wandered between. Greg napped. This stretch of road used to be known as the Kenyan massage and was almost all a rutted dirt and gravel road for the 63 miles from Narok to the gates of Keekorok. Chinese infrastructure investment projects paved the road, cutting the time to get to Keekorok. Ed was rather looking forward to the rugged traverse, but certainly enjoyed the shorter travel time.

Swahili lesson of the day: Nyanya - Tomato OR Grandmother. Be careful how you use it. 

“Nyanya wangu ni nyanya”  = “My grandmother is a tomato” OR “My tomato is a grandmother”.