Laikipia Wilderness: Our full report
Laikipia Wilderness opened in 2012 on the Ol Doinyo Lemboro Ranch about 2 hours drive north of Nanyuki.
The camp has six spacious tents and is supported by a small team of excellent staff. It specialises in game walks as much as game drives.Built, owned and managed by a highly experienced Zimbabwean safari camp couple, Steve and Annabelle Carey, Laikipia Wilderness has been a big hit with repeat visitors to this rewarding and beautiful part of Kenya. The camp's central areas consist of a large lounge/dining tent (the “mess") with cane furniture and a small library of reading material, leading out to a raised, deck area where breakfast and lunch are usually eaten, with the guests and owner-managers eating together.
The six tents are a good size, simply furnished with comfortable beds, bedside tables and lamps, storage shelves, and verandas with cane chairs looking out across the bush. Four of them are designed for families, with twin beds in a clever additional wing (which can be zipped off so the tents can also be used as a conventional double). The large bathrooms are open air, with plumbed-in, super-hot, high pressure showers heated by kuni boilers (wood fire boilers) behind each tent.
Behind the very simple kitchen and back-of-house area, a nearby rocky bluff looks north across the Ewaso Narok river (which flows north to join the Ewaso Nyiro a few miles downstream), and on this beautiful vantage point you'll often have sundowners or dinners around the fire.
There's a deliberately basic infrastructure at Laikipia Wilderness that keeps it all very real, and very “bush". There's been virtually no landscaping of the camp area, so the narrow footpaths between the mess and the guest tents lead through natural scrub.
If you're staying for more than a couple of nights (as nearly every guest does), fly-camping is usually offered, a few miles from camp, with small tents and bedrolls around the campfire. You will always be accompanied by a trained firearms holder with a .375 rifle.
Animal “hosts" at camp include three friendly dogs. The dogs sometimes accompany game drives and walks and seem to have a calming effect on wild dog packs. The whole camp has a very relaxed feel, as if you were staying with friends at their makeshift rural homestead.
In some camps, the comforts and atmosphere of the camp itself vie for attention with the out-of-camp activities on offer. That's not the case at Laikipia Wilderness. While the tents, lounge, mess and deck are perfectly fine (and the kitchen's output delicious), the most memorable aspects of a stay here are the game drives (in two, fully open Toyota Land Cruisers with padded bench seats), game walks and really great guiding from a true bushman, owner Steve Carey accompanied by Maasai scout and spotter Steven.
Steve's driving style means you make rapid progress through the bush – the typically ultra-cautious driver/guide's manner behind the wheel might be a bit slow in the fast-moving world of wild dog packs. With no other camps or visitors across miles of rocky bush, you can go wherever Steve thinks he can drive – and then, when the vehicle can go no further, you get out and walk on, behind Steve's tall, gun-toting figure. This makes for an unusually robust approach to game viewing: you need to be prepared with suitable footwear for getting out of the vehicle at a moment's notice when Steve spots something interesting (and possibly getting back in again just as quickly). It's an approach to safaris that is a far cry from the slow and gentle style that is particularly common in small camps in the Mara. You need to be prepared to hang on while driving, and to acquire the odd bruise and knock along the way.
The rewards of this rather rough and ready style include good opportunities to see the area's wild dogs. While the pack that sometimes dens at Ol Doinyo Lemboro Ranch can range far and wide over hundreds of square kilometres, it includes collared individuals and Steve always carries his tracking equipment, so there's a reasonable likelihood of encounters, if sometimes fleeting ones. During the denning season, usually September or October, the den areas are deliberately not approached too closely, but once the pups leave the den, sometimes to a new den location, usually from the end of the year, approaching the pups becomes easier. Throughout the year, the packs hunt daily and are fluidly mobile, so you can come across the adults almost anywhere and you're almost certain to have the whole experience to yourself. The neighbouring ranches of Mpala and Chololo operate a half-day-visit system (each ranch charges US$50 per person) that allows keen travellers to widen their wildlife searches while staying at Laikipia Wilderness. This can be particularly useful during the dogs' denning season.
Unfortunately the local wild dog population was seriously reduced following a bad case of canine distemper which has wiped out one of the two main packs in this area. However, the other pack has reportedly stabilized and numbers are slowly increasing. Although we saw no sign of the dogs on our last stay, we understand the situation is rapidly improving.
During our last visit in 2019 we saw a lion (and also tracked it on foot for a short distance), a hyena, elephants and numerous giraffe. There are dik-dik everywhere – the dogs' favourite prey – and the area certainly feels richly endowed with wildlife.
Keen birders will be delighted with the area, which has hundreds of northern species as well as those ranging across Kenya, and Palearctic migrants. Local specialities include rosy-patched bush-shrikes, vulturine guinea-fowls and impressive range of raptors, including black eagles, attracted by the area's rocky outcrops. Steve knows all the birds, and their calls (and does a fair few passable imitations himself).
