Western Sahara 2016

Western Sahara 2016

Sunday 26 February 2012

Playing Vets

Busy times. I've called this blog post "playing vets" because my horses have been a nightmare recently. The two new polo ponies are not settling in well. Nakita cut her leg in the boma (paddock) and has also injured two other horses in the space of two days. She was fighting with one and poor Magic ended up in the watertrough so she has a very swollen back leg and lots of cuts. The following day, Sij came in with a kick on his hind leg which I think we can safely assume was also Nakita's doing. Amarula (the other new one) seemingly tried to eat a thorn bush and has cut her mouth. Fortunately it hasn't stopped her eating and it is healing quickly. But essentially 50% of the polo ponies are injured and unrideable, and we had just started getting them fit again for next season!

Still all the above is fairly manageable. Cleaning wounds and administering antibiotics, painkillers and anti-inflammatory drugs is straight forward enough. Naturally worse was to come... One afternoon I get a call from the head polo syce asking me to come to the stables. As he is more than capable of dealing with minor injuries, I know something very bad has happened. Sij has cut his neck completely open including through the muscles - a gruesome sight it has to be said although he is stood quite calmly in his stable eating hay. We later discovered a jagged tree stump in the boma covered in blood so assume this was what caused the injury. Luckily Will (the owner) was around to stitch him up (he's not a vet either but he's stitched up quite a few horses over the years as it isn't easy or cheap to get a vet here). It took over two hours and we all lost count of how many stitches. This happened two days ago and amazingly Sij seems to be doing okay. It's a massive wound though and I'm not sure how much muscle damage there is and how/if that will heal. I guess time will tell..

All in all, that was a very dramatic day. It started with Coco's foal finally putting in an appearance and ended up with Sij's hideous injury. My aunt has been staying at Wilderness for the past week which has been lovely. Will was going to take us for a flight in the bi-plane that morning so we were at the airstrip at 6.30am and then got a call saying Coco had her foal. So flight plans abandoned, we rushed off to see the new baby. It's a little girl, dark bay in colour, and she is absolutely tiny and a bag of bones. Not sure what was going on inside Coco but baby obviously wasn't getting enough food. Her back legs were also very wonky but it is day three now, she is still with us, and fighting hard for survival. She drinks brilliantly and stays on her feet for hours until she falls asleep standing up / collapses. She couldn't stand up by herself for the first 24 hours so once up, she seemed to know she should stay up as long as possible so that she could feed and get her legs stronger. Coco is the most amazing mummy too, very protective and loving. Quite a contrast with Santa's mum who was more interested in eating than looking after her foal. Santa's legs are slowly healing by the way - he now only has two legs bandaged not three!!

Anyway, enough of the horses. Ann and I finally did get to go on our bi-plane flight. For those, like myself, who know nothing about planes, the bi-plane (Waco) is an open cockpit plane that sits a pilot at the back and then two passengers in the front. It is based on the 1930s Out of Africa style plane, and it is certainly an incredible way to experience the scenery. We went for an hour long flight up to Samburu and along the river. Will used to be a crop sprayer so at times he flies barely 10 feet off the ground. Going through the valleys in an open cockpit plane, you literally feel like you could reach out and touch the sides of the gorges. Brilliant!

