Family News

The sad news from this year was the passing of my father who died on May 26th. He passed away peacefully at home with all of us nearby. At his request, engraved into a brass plate over the site where his ashes are laid are the words ‘He followed his dreams’. This is certainly true, it could also have read ‘He lived his dreams’. My mother is strong and stays busy with all her friends in the neighborhood, as well as having her grandchildren to visit on a regular basis.

 

Fiona’s real estate and relocation business, Fastrack, continues to grow. Contracts with BAT and Nokia for relocating all incoming personnel have kept her and her partner busy all year. Zoe is now 3 1/2 years old. She loves school and learning – she manages to memorize books from being read to and can recite accurately afterwards, convincing strangers that she is actually reading! There have been more visits to the Mara this year and she is very familiar with all the wildlife. She happily points out topi and zebra, and can easily tell the difference between a Thompson’s Gazelle and an Impala – unlike some other visitors I have had this year!! Oscar just celebrated his second birthday which was great fun. He loves running around chasing balls, getting dirty, finding and bringing back various creepy crawlies for his mother to appreciate. All good boys stuff!

 

Kenya News and views
Kenya’s tourism boom has continued this year with large numbers of visitors. This has resulted in the addition of new, mostly high quality, camps and lodges to some of our parks. Economically, this is good for the country, and raises the profile of our wildlife, making it even more valuable. The result is that the wildlife is being well looked after even in the face of increasing population pressure. There are also expanding areas set aside for wildlife, mostly through private investment links with local communities and private landowners. The recent inclusion of the wildebeest migration through the Mara as one of the modern Seven Wonders of the World can do this trend no harm at all! There are on going efforts to improve the quality of Kenya as a destination to incoming visitors, and the Kenya Professional Safari Guides Association (KPSGA) is one such effort that I continue to be involved in. KPSGA is an examination and qualification board setting guiding standards within the country. This has proven to be very popular in the industry.

 

Safari News
I have been fortunate this year in having the assistance of Mickey Pelling in the office. Her background in accounting and organization skills has been a very welcome addition to the Onsafari team. Many visitors this year have also commented on the superb renovations in the camp set up, which are attributed to her vision.

Favourite safari destinations in Kenya, continue to be Shaba and Samburu in the north; Lewa Downs in Laikipia; Lake Nakuru and Chui Lodge in the Rift Valley; Amboseli in the south; and the Mara in the west. I have also come to enjoy Elsa’s Kopje in remote Meru National Park which you will find appearing on suggested safari itineraries. This is a beautiful little lodge perched on a rocky hill with totally unique rooms nestled into the rocks.

While safaris in Kenya continue to be the most sought after, this year I have also led more safaris outside Kenya - to the Skeleton Coast of Namibia, the Okavango of Botswana, the Gorillas of Rwanda, and the Serengeti of Tanzania.

Wildlife experiences continue to intoxicate myself and my visitors - there are far too many to recount. The wildebeest migration this year was fabulous, and deserves mention. It was also perhaps more appreciated with my new campsite in the Mara, located on the Mara River, in the heart of this migration zone. This campsite has also been the choice location for Nokia team building conferences. Nokia have been very excited about the results. This can certainly be considered a unique environment for any multinational organization to get to know one another. 2006 has indeed been a great year for safari, and 2007 will no doubt be even better!

I look forward to seeing many of you in 2007. Merry Christmas!
Watching the sunset	Wildbeasts at sunset
Tent meeting	Crossing over
Cairing for the reptiles