Our view
Knowing the highly experienced Zimbabwean owner-managers Steve and Annabelle Carey already, we guessed this camp would be a great experience, and we were right. Our last stay in 2019 confirmed its appeal as coming down very much to Steve's uncanny and very hands-on bush instincts. Furthermore, the wild dogs have made a great comeback, denning in the district in 2019. If you want to feel the Laikipia wind in your hair as you bounce along a rutted track searching for wildlife, this is the place for you.
Kenya expert
Geographics
- Location
- Laikipia, Kenya
- Ideal length of stay
- We suggest four nights to experience all that this area has to offer.
- Directions
- It is a two hour drive from Nanyuki airport which can be accessed by light aircraft from Nairobi Wilson Airport.
- Accessible by
- Fly-and-Transfer
Food & drink
- Usual board basis
- Full Board & Activities
- Food quality
- We have always thought the quality of meals at Laikipa Wilderness is very good, and particularly so considering the very basic infrastructure at the camp, and again on our most recent visit in February 2019 we were not disappointed!
The day starts with a hot drink in your room, or at the mess along a snack breakfast before the morning activity, with a bigger breakfast on return, or out in the bush. A good range of fruit, cereals, eggs, bacon, sausage and beans is always available, together with homemade bread and toast and preserves.
Lunch is usually a wonderful buffet selection of colourful salads and freshly baked bread, along with quiche, pizza or a similar light food.
Dinner is either served out in the bush or back at camp. On one stay we had a barbecue on the sandy banks of the river. When we got there the team had already set up dinner with a blazing log fire and a table laden with drinks and food. On the fire they cooked a large fillet steak, which was served with potatoes filled with cheese and mixed vegetables roasted on the fire. This was followed with a very tasty pineapple crumble.
Special interests
- Family holidays
- This camp has an adventurous, outdoors feel. The owners’ children have grown up with the camp and this shows in their family-friendly approach and the immersive bush experiences offered. Several spacious family tents accommodate 4 to 6 people.
- See ideas for Family holidays
- Solo Travel
- Laikipia Wilderness is one of the few camps in Laikipia not to charge a single person supplement all year round and its focus on wildlife and immersion in the bush makes it a great choice for a safari enthusiast travelling on their own.
- See ideas for Solo Travel
- Walking safaris
- This camp specialises in game walks, encouraging exploration of Laikipia’s bush. The guiding is energetic and enthusiastic, and guests regularly find themselves leaving their vehicle to follow sightings far from the beaten track.
- See ideas for Walking safaris
- Wildlife safaris
- Laikipia Wilderness and its owner-manager Steve Carey are closely associated with wild dog tracking, using radio-tracking equipment. At least two, and sometimes three dog packs den in this area and sightings of cubs and hunts are not uncommon.
- See ideas for Wildlife safaris
- Walking
- Owned and run by a true bushman with exhilaratingly hands-on instincts, Laikipia Wilderness specialises in phenomenal guided walks. Game drives also often feature walking stops, when you follow tracks on foot where the vehicle cannot reach.
- See ideas for Walking
Children
- Attitude towards children
- Children are always welcome and the owner-managers’ young children are on site at weekends and during school holidays. However, this is a very relaxed, unfenced camp and children’s safety is definitely the responsibilty of their parents.
- Property’s age restrictions
- None, but the camp may be selective, so it may not be possible to host a very young family in high season, especially if there are no other children at camp at the same time.
- Special activities & services
- Fishing, River rope swing, river rafting in the fairly shallow river (for older children, no life jackets provided), kayaking, cave-exploring and rock-scrambling. Guide Joseph does tracking walks for fives and up, with bow and arrow skills-training.
- Equipment
- No special equipment is available, but the owners are resourceful and can always make a plan.
- Generally recommended for children
- Keen outdoors- and animal-loving children will adore this camp and its robust style, but tiny ones will need careful supervision at all times.
- Notes
- Experienced, but not qualified, ayahs and child minders are available from housekeeping staff.
Our travellers’ wildlife sightings from Laikipia Wilderness
Since mid-2018, many of our travellers who stayed at Laikipia Wilderness have kindly recorded their wildlife sightings and shared them with us. The results are below. Click an animal to see more, and here to see more on our methodology.
100% success
100% success
100% success
100% success
86% success
71% success
67% success
60% success
50% success
50% success
20% success
0% success
0% success
0% success
Communications
- Power supply notes
- There is a backup generator but it is rarely needed. Charging is done in the mess tent. No hair driers can be used. Hot water is provided by wood-fired boilers behind each tent.
- Communications
- There is WiFi hut, just next to the main area. Safaricom cellphone network is also available, but only in the kitchen where there is an aerial.
- TV & radio
- None available. Only if guests want to watch a major Rugby game would Steve Carey take them to Sosian Lodge (where he and his wife used to be managers) to watch on his old TV there.