Friday 17 February 2012

New polo ponies

Much excitement – we have two new polo ponies. They have come all the way from Zimbabwe which was 6 days on a lorry. Their longest traveling day was 21 hours, including 5 hours standing on the lorry in the blazing heat at the Zambia / Tanzania border crossing. Despite their seemingly arduous journey, they both stepped off the lorry looking remarkably sleek and shiny. Just another example of how easy going African horses are compared to their UK counterparts! It is best just to accept that things are done differently here and it really doesn’t seem to do the horses any harm. Whereas in the UK, we wouldn’t dream of putting a horse on a lorry without protective leg bandages, these two came all the way from Zimbabwe without them. I did send our lorry and syce to Nairobi with bandages for the last leg of their journey, but they didn’t bother to use them telling me there was no point since they had done the first five days of the journey without them!
Anyway, the new ponies are called Amarula (how apt – one of my favourite drinks) and Nakita. Nakita is tiny, just 14.2 hands so she really is a pony. Although they did most of their journey with five other horses (not for us, but for other people in Kenya), they have obviously bonded and are now inseparable. They absolutely refuse to mix with the other polo ponies and graze in a separate part of the boma (paddock). In an attempt to break this bond, we have moved them so they are no longer in next door stables. They neigh to each other all the time and are delighted to see each other the following day. Nakita seems intent on attacking any other horse that comes near her, but hopefully they will make some new friends soon…. At least they come from the Zimbabwean bush so they have seen elephants, giraffes, etc before. They don’t like our camels though! Can't say I blame them - they are quite ugly.

What else is new? Well, we had an equine vet from the UK staying here. She commented on how healthy and well kept our horses were which was nice (obviously I made sure her and her mother had decent looking horses and hid the old skinny ones!). Unfortunately, on her second ride, her horse went lame which was a bit embarrassing but I guess these things happen. Especially with our horses who like to be lame a lot.

Foal update. It is so lovely to see how Santa has progressed after all the hard work he has been. He looks so healthy and alert now. He has stopped trailing round after his mum with his head between her hind legs and now is a lot more independent, his head is held high, his ears are pricked and he is becoming very inquisitive. He is so trusting and sweet natured considering all the traumas he has been through. He can even canter and buck, but his legs are so long that he has to graze like a giraffe with his front legs spread so that his head can reach the ground. Even Champagne has started being a bit nicer to him (she is a bit of a bully).

Coco still hasn’t had her foal! When I first came to Lewa, I was told that both mares were due to foal on the 8th Jan. Santa arrived early on Christmas Day, but Coco did not look at all ready to foal. On rechecking with the owners of the stallion, I was told Coco was due 29th Jan. Well, it’s now the 16th Feb so who knows?! Over the past week, her udder has definitely enlarged so we think she is thinking about foaling and isn’t just fat. However, my research tells me mares can start “bagging up” weeks before they foal so it may not be imminent. I guess she will have it in her own good time..

Well, it has been a very horsey blog so far. Apologies to those of you who are not the slightest bit interested in horses. I’m not sure that I’ve done too much else of note to report on. Yesterday was fun though. Whilst we were having lunch, there were lots of elephants on the hill opposite making their way down to the river to drink. So after lunch, we took a walk down to the river and sat and watched them drinking. I love baby elephants – they are so sweet. Then later that day driving to the farm, I saw a baby giraffe. Haven’t seen a baby giraffe in ages so that was nice. Then early evening, we were heading out to set up sundowners (drinks) for some guests and all the giraffes were lined up along the air strip looking at something. We drove over to find three cheetahs – a mother and her two boys (although they are almost fully grown). The boys actually jumped up on to the toilet hut roof and were playing together. Fantastic to see them out in the open as normally they are barely visible in the long grass.

That’s about it for now. Had some rain recently which has been quite refreshing. Not too much – just a couple of light showers late afternoon, but it helps to dampen down all the dust and makes the air smell fresher.


