Matthews Mountain Range, Northern Frontier District of Kenya
A remote, exclusive and delightfully presented luxury camp, Sarara Camp is located in the remote Matthews Mountain Range, a rarely visited area of the so-called ‘Northern Frontier District', of Kenya. Overlooking its own waterhole, which acts as a draw to a wide range of local wildlife, the camp offers just six luxury tents and a central dining area and bar. The local wildlife includes; elephants, lions, leopards, greater kudus, waterbucks, giant forest hogs, buffalos and wild dogs. There are estimated to be 200 species of birds.
Location
The Mathews Range lies between Maralal and Isiolo in the Northern Frontier District of Kenya.
Background
The Mathews Range , a forest reserve, is impressively wild hill country with Mathew Peak rising to 2375 m. Lower down, the mountains are heavily cloaked in forest and thick bush; unusual vegetation includes ‘living fossil' cycad plants, giant cedars and podocarpus.
The Chalbi Dessert lies in the extreme north-east of Kenya. A wild and seldom district, once known as the Northern Frontier, it centres on Isiolo, the northeast's most important town and the hub for travel to Marsabit and Moyale. Southernmost of the Northern Frontier towns, Isiolo is on the border between two different worlds, the fertile highlands and the desert. The area reflects a strong Somali influence since it was here that many veteran Somali soldiers from WW1 were settled. Recruited in Aden and Kismayu, they gave up their nomadic lifestyle to become livestock and retail traders.
The north of Kenya (over half of the country's total area) is a desert - exclusively arid land, burned out for more than ten months of the year. Once known as the Northern Frontier District (NFD) is remains one of the most exciting and adventurous parts of Africa: a vast tract of territory, crisscrossed by ancient migration routes and still tramped by the nomadic Samburu, Boran, Rendille, Gabbra, Turkana and Somali herders.
The target for most travellers is the wonder jade se of Lake Turkana . Lake Turkana stretches south for 250km from the Ethiopian border, down through Kenya's arid lands, bisecting the rocky deserts. It is hemmed in by sandy wastes and black and brown volcanic ranges. The lake was discovered for the rest of the world only in 1888 by the Austrians Teleki and von Hohnel, who named it Rudolf after their archduke and patron. Later it became eulogized as the Jade Sea in John Hillaby's book about his camel trek.
The name Turkana only came into being during the wholesale Kenyanization of place names in the 1970s. By then it had also been dubbed the Cradle of Mankind, due to the existence of Koobi Fora a major paleontological site. Lake Turkana is the biggest permanent desert lake in the world with a shoreline longer than the whole of Kenya's sea cost. A mammoth inland sea fed by the headwaters of the Nile, it is famous for the presence of enormous Nile perch.
Accommodation
The camp offers just six ultra luxurious tents, each positioned to maximise the stunning views of the Mathews Range and the water hole. Spacious and high ceilinged, the tents offer both electricity and hot and cold running water. They also offer stunning outdoor bathrooms as well as an en-suite WC and hand basin. Each tent has its own spacious veranda where morning tea is served.
Dining
The camp has a dedicated dining area where breakfast is traditionally served, while lunch and dinner are often served in the grounds, in the bush or overlooking the water hole, depending on the guests' preference.
What to do and see
Available Activities:
• Escorted and guided game walks
• Game stalking
• Natural swimming pool
• Bird watching
• Bush picnics
• Visit to local Samburu families
Sarara Camp - Matthews Mountain Range | Kenya Safari Tented Camps
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