Travel Guide Samburu, Buffalo Springs & Shaba National Reserves

Samburu (named after the main ethnic group of the region) and Buffalo Springs (named after a mineral spring) are in fact the same territory managed by separate administrations. They cover 239 km² on both sides of the Ewaso Ngiro River, which can only be crossed at two points, one to the east outside the reserve (before Archer Post), the other to the west near the samburu and serena lodges. The southern and northern banks of the river, where a few large crocodiles bask, are covered with an exuberant forest of acacia and pretty doum palms. As soon as one moves away from Ewaso Ngiro, one finds oneself in the middle of a magnificent hilly landscape, dominated to the north of Samburu by impressive mountains. The vegetation is composed of a dry and sparse bush (except at the height of the rainy season) which facilitates the observation of animals. The animals are all there, without exception. You will see Grevy's zebras (recognizable by their spiky manes and fine stripes), reticulated giraffes and beautiful beisa oryx. Buffalo Springs is slightly flatter and drier than Samburu, but both reserves are equally beautiful.Still along the Ewaso Ngiro, but on the other side of the Isiolo-Marsabit road, is the beautiful and little-visited Shaba Game Reserve, named after Mount Shaba (1,525 m), an extinct volcano that dominates the surrounding dry savannah. Charmed by this fabulous site, Joy Adamson moved here in the late 1970s to study the reintroduction of leopards into their natural environment. The landscape is composed of vast arid expanses and many volcanic hills, but Shaba is blessed with several springs that give rise to lush swampy areas. These swamps attract wildlife similar to that of Samburu and almost as numerous. It is however more difficult to flush them out. The Bodech Mountains to the north and Shaba (after which the reserve is named) to the south provide a spectacular backdrop. This reserve is well worth a visit for its scenery and because it is much less crowded than Samburu.