Wednesday 8 February 2012

Friends Reunited

Happy times. My friend, Dianne, was able to come visit whilst on her way through Kenya (she is also travelling with Odyssey Overland as I did last year but on the northbound trip Cape to Cairo). It was very surreal to see Athena (the truck) turn the corner at the Meru / Isiolo junction with Alison and Rogan in the cab and Di jumping out of the back. (For those Odyssey Overlanders who travelled with me last year you should remember this junction well. It was where we broke down on that long drive from Samburu to Nakuru..). It was great to be able to show Di my new life here on Lewa and provide her with a much needed night of luxury. Having spent months camping, I think she was more than happy to have a night in one of our guest cottages with 2 four poster beds and 2 sitting rooms! The contrast between life at Wilderness Trails and life on the Odyssey Overland truck could not be greater. I was reminded of this when Di commented at dinner how fantastic it was to be served a three course dinner at a table with napkins, wine glasses etc rather than eating off a metal plate that is burning your lap (not to mention having to drink wine out of a tin cup!).
Even though Di was only here for less than 24 hours, we found time to go on a game drive and a horse ride. Saw lots of rhinos which was great for Di as they are not so plentiful in other game parks across Africa. We then headed up to Samburu to catch up with the truck. Samburu is about an hour’s drive north of Lewa but it was my first proper road trip unaccompanied so it was quite exciting for me. Had to have a lesson in how to change a tyre from one of the mechanics before I left as I am always getting punctures which on Lewa is fine as there are always people to help you. Out on the open road it might not be so advisable to accept offers of help – may end up being robbed at the same time.
It was fun to go back to the Samburu campsite where I had stayed for two nights last year and spend a night being an “overlander” again. Also great to catch up with Rogan and Alison, drink champagne on the roof of Athena and watch the sunset by the river. Samburu is such a different landscape and climate to Lewa. Very flat and dry and also much warmer – no need for warm clothes once the sun goes down there.
It was quite strange watching the new Odyssey Overlanders break camp and pack up Athena in the morning. That was my life for over 4 months last year so it was odd to come back to it again. There was a part of me that was slightly envious of the adventures they have ahead, but it’s a long bumpy road through the rest of northern Kenya (and a potentially dangerous one, particularly the Moyale border crossing into Ethiopia where tribal fighting is escalating right now). So for me it was a nice early morning drive back to Lewa and my life of luxury… No roughing it on a truck and not showering for days on end!

Sunday 5 February 2012

Dry, dusty Lewa

I noticed when I logged on to the internet today that Britain is set for lots of snow. That seems quite unimaginable to me here on Lewa as it is getting drier and dustier each day. The grass is dying quickly and you cannot drive anywhere without clouds of dust following you. When you stop to open a gate, you are simply engulfed in the dust the vehicle has kicked up. I would choose this over the cold any day though!

Well, it has been very quiet here on the guest front for a few days (I say that looking out of the office window at ten new guests that have just arrived so not for much longer..). Had lots of time to go for some nice rides and find some new routes. The game is fabulous right now. 12 rhinos on this morning's ride alone, and the other morning we just sat quietly on our horses watching 50+ elephants crossing the river ahead of us and then headed up the hill where we saw 8 rhino, not to mention the stunning views across Lewa to Mount Kenya.

Speaking of Mount Kenya, a few of us took a day trip up to the lower slopes. The landscape is dramatically different from Lewa. First you head up through beautiful farm land and crops which is very reminiscent of a large arable farm in the UK with lots of the bright yellow oilseed rape crops. Then through the forest and out onto shrubby moorland. We drove up to a place called Rotundu where we then trekked down into a gorge - quite a scramble actually - to reach a beautiful stream full of trout. Some of the group fished. I chose just to relax on a rock and listen to the sound of the water and take the occasional paddle in the ice cold water.

Also been to the school in Isiolo again. I find Isiolo a very depressing place. Something about the air, the heat and the dryness really gets to you and you feel completely drained within five minutes of arriving. Isiolo is not a very settled place right now. Lots of tribal fighting going on to the north with warring groups killing each others animals and arguing over land. Best avoided for the time being..

Nanyuki (to the south of Lewa) by contrast is quite a nice place to go for shopping or lunch. Found a restaurant with free wifi the other day which was nice.

Still waiting for foal number three to arrive. Coco (the mare) is huge so it can't be too much longer. Santa is growing very well and I think his brain may even be catching up as he seems much brighter and sharper. He even skips, canters and bucks now. He will never be as smart as Champagne but that is just as well - he is a lot easier to handle than she is!