Shuttabugz

This is a very interesting reserve with a great variety of birds and animals including the endangered Grevy’s Zebra which now number only around 3000, down from 15,000 in the 1970′s and are found only in Ethiopia and this area of Kenya.

During our time there we experienced a sudden flooding of the Ewaso Ng’iro river which flows past the Samburu Game Lodge where we were staying and caused by heavy rain many kms away up stream. It was quite spectacular to see and hear the rapid rise of the river which also recently flooded another nearby Lodge.

Wikepedia describes Samburu as follows:

“The Samburu National Reserve is located on the banks of the Ewaso Ng’iro river in Kenya; on the other side of the river is theBuffalo Springs National Reserve in Northern Kenya. It is 165 km² in size and 350 kilometers from Nairobi and ranges in altitude from 800 to 1230m above sea level. Geographically, it is located in Samburu District of the Rift Valley Province.

In the middle of the reserve, the Ewaso Ng’iro flows through doum palm groves and thick riverine forests that provides water without which the game in the reserve could not survive in the arid country.

The Samburu National Reserve was one of the two areas in which conservationists George Adamson and Joy Adamson raised Elsa the Lioness made famous in the best selling book and award winning movie Born Free.

The Samburu National Reserve is also the home of Kamunyak, a lioness famous for adopting oryx calves.”

Buffalo Springs has an interesting history with two versions of how the springs came to be in existence. You be the judge.

From www.kenyakidz.com:

Version 1

The bomb that made an oasis at Buffalo Springs

The spring, which is also believed to heal different skin conditions, flows all year round, and remains strong even now, when the Ewaso Nyiro River, which marks the reserve’s boundary with the neighbouring Samburu reserve, is almost dry, amid the drought eating into Kenya’s northern region.Buffalo Springs near Isiolo gets its name from a heart-shaped spring on the west side of the reserve caused by an off-course World War II missile that sprang a source that now supplies thousands of wild animals, including the relatively rare special 4: the Beisa Oryx, the Reticulated Giraffe, the Gerenuk( or Giraffe Neck Gazelle) and Grevy’s Zebras.

The missile that first brought the water is said to have been launched by the Italians, when fighting the British in the area. Yet the pool it created, where before the land was dry, now continuously attracts swimmers and bathers, as well as creating a lifeline for a line-up of Kenya’s rare animals.”

http://www.exoticexpeditions.co.ke/Samburu.asp

Version 2 

“Buffalo Springs National Reserve

Buffalo Springs National Reserve is separated from the Samburu Reserve by the river Ewaso Nyiro, and is less hilly and less dense than its neighbour but equally as attractive. The Reserve takes its name from springs of crystal clear water at the western end of the sanctuary.

Sometimes man unexpectedly aids in the formation of memorable land features, such as the crystal clear springs that sit in 3 bomb craters, whichwere created by an Italian bomber during World War 2. While flying overhead he thought that a herd of buffalo was a British encampment so he bombed it. The underground water flowing into the craters is heavier than normal and rich in carbon and minerals that make it a popular spa for tourists. It is also a drinking place for thousands of bird and animal species”.

This version is supported by one other:

“Buffalo Springs apparently got its name during World War II when a bomb was dropped on a herd of buffalo mistakenly thought to be the enemy. When the bomb exploded, the buffalo were killed and water filled the crater forming the spring”.

It is interesting to note that the there was a severe drought at the time of the keyakidz posting and the Ewaso Nyiro River was almost dry…this the river that was a raging torrent during our time in Samburu.