DAY 5: MERU
Meru National Park is wild and beautiful. Spanning the equator and bisected by 13 rivers and numerous mountain-fed streams, it is an especially beautiful area of Kenya. It has diverse scenery from woodlands at 3,000 feet on the slopes of Nyambeni Mountain Range, northeast of Mount Kenya, to wide open plains with wandering riverbanks dotted with doum palms.
Game to view includes: lion, elephant, cheetah, leopard and some of the rarer antelopes; Lesser Kudu, duiker and Dik Dik, one of Africa's smallest antelopes. Large prides of lion can be seen and some of Kenya's largest herds of buffalo. The rivers abound with hippo and crocodile, fishing for barbus and catfish is permitted at camp sites and along the Tana River. In the mid 1980's, the Park suffered from poaching, however Kenya Wildlife Service armed wildlife security patrols have driven out the poachers and the elephant.
The Park is most famous as the setting for Joy Adamson's book "Born Free" -- the story of the Adamson's life and research amongst lion and cheetah. "Elsa" the lioness was the most well-known and her grave is marked here. One lodge and two tented camps are planned inside the Park. There are eight special campsites which must be pre-booked, one public campsite, Kenya Wildlife Service self-help banda and Leopard Rock bandas (total 120 beds).