Dallas and I stayed at awesome accommodation during our stay in Kenya. Located some two hour drive from Narok proper, House in the Wild offers private and serene accommodation with first class service and meals. Our small group of six had the whole place to ourselves (it was booked that way), though it can accommodate up to 12, and within hours, we were like family – arriving from Denmark, Australia, and the United States. Safari tours can be easily booked through this venue with Moses and Boston as premium guides and story tellers. Our hosts, Tarquin and Lippa Wood came in for a couple visits to make sure our stay was perfect.
House in the Wild is located on Naretoi, the 1000 acre private estate within the Enonkishu Conservancy wildlife sanctuary on the edge of the Maasai Mara. All the houses are situated with gorgeous views of the Mara River from the porch or just a few steps away.
My room with ensuite at our private ‘estate’ Still just 30 second walk to main meal/gathering place.Quasi-glamping. Absolutely stunning and luxurious accommodation with daily cleaning service.Another outing – market day at Aitong.
We followed this lion about a mile across the plain. He was lying in the shade when he noticed the birds and hyenas moving in on his kill. Masai Mara National Reserve, Kenya.
Though the main reason for Dallas and my visit to Kenya was to learn about the new Savory Hub at Enonkishu Conservancy, we also had the opportunity to go on several game drives. Now, don’t confuse a western thought of game drive being like a cattle drive. Our purpose was not to move stock or wildlife, but to discover them and enjoy them in their natural habitats. So, you might say, ‘well, i’ve seen hippos, giraffes, elephants, cheetahs, lions, and such in a zoo.’ Sure, many of us have, but it surprised me at the excitement and joy of seeing wild animals in their natural homes just doing what they do. Living, killing, eating, raising young…. No one feeding or watering them and piles of poop and drainage on a concrete pen. Our guides, Moses and Boston, are expert at knowing where to find the animals by observing the tracks, habitat, and behaviors of other animals. As a matter of interest, guides are required to complete many hours of training and testing, including how to drive safari vehicles in some rugged country.
Our stay in mid July was simply stunning with temps in the mid to upper 60s during the days and mid to upper 50s at night. On the Masai Mara National Reserve we were so thrilled to see the start of the wildebeest (which includes zebras, antelope, and other wildlife) migration from the Serengeti. Clear skies provided excellent stargazing opportunities, including the Southern Cross!
All this put together by Denizen Earth and Trey Shelton.
Enonkishu Conservancy, (Maa for ‘place of healthy cattle’) located in southwestern Kenya, is one of the newest Savory Hubs. Designed to demonstrate the attributes of managed grazing in a challenging environment and to encourage local community involvement. The young couple who have pulled this endeavor together to qualify as a Savory Hub and move forward with implementation have indeed set a challenging yet heartfelt mission before them.
Their stated mission:
“REGENERATIVE GRAZING
Enonkishu Conservancy is committed to sustainable rangeland management that allows space and resources for all people, cattle, and wildlife. To achieve this it seeks a balance between conservation of the ecosystem and appropriate enterprise for the resident Maasai communities. Enonkishu is adopting a unique approach to conserving land by creating a viable livestock enterprise through a Holistic Management (HM) Approach. Through HM, Enonkishu intends to improve productivity of the livestock in the region, improve livelihoods and maintain heritage.”
The desire to improve the land, livestock, and wildlife is admirable, but no more so than the commitment to lift up the lives of the local people by finding ways for more children to seek formal education and to put more dollars in the pockets of families.
‘Regenerative’ is the new buzzword and thinking to replace ‘sustainable.’ I think it’s a good change. Why sustain something that is in decline or degraded? Regeneration of poor soils is tantamount to improved lives. From the dust of the earth was man created -Genesis 2:7.
