8-Day Kenya Safari through Samburu, Masai Mara, Naivasha and Amboseli

Drive north to Samburu on the south bank of the Uaso Nyiro River, downriver from Archer's Post, arriving at the lodge for lunch followed by an afternoon game drive. North of the Equator, some of the animals and vegetation are a little different from those commonly found farther south.

Elephant, black rhino, lion, buffalo, cheetah, and the usual buck and antelopes are common to both north and south of the Equator. However, unfamiliar animals here include Grevy's zebra, the reticulated giraffe, and the Somali ostrich. There is also the long-necked gerenuk, Beisa oryx, and hunting dog.

Crocodiles in the river can be seen from the lodge or tented camp. The vegetation is usually dry grass with a few swampy patches, with some forest cover along the Uaso Nyiro River and an abundance of doum palms. All meals, lunch, dinner, and overnight at the lodge.

After breakfast, spend another day in this harshly beautiful terrain where wildlife abounds, especially near the river, their only source of drinking water. The Uaso Nyiro River flows gently through the dry landscape, sustaining life in this harsh land.

Shaba National Reserve is where the famous conservationist George Adamson carried out his research on lions. In the afternoon, set out on another game drive before returning to the lodge for dinner and overnight.

After breakfast, leave for Nyahururu (Thompson's Falls) at an altitude of 7,738 feet. The falls are named after the Scottish explorer Joseph Thompson, who was the first European to discover them in 1884.

Then descend into the Great Rift Valley to Lake Nakuru National Park for lunch at one of the hotels.

In the afternoon, drive through the park to enjoy the sight of pelicans bathing in the fresh water streams that terminate in Lake Nakuru. Since there is no existing drainage, Lake Nakuru is alkaline, making it the perfect place for flamingos to feed on the blue-green algae. The greater flamingo attains a height of about 4.26 feet, and its plumage is almost white with a pale pink, black-tipped beak. It is the lesser flamingo that has the more exotic color.

This park has a great variety of birdlife, including the Egyptian goose and a variety of ducks that come from Europe to winter here. It is truly a birdwatcher's paradise. The park is also a sanctuary for the white rhino and other wild game.

After breakfast, drive to Masai Mara Game Reserve to arrive in time for lunch at the lodge. Masai Mara is Kenya's finest game reserve. Pass through the lower scenic Mau Escarpment road into the Rift Valley, covering a distance of 275-320 km via Narok town and climbing Hemingway's wall.

The reserve forms the northern part of the Serengeti National Park in Tanzania. Arrive at Masai Mara National Reserve in time for lunch.

The afternoon is spent on a game drive in search of the black-maned lions for which the park is famous. A lion making a kill can be witnessed in the late afternoon, or a leopard in a tree enjoying the meal it has dragged up to avoid disturbance and detection. This reserve has hilly savanna, rolling grasslands, and gallery forest along the Mara River and its tributaries. Return to the lodge for dinner and overnight.

After breakfast, enjoy a full day of game viewing while exploring this part of the northern Serengeti ecosystem, where the great wildebeest migration takes place at the beginning of August. Months before the actual migration, the herds assemble in the Serengeti in readiness for the crossing into Masai Mara. The plains are literally covered with these animals. Grunts and other animal sounds are heard, and territorial fights are commonplace.

Africa has a long history of capturing the imagination of travelers, a continent of dramatic contrasts that offers an unforgettable and remarkable experience. Watching thousands of wildebeest struggling across a rushing river littered with crocodiles waiting for their prey creates the world's premier wildlife spectacle.

A lion making a kill can be witnessed in the late afternoon, or a leopard in a tree enjoying the meal it has dragged up to avoid disturbance and detection. All meals and overnight at the lodge.

After breakfast, drive to Lake Naivasha along the floor of the Rift Valley, now with more familiar memories of the landscape, and arrive for lunch at the lodge. In the afternoon, proceed on your adventure to various attractive features and places around Lake Naivasha.

Much of the lake is surrounded by forests of the yellow-barked Acacia Xanthophlea, known as the yellow fever tree. These forests abound with birdlife, and Naivasha is known as a world-class birding destination. The waters of the lake draw a great range of game to these shores. Giraffes wander among the acacia, buffalo wallow in the swamps, and colobus monkeys call from the treetops, while the lake's large hippo population sleeps the day out in the shallows. The region surrounding the lake is well worth exploring.

Optional activities and excursions in Lake Naivasha:

• 1-hour boat ride: USD 20 per person
• 2-hour walking safari on Crescent Island Sanctuary: USD 45 per person
• Walking/biking safari at Hell's Gate National Park: USD 45 per person

After breakfast, check out and drive to Amboseli National Park. The journey continues south, passing through the Athi Plains, where formerly the Burchell's zebra, the Masai giraffe, and smaller herbivores roamed about freely. With human encroachment, the wildlife is now confined to game parks.

There is an advantage to this because one has to drive inside a park to be rewarded with the sight of many different species of animals. Amboseli National Park is reached late in the afternoon, in time for lunch, followed by an afternoon game viewing drive in the park at the foot of Africa's highest mountain, Kilimanjaro (19,340 ft).

In the late afternoon, one is likely to see a lion or cheetah make a kill. Ideal photography opportunities await, with Mount Kilimanjaro, the highest mountain in Africa, providing a beautiful backdrop. Return to the camp for dinner and overnight.

An early morning game drive can be taken in Amboseli when Mt Kilimanjaro appears from its mantle of clouds. Proceed to the area of Lake Amboseli, which is a wide salt pan consisting of permanent swamps.

This area has much game, large and small, with a high concentration of elephant, rhino, buffalo, Burchell's zebra, eland, Masai giraffe, and small species of the antelope family, including the common waterbuck, klipspringer, Grant's gazelle, impala, topi, and the diminutive duiker, among others. Amboseli offers some of the best opportunities to see African animals because its vegetation is sparse due to the long dry months.

Amboseli National Park is home to wild animals that include the African elephant, buffalo, impala, lion, cheetah, hyena, giraffes, zebra, and wildebeest, among other African animals. There is also a host of Kenyan birds, both large and small, to see if you keep your eyes open and stop at every sighting. Drive to Nairobi, arriving at the airport in the late afternoon.