Jambo from Kenya! Our flight from Johannesburg went to plan and we arrived on time in Nairobi. Both airports were quick and efficient which was a relief. We took a taxi to our hotel - the Ole-Sereni - which is a beautiful place in the city, yet overlooking Nairobi’s game park. Allegedly, you can see elephants and giraffe grazing yards from your breakfast table but sadly we saw no game - despite the huge cost of said breakfast!
Our exchangers in Nairobi had very kindly organised a hire car for us through a friend because in Kenya, you have to be under 70 to drive a hire car
. It was delivered to the hotel on Friday morning - a huge great Toyota Prada 4x4. “What on earth do we want with that great thing?” I asked innocently. At that stage I did not know about Kenyan roads!
We were told the drive from Nairobi to Timau (which is a small town on the equator in the foothills of Mount Kenya) would take about 3 to 4 hours. We left at 11am and did not arrive here until after 5pm. What a nightmare! The Kenyans are even worse drivers than the South Africans and although the highway out of Nairobi is four lane and boasts tarmac, there are no road markings and cars and lorries overtake and undertake whenever they can see a gap. The traffic was horrendous and to add to this, the highway through the towns are speed-bumped. People, goats and cows cross it, darting between the vehicles. We also hit a rain storm once we started to climb up in to the mountains which made visibility practically impossible
. When we finally reached Timau our instructions sent us off-road for miles down dirt tracks, rocky precipices and across rivers. Needles to say, we got totally lost and had to be talked through the journey on the phone - until we lost signal! Wow, were we pleased when a vehicle came skidding around a corner - it was our host who had come to find us! It gets very dark very quickly and very early in Kenya.
Olepangi Farm is a horse farm, bordering one of Kenya’s massive game reserves and is set deep in the bush. There are breathtaking views of snow-capped Mount Kenya from our giant, three storey rondavel. Our exchangers are Clinton and Elizabeth Loker, an Englishman and an American. They have built this amazing farm from scratch and have some twenty horses, half of which are polo ponies. They both play polo and even have their own polo field. They run horseback safaris from Olepangi and have accommodation in rondavels for twelve guests. Overflow guests are put up in tents. At the moment, there is just Mike and I and David, a chap from London, staying. David has been here several times before and stays for about six weeks at a time.
It is as hot as ever but much greener than South Africa. A strong wind blows most of the time which makes the temperature very pleasant. We have enjoyed a couple of long walks on the farm and I love watching the stable boys bringing in the horses each evening
. We have ventured out only once - to visit Ngare Ndare and the blue pools - really because we feared that we would never find our way home! It was quite an adventure; having negotiated the treacherous journey from the farm, we set off off-road again almost immediately for many miles before we arrived, white and shaken, at the game reserve. A guide appeared from out the bushes and took us to their famous ‘tree-walk’ which is about half a kilometre long, through the forest. Having climbed the ladder to a fearsome height, I did not have the courage to go down again, even though I really wanted to! Encouraged by our guide who told me it was built in 2009 and was ‘very strong’, I gulped and followed Mike. It was worth it - beautiful tropical trees above streams and foliage were full of birds and the most lovely butterflies. There are elephants and buffalo in the reserve but we saw none - to my relief. After some more terrifying 4-wheel driving, we had to walk and climb through the forest to the river on foot. There are a series of pools and waterfalls all fed from the waters of Mount Kenya and they really are quite blue
. Very hot from the climb, we had the most wonderful swim in the icy waters. After a sandwich and much-needed water, we retraced our footsteps and Mike drove us back to the farm - he is now becoming most proficient at off-roading. Thank God for the Prada!
When I booked this house exchange, Timau and Mount Kenya had not looked very far from Nakuru on the map but now we are told it is about a 6 hour drive. So the day trips we had planned to visit my birthplace and granny’s farm were not going to be possible from here. Instead, we have curtailed our stay at Olepangi and I have booked an AirB&B in Nakuru. We will set off in the morning and God willing, get there by late afternoon. Then we will have two days to see if we can find Ainabakoi where my grandparents farmed, where my parents were married and lived and where I was born.
We would like to wish you a very happy Easter. Hopefully, we will be safely back in Nairobi at the weekend and we are looking forward to further Hudson-hunting adventures there!
Off-roading on the Equator
Monday, March 21, 2016
Timau, Meru, Kenya
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Comments

2025-02-10
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Jill Kargaard
2016-03-21
What an adventure and how exciting! I'm green with envy. Enjoy every second.
Phil and Jan
2016-03-21
Gillie and Mike
Fancy being able to say I was born in Ainabakoi!
Happy Easter and best of luck with your search - what an amazing trip!
Denise
2016-03-22
Plenty of dirt road experience when you were in Costa Rica, you must be old hands at it now! Sounds great fun, looking forward to hearing all about you adventures soon.
Victoria
2016-03-22
Aw it looks beautiful and those horses are gorgeous.... There is no way on earth that you went over that tree top bridge Mum - I am signing you up for I'm a Celebrity get me out of here when you get back!!
gillie.bowen
2016-03-22
It keeps getting more and more challenging - the trip across country to Nakuru was not for the feint-hearted! Happy Easter!
gillie.bowen
2016-03-22
It certainly is an adventure! Travelling from Timau to Nakuru today has been quite a challenge, too! Best wishes for Easter xx
gillie.bowen
2016-03-22
Costa Rica was the M1 of Kenya!! All challenging stuff! Happy Easter Gxx
gillie.bowen
2016-03-22
I know, wasn't I brave! And you should see dad off-road driving; it's amazing!! Happy Easter xx