However, offering and encouraging education in holistic management or any other ideology must be introduced with gentleness and respect into a culture and society which may push back with decades of ingrained practices and customs. Even in our rural county in Missouri, USA with one of the premier managed-grazing schools at our fingertips, there is little adoption of the regenerative practices. To form a cooperative of producers willing to allow their comingled cow herds to be managed as one mob by someone else on comingled land would not even be considered. Yet this is the simplified explanation of one component of what is happening with Enonkishu Conservancy and the Mara Training Centre. With any new organisation, family or business, there are growing and learning pains. Rookie mistakes, which should be avoided by heeding advice from those who have already made them, creep into any undertaking. One of the key elements of Allan Savory’s management courses is defining goals and testing objectives. Good, basic advice for anyone at any point in their lives.
Admittedly, i’m glad i don’t have to manage the massive number of mega wildlife that Lippa and Tarquin do – no worries about lions, leopards, elephants, zebras here in north Missouri. Wow!
Dallas and I recently (July 23, 2018) returned from a 9 day stay on Naretoi Estate at the House in the Wild accommodation. We traveled with Trey Shelton, who owns Denizen Global as our TD and along with four other like minded travelers (now good friends) and offered through Savory Institute Journeys.
We learnt so much on this wonderful expedition – not only did we meet great travel mates, hosts, servers, and leaders, but we enjoyed safari and game drives, superb meals prepared by Chef Purity and graciously served by Godfrey, guides who surely have no equal, and opportunities to enjoy local life. More on all that in future entries.
Journey on!!!
tauna
Our ‘estate’ at House in the WildMy bedroom with full ensuite behind the bed.
Two hours on that sort of gravel road was the last of our five hour drive from Nairobi to House In the Wild. I’ll not complain about gravel roads in Jackson Township, Linn County, Missouri, USA again!
Another enterprise or ‘holon’ of the Conservancy is the Mara Training Centre at which young people and adults from around the world come to learn about managed grazing. Camping and dorms are available for long term stays.
Even though the soil is much better covered on the Enonkishu Conservancy, despite the massive amounts of wildlife (which continues to increase because of better forage), there is much work to be done. My observations are that the cows are the forward grazers and receive the more mature grasses. This, of course, challenges them to maintain body condition. I don’t know what the conception rates are. I asked about how the wildlife are managed and the comments was that oddly, the wildlife seems to follow the cattle. This is no mystery as to why they do this! The wildlife are getting that coveted second bite, the one that shouldn’t be taken until the grass has had adequate rest. This is one point that many graziers differ with Allan Savory’s grazing management. He says that the amount of time grazing is the most important, whereas many of us believe the amount of time rested is most important. The key is to move the stock before the blades can be grazed too short- often this is one bite, then move on. However, time grazing and time resting will vary with seasons and weather conditions. For example, in my operation in a typical fast growing cool season forages spring, the cows will be in a paddock no more than three days, then that paddock should rest at least 30 days. However, if the rains don’t come, this rest period could easily extend to 60 or 90 days. This would require longer stays in paddocks and possible herd reduction.
Anyway, my point is that the wildlife on Enonkishu are fat grazing the creme of the grass crop and quite likely slowing down the regenerative process. However, tourism is a huge part of the income and goals, so this must be taken into consideration and balance.
The boma is a mainstay amongst cattlemen and shepherds in conservancies of southwestern Kenya. Stock must be corralled each night for protection from serious predators like lions, hyenas, leopards, cheetahs, and other wildlife which like beef as much as we do. Bomas are designed to be easily set up and taken down and the overnight dunging by mobbed stock can improve soil structure and productivity very quickly IF the area is allowed to rest for along time after use.
This photo clearly shows the great improvement in soil production where the bomas were located. These areas are indicated by the circular areas of thick green grass cover.
The Enonkishu Conservancy as a new Savory Hub is doing a smart, yet difficult thing. Mistakes in management have been made and I hope that leaders will continue learning and talking to people who are not only ‘experts’ but also producers, those of us who put these ideas to practice. We’ve already made the mistakes and most are glad to share our failures and successes.
Tannachton Farm 