8 Days Turkana via Chalbi Desert Adventure Camping Safari
| $ | Duration | Location | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
 |  |  |  |
| From USD 2000 | 7 Nights and 8 Days | Bush | Family Holiday / Private tour |
8 Days Turkana via Chalbi Desert Adventure Camping Safari
Price:- USD 2000 (€ 1,760) Per person sharing
This rugged 1,800-km adventure camping expedition is run in land cruiser or expedition trucks. You will traverse along some of Africa’s worst roads; see wildlife endemic to the North of Kenya, beautiful mountain forest surrounded on all sides by hot dusty deserts, eventually arriving at shores of the beautiful Jade Sea (Lake Turkana). As well as spectacular scenery it is the people of northern Kenya that make the most lasting impression; nomadic pastoralists such as the Gabbra, Turkana and Samburu whose adherence to a strictly traditional lifestyle and dress is practically unique in modern East Africa.
Gametrackers has been offering this as one of our best selling safari for over 29 years especially for those true explorers and travellers who want to get off the tourist beaten track and for it, we are highly recommended.
ITINERARY
Arrive at Jomo Kenyatta Int. Airport (JKIA)
Transfer to City Hotel
Day 1
JAMBO – KARIBU!! It is ‘touch down’ at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport. Representatives of Quattro Travel, your hosts in Kenya eagerly await your arrival in traditional African. It is a tradition in Africa to present a gift as an expression of our joy and happiness – what better gift than an authentic (branded) safari hat and other safari essentials! Thereafter transfer to your hotel in Nairobi, Kenya’s colorful capital city to check in to your city hotel. Rest of the day or evening is spent at leisure.
Day 2 – Maralal
Depart in the early morning towards Maralal via Nyahururu (option to stop at Thompson falls briefly). Lunch en route as we arrive in the campsite in the late afternoon to pitch up tents for the night. (Particularly long drive; cold night).
Maralal is the unofficial capital of the Samburu people and has a distinctly frontier feel about it. It is also home of the Maralal International Camel Derby that happens once a year between July and October and attracts riders and spectators from all over the world.
Day 3 – Lake Turkana
After breakfast, we start the long journey driving via Baragoi and South Horr to arrive at our semi – permanent beach campsite where we have our traditional Turkana Huts (if still available; if not we pitch tent at an alternative campsite) which make it a perfect place to relax, protected from the scorching sun and heat characteristic of the climate of this remote area.
Lake Turkana is the largest desert lake in the world and extends for 288 kilometres up to the Ethiopian / Kenyan border surrounded by volcanic rock and desert.
Day 4 – Kalacha
After an early breakfast we cross the Chalbi desert (if dry) via North horr towards Kalacha. If it has rained, we shall use another route avoiding the desert. Kalacha is a small settlement on the edge of the Chalbi Desert inhabited by the Gabbra people (pastoralists particularly attached to their camels).
Enjoy an evening sunset, swim at the campsite or watch a Gabbra performance in the evening (optional cost) (windy night).
Day 5 – Marsabit
Break up camp in the early morning as we head south towards Marsabit (meaning place of cold); an astonishingly cool, green and hilly oasis rising high above the dry heat of the surrounding desert lands. En route we stop to enjoy views of the massive Gof Redo crater and desert landscape. The area is home to the local Rendille and Samburu people abundant in their bright red outfits, beads and earrings. This will be a cold night.
After setting up camp, we visit the lodge inside the National park and as long as the roads are dry we drive up to Lake Paradise and Little Lake. Here, an indigenous forest and a desert come together to create the most compelling landscape on earth. Elephants and greater kudu abound. The dense forest in the park is also home to a variety of birds.
Day 6 – Samburu
Depart in the early morning along the trans-african highway towards Samburu. Lunch en route and arrive Samburu National reserve in time for an afternoon game drive.
Accommodation is in our semi-permanent campsite, beautifully set under a canopy of trees or we may pitch tents on the edge of UwasoNyiro River (meaning Brown in Samburu) if they are occupied. Cold showers are available which are amazingly refreshing in the hot, dusty climate.
Day 7 – Samburu
The day is spent game viewing in the park. You may also opt to visit the lodge for a swim and cold drink or a nearby Samburu village (payable direct).
Samburu is part of a lava plain that includes a diverse landscape of thorn scrub, red dirt, dried river beds, broken volcanic rock, steep hills, and rocky outcroppings. The region is home to the uncommon Grevy’s zebra, gerenuk antelope, Somali ostriches, lions and Oryx. Elephant, crocodile and numerous bird make excellent sighting.
Day 8 – Nairobi via Nanyuki
Depart camp after breakfast viewing game as we drive back to Nairobi via Mt. Kenya region. Arrive back in the late afternoon or just in time for your departure flight.
Transfer to Jomo Kenyatta Int. Airport
Depart From Jomo Kenyatta Int. Airport (JKIA)
HIGHLIGHTS
- Views of Mt Kenya on clear days from its foothills
- Samburu game reserve – home to the Gerenuk and Grevys zebra endemic to the North
- Marsabit National park – cool, mountainous with the amazing (but windy) Gof Redo crater
- The Kaisut and Chalbi deserts – enjoy the dust devils and mirages!
- Lake Turkana – amazing view of the Jade sea promising fantastic sunsets and dramatic scenery
- The Samburu, Gabbra, Borana, elmolo, turkana and pokot tribes
- Thompson falls, Nyahururu – get your picture taken against the background of the rainbow-falls
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Excluded
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TERMS AND CONDITIONS
- Rates quoted are per person sharing.
- Single supplements may apply
- Please treat all pricing as a guide only.
- Request a quote or speak to one of our safari experts for the best, most current rates available.
- All rates are subject to change prior to booking with reference to increases in VAT, government taxes, park fees and fuel prices. Availability and may change without notice.
CANCELLATION
Between Confirmation and 60 days prior to arrival
The booking can be cancelled without penalty.
Between 60 days and 30 days prior to arrival
100% refund of monies paid or credit note issued against the agent name to be utilized within 12 months from the arrival date. We will process all refund requests as quickly as possible. Airline fees to be charged in accordance the airline terms at the time of cancellation.
Between 30 days and arrival date
100% of the total booking value will be refunded as a credit note against the agent name to be utilized within 12 months from the arrival date.
Cancellation during travel or stay
100% of total booking value will be forfeited