Safariconnect: Why Nairobi National Park is great for an African Safari

I love going on safari. I have been to National Parks on safari in Uganda and East Africa and I never miss an opportunity to go on a tour when I can.

So it was with this in mind that I found myself on a bus to Nairobi National Park. I had some free time and as I was walking through the busy city of Nairobi I spotted a bus with the words Nairobi National Park written in bold on it. This bus was run by the Kenya Wildlife Service. A few inquiries later I was on board the bus. Was I glad that I had carried my camera!

A few more passengers later and we were on our through the busy traffic heading for the park. Unlike many wildlife safaris I have done which require hours of driving, it took us less than half an hour to get to the park entrance. Having paid the entrance fee and picked up a few more passengers, we started our game drive.

The beauty of Nairobi National Park is that on any game drive, there is plenty of wildlife to see from birdlife to big game. Of course on an African safari it is always thrilling to see the big cats. However I did not think I had the chance on this safari so I was content to see what I could see.

And I was not disappointed. Seeing Eland grazing against the backdrop of the city reminded me that this was the only national park in the world which is found in a capital city.
As we drove on I spotted and photographed a Secretary bird moving in the long grass. Gazelles, wildebeest and a large herd of buffalo grazed peacefully under the afternoon african sun. However the best was soon to come.

As we drove by a tree our guide spotted something and stopped the bus. It was a lioness. Seeing a lion was good enough but seeing it lying in a tree? Boy oh boy was I excited. And my camera when click, click, click. The lioness just lay still as if allowing us to photograph it to our hearts content.

We spent about ten minutes by the tree until it was time to move on and give others a chance to see the lion at close range.

As we drove back to town I was happy that I had climbed on to that bus and spent a few hours on an African safari in Nairobi National Park.