Samburu National Reserve Attractions
Samburu National Reserve became a wildlife protected area in 1948 within the larger Marsabit National Reserve. Later, the Senior ranger of the National Reserve, Rodney Elliott, suggested to the Samburu District that the area North of the Ewaso Ngiro River should have become a reserve on its own.
In 1962, the reserve was officially established and in 1963, the then Minister of Local Governments decided that the National Reserve was to be administered by the African District Council of Samburu. The Reserve is now a community-based wilderness that is preserved and operated by the resident Samburu Communities under a centralized local council.
Samburu National Reserve, along with the Meru National Park, is one of the two areas where conservationists George and Joy Adamson raised the famous lioness Elsa and then released her into the wild.
Wildlife in Samburu National Reserve
Samburu National Reserve has a rich and diverse collection of wildlife, such as the Samburu Special Five—Grevy’s Zebra, Somali Ostrich, Reticulated Giraffe, Gerenuk and Beisa Oryx. The Samburu Special Five are mostly only spotted in Samburu and Northern Kenya and are not usually found in other reserves and parks in Kenya, such as Amboseli National Park and Masai Mara National Reserve, among others.
Other wildlife spotted in Samburu National Reserve include elephants, Grant gazelles, Impalas, Waterbucks, dik-diks, hippos, olive baboons, warthogs, lions, leopards, cheetahs, cape buffaloes, Hyenas, Elands, Jackals, klipspringers, Mongooses, wild dogs and bats, among others.
Birdlife in Samburu National Reserve
Samburu National Reserve is home to abundant birdlife, with over 450 species recorded. Samburu birds include Acacia tit, African palm swift, and Ashy cisticola. Bare-eyed thrush, Black-bellied sunbird, Black-capped social weaver, Brown-tailed rock chat, Chestnut weaver, Chestnut-headed sparrow lark, Donaldson Smith’s sparrow-weaver, Fischer’s starling, Golden pipit, Golden-breasted starling, Greater kestrel, Grey wren-warbler, Hunter’s sunbird, Lanner falcon, Mariqua sunbird, Northern brownbul, Palm-nut vulture, Pink-breasted lark, Pygmy batis, Red-bellied parrot, Red-necked falcon, Red-winged lark, Reichenow’s seedeater, Rosy-patched bush-shrike, Secretary bird, Singing bush lark, Somali bee-eater, Somali ostrich, Spotted palm-thrush, Von der Decken’s hornbill, Vulturine guineafowl, White-headed mousebird and Yellow-vented eremomela, among others.
When to visit Samburu National Park
The Best time to visit Samburu National Reserve for a Kenya safari is during the dry seasons from June to September/early October and December to March. In the dry season animals tend to congregate along the Ewaso River to drink and eat, making them easier to spot.
It is advisable to avoid visiting the reserve during the rainy season that is November, April and May, as the high vegetation cover makes spotting animals very challenging.
If you are a bird lover, the wet season is perfect to enjoy bird watching, as many migratory birds arrive in the reserve and the country as well.
Where to stay in Samburu National Reserve
Samburu National Reserve has a variety of accommodation facilities ranging from luxury camps to mid-range camps and budget camps. These accommodations include
- Saruni Samburu
- Saasab Camp
- Larsens Tented Camp
- Samburu Intrepids Camp
- Elephant Bedroom Camp
- Elephant Watch Camp
- Ashnil Samburu Camp
- Samburu Simba Lodge
- Sentrim Samburu Camp
- Samburu Game Lodge
- Samburu Sopa Lodge
Samburu Sopa Lodge - Sarova Shaba Game Lodge
How to Get to Samburu National Reserve
Samburu National Reserve is accessed by road and air.
By Road – from Nairobi, it is a distance of about 310 kilometers to 325 kilometers, depending on the gate or entry point of Samburu you use; typically, it is a drive of 6 hours to Archer’s Gate, the main entry to Samburu Game Reserve.
By Air—Samburu National Reserve is served by several airstrips, which are Kalama Airstrip, Buffalo Springs Airstrip and Samburu Oryx Airstrip. From Wilson Airport, it is a flight of approximately 1.5 hours to Samburu National Reserve. These flights are operated by two airlines that is AirKenya and SafariLink.
