A Rainy Walk in the Woods

On Tuesday this week I was able to join the bird-watching crew with several other volunteers on an expedition through the Arabuko-Sokoke National Forest Reserve in search of possible nesting sites for the rare, endemic Clark’s Weaver. The first nest was found just this past year, I believe, after scientists had searched for nearly 20 years. More recently, the first known roosting site was found just a week or two ago, right on the edge of the forest. It’s a hot time for Clark’s Weavers, apparently.

After cancelling the first scheduled hike due to rain, and then losing power to flooding at the power station (the entire North Coast area of Kenya was out of power for almost 36 hours), we were told that this hike would take place rain or shine. So at 7:30am I filled up on chai and mandaazi (sort of unsweet donuts? More like little fried dough bits. Some are better than others.) and packed my backpack with a raincoat and waterbottle. Everything was looking clear and promising…

There were too many of us to fit into the old landcruiser, so we had to take the big old pick-up truck (affectionately known as “kiboko” or hippo). We piled into the bed and just as we were about to pull out, it started drizzling. Someone ran and got us an old canvas tarp for rainproofing, so as the rain got harder, we huddled underneath it like a load of refugees. I felt like we were about to be smuggled across the border!

Driving to the forest (there are people under that tarp)

See? 

We stopped at a gas station on the way and when we all emerged, it was obvious from the looks on peoples faces that the last thing they were expecting was for a group of wet wazungu (white people) to pop out from under a tarp in the back of a pick up truck. A similar thing happened when we pulled up to the gate at the forