Samburu National Reserve

Samburu lies north of the equator in hot, semi-arid country where the landscape changes completely from the green highlands: doum palms along the river, rocky kopjes, red earth and thorny scrub running out to blue hills. The Ewaso Ng'iro River is the reason anything survives here, and it draws everything to its banks. What makes Samburu genuinely distinct is that it holds a set of dry-adapted species found almost nowhere else on a standard Kenyan itinerary — the so-called Samburu Special Five: Grevy's zebra with its narrow stripes and rounded ears, reticulated giraffe with sharply defined markings, the long-necked gerenuk that browses standing on its hind legs, the beisa oryx, and the blue-legged Somali ostrich. The Samburu people themselves, pastoralists closely related to the Maasai, give the reserve its name.

Why visit Samburu

• The Samburu Special Five — Grevy's zebra, reticulated giraffe, gerenuk, beisa oryx and Somali ostrich — none of which occur in the southern parks.
• Landscape that looks nothing like the Mara, with doum palms, red rock and desert light.
• Very good leopard density along the riverine forest, and large elephant herds using the river.
• Far fewer visitors than the southern circuit, so sightings are usually uncrowded.

Wildlife

Beyond the Special Five, elephant, buffalo, lion, leopard and cheetah are all present. The riverine forest is productive for leopard, and Samburu has a strong reputation for sightings. Crocodile hold the Ewaso Ng'iro. Birdlife is excellent and includes many dry-country species absent further south, such as the vulturine guineafowl.

• Grevy's zebra, the largest and most endangered wild zebra
• Reticulated giraffe with sharply defined chestnut markings
• Gerenuk browsing upright on their hind legs
• Beisa oryx and blue-legged Somali ostrich
• Leopard in the doum palm forest along the river

Best time to visit

June to October and December to March are driest and best, when animals concentrate on the river. Samburu is hot year-round. The reserve can flood during heavy rains, and tracks along the river occasionally become impassable.

June–October and December–March.

Things to do

Game drives

River circuits for leopard and elephant, and the dry scrub for the Special Five.

Samburu cultural visits

Arranged with local communities as a separately paid optional activity.

Birdwatching

A strong dry-country list, including vulturine guineafowl and many northern specials.

How long to stay

Two nights is the working minimum given how far north it is. Three nights rewards the drive and gives a proper chance at leopard and the full set of Special Five.

What it combines with

Samburu pairs naturally with Ol Pejeta to the south, and longer northern circuits continue to Lake Nakuru and the Maasai Mara. The contrast between Samburu's dry north and the Mara's grassland is one of the strongest pairings in Kenya.