- Water supply
- Other
- Water supply notes
- River water is pumped up for the main guests’ bathroom supplies and good hot water is available more or less 24/7, heated by wood-fired kuni boilers at the back of each tent. Drinking water is brought in from Nanyuki’s mains supply and then treated in camp and supplied to guests in flasks. Bottled water is used on walks and drives.
Health & safety
- Malarial protection recommended
- Yes
- Medical care
- Steve and Annabelle have both had first aid training from Medex (a UK, ex-military training course).
- Dangerous animals
- High Risk
- Security measures
- There’s one camp askari on duty at night. There is also a 15-person ranch security team who stay aware of who is on the ranch and who is driving along the road that bisects it.
- Fire safety
- There are fire extinguishers in the kitchen. The staff have not yet had any fire training, but this is planned.
Activities
4WD Safari
Birdwatching
Guided walking safari
Kayaking
Night drive
Extras
- Disabled access
- On Request
- Laundry facilities
- Laundry is included. It's hand-washed and line-dried. Ladies underwear can be included, but soap is also provided in your bathroom.
- Money
- There are no tent safes, but valuables can be given to the managers for safekeeping in their safe. No foreign exchange can be done.
- Accepted payment on location
- Payments for extras can only be made in cash – Kenya Shillings, US dollars, Euros and Pounds are all accepted.
Other lodges in Laikipia
Alternative places to stay in this same area.
Kicheche Laikipia
Kicheche Laikipia is the most luxurious tented camp of the handful of places to stay in the Ol Pejeta Conservancy in central Laikipia.
El Karama Eco-Lodge
El Karama is a comfortably rustic, very personal, riverside eco-lodge on a game-rich private ranch in Laikipia, an hour’s drive north of Nanyuki airport.
Sosian
Sosian Lode is a distinctive, estancia-style ranch house on a former cattle ranch, with great opportunities for riding, relaxing and seeing wild dogs and other savannah wildlife.
Lewa Wilderness
Lewa Wilderness is a comfortable, fenced safari lodge with nine cottages, great views and a huge range of activities.
Ol Pejeta Bush Camp
Ol Pejeta Bush Camp is a simple camp, with comfortable tents, delivering an authentic wilderness experience backed up by good food and guiding.
Lewa Safari Camp
Lewa Safari Camp is a comfortable and homely tented lodge, located in the Lewa Conservancy and offering a relatively exclusive safari away from mass tourism.
Borana
Borana is a comfortable and striking lodge on the Borana Conservancy in eastern Laikipia, offering pleasant accommodation with good food and service and a very wide range of activities.
Il Ngwesi Eco-Lodge
The community-owned Il Ngwesi Eco-Lodge sits atop a small hill in the remote Il Ngwesi Group Ranch, a two-hour drive north of Lewa Conservancy in north-eastern Laikipia.
Porini Rhino Camp
Porini Rhino Camp is a small, simple, well established tented camp, with a keen focus on sustainable and low-impact tourism.
Tassia Lodge
Tassia offers a unique wilderness experience in a remote location: come here for cultural interaction, stunning views and something a bit different.
Lewa House
Lewa House is a boutique safari lodge on a farm on the Lewa Conservancy, north of Mount Kenya
Solio Lodge
Solio Lodge is an exclusive and luxurious bush lodge set in the private Solio Game Ranch in southern Laikipia.
Sirikoi
Sirikoi is a small, very high-quality safari camp with excellent service and food and a wide selection of activities.
Karisia Walking Safaris
Karisia Walking Safaris operates camel assisted, multi-day walking safaris from its main camp, Tumaren, set in a remote part of Laikipia.
Sweetwaters Serena
Sweetwaters Serena is a large, older tented camp – the largest camp in the Laikipia region – in the eastern part of the Ol Pejeta Conservancy.
Kifaru House
Kifaru House is a small, stylish safari lodge in the Lewa Conservancy, with beautiful views across the landscape.
Loisaba Tented Camp
Loisaba Tented Camp is a luxury safari base of tented rooms, ranged along a ridge in the Loisaba Conservancy, facing Mount Kenya. The camp was completely rebuilt in 2016.
Sandai
Sandai is a pretty, owner-run homestay, set between the Aberdare Range and Mount Kenya, offering a range of activities at extra cost.
Loisaba Star Beds
Loisaba Starbeds is a simple camp of 4 rooms with pull-out, open-air 'star beds', located near a dam in the Loisaba Conservancy, in northwestern Laikipia.
Sabuk Lodge
Sabuk Lodge is a charismatic and remote lodge in western Laikipia on the high, rocky banks of the Ewaso Nyiro River.
Sanctuary at Ol Lentille
The Sanctuary at Ol Lentille is an unusual safari lodge in northern Laikipia, consisting of three exclusive villas, and offering a huge range of activities.
Thomsons Falls Lodge
Thomsons Falls Lodge is a simple hotel dating back to the colonial era above the falls of the same name, just outside the western Laikipia town of Nyahururu.
