Is it worth the extra cost to stay there as a solo who would join group activities for 3 nights during the dry season? The elephant part of the stay would have to be the part that could justify the surcharge over other camps. Do you think the unique ele viewing commands that price?

Thanks.

Atravelynn:

I've stayed at Elephant Watch Camp on three occasions. I was traveling solo but it didn't make me uncomfortable at all. At meal times you got to know the other guests and enjoyed having dinner with them at one big table. At the time I was there Iain and Oria were there also and they regaled us with marvelous stories of their life with elephants. However Iain and Oria are not always present in camp. Oria also owns Olerai House in Naivasha and she is sometimes there instead of Samburu. Iain is often off elsewhere doing elephant collaring.

On all three of my trips I had two marvelous guides, Sumaro and Alfred, but I understand they are not there now. Also, Shivani Bhalla, a lion researcher, was staying in Iain's elephant research camp and she joined us on several occasions so it was great getting to know her and her work.

At the time I stayed there, there were only five tents, each done with its own motif. You could easily watch the river from your tent. Elephants often came into camp.

Each one of the guides in Elephant Watch Camp knew all the Samburu elephants well. Iain has named each family group and all have individual names. The guides have learned from Iain, and they also have a notebook showing a picture of every elephant with their name and family. I found that Oria's guides got much closer to the elephants than other lodge/camp guides as they knew which ones to watch out for and which were safe to get close to.

On one occasion they drove me to the river bank to watch an elephant family drinking. All of a sudden another family came up behind us. The family just arriving were the more dominant family and didn't like the fact that other elephants were already in the water drinking. Thus they started trumpeting. The ones in the water rushed up to the front of our vehicle while the newcomers surrounded the back and sides. We were totally surrounded by about 20 - 30 screaming, trumpeting elephants (within 5 - 10 feet of us!!). We were caught in the middle and couldn't move. Luckily the elephants knew the guides and the vehicle - and as long as we stayed perfectly still we were no threat. The more dominant group finally forced the other to move back and wait. Once the dominant group had their water and crossed the river, the other group returned. It was probably my most exciting elephant experience. It could have had a sad ending for us had the guides not known exactly what to do. The elephants could have easily overturned our vehicle.

It is an expensive camp as you state. Was it worth it for me? You bet. However, with the economy as bad as it is, and having already been there before, were I going to Samburu again I would probably try one of the other camps/lodges. You cannot assume that Oria and Iain will be there. The guides, for me, made the difference and gave me an awesome experience I will never forget.

Jan, I was hoping for a response from you. I was also hoping your answer would be a deciding factor for me. The fact that the wonderful guides you had are not there any more stacks up as a no-go. You're right about the economy, another no-go. But something about the place brought you back for 3 visits. I'm still considering if that something is sufficient to make me book.

Thanks for the comments on the dining arrangements. My concern about traveling solo is always the cost rather than the socializing issues.

I keep thinking that I could do a 5+ night stay at Samburu Serena for a 3 night stay at Ele Watch.

But would you say the Elephant Watch game outing experience is unmatched elsewhere?

Atravelynn:

I'll put down a few thoughts for you. Would I go back to Elephant Watch? You bet. However, it is very expensive as you state, and now that I'm retired I have to watch cost. I can no longer justify $650.00 a night for sleeping in a tent - regardless of how fancily it is decorated. A tent is a tent. The positive is IF Iain and Oria are in camp you can learn so much from their years of elephant study. Even though my favorite guides are no longer there, I'm sure they have trained equally good people to take over.

I'm sure all Oria's guides know the elephants better than guides from other lodges/camps. Due to Iain's work collaring, all the men know all the Samburu elephant families and each member of the family, and the elephants know them and their vehicle well also. When I was there EWC guides got much closer to the elephants than other vehicles I saw.

Is the game watching in Samburu better than anywhere else? That is a hard question for me. As you may know, I'm an elephant lover so seeing them is most important for me. I try to go where I'll see the most elephants. I must admit that Samburu is the only place I've seen leopards, so if that is important for you then Samburu is a must for you. It is also the only place I've seen giraffe "necking". Twice when in Samburu there were tons of animals. On one trip there were very few animals in the reserve.

I personally prefer Amboseli and Tsavo East National Park. In Amboseli I've been able to go out on game drives with the elephant researchers and you get REALLY up close to some of the Ambo elephant families when with the researchers. They are the only ones allowed to drive off road and will go right into the iddle of the elephant herds. In Tsavo East at Satao Camp in the dry season there were literally hundreds of elephants at the waterhole in front of my tent day and night. However, with Tsavo being so huge, you have to travel farther and look harder to see many of the other species.

You must remember that what you see depends entirely on the weather. During the dry season you'll see much more than you would during or just after the rains when food and water are plentiful everywhere.
I always plan my trips for the dry season for that reason. In fact I'm returning to Kenya leaving here January 31st and will stay a full two weeks at Satao Camp in Tsavo East where hopefully, if they don't have late rains, I'll again see hundreds of eles. from my veranda (some of them walking right past my tent).
It is wonderful watching the reactions of the elephants, hippos, buffalo sometimes, giraffe, lions, zebra, waterbuck, impalas, kongoni, baboons and monkeys right from your veranda. Usually at Satao I don't even go on game drives. Why ride for hours looking for wildlife when it is right in front of your tent?!

To get back to EWC, if you can afford it, it would be great to do. If you're taking cost into it, I think you would have an equally good experience at Serena or even Samburu Lodge. If you are just thinking about seeing wildlife in a tented camp anywhere, then I'd think of Tsavo East and Satao Camp. It is my favorite place. I've referred a few people to Satao and they all love it as much as I do.

Those are very helpful remarks, Jan! And congrats on your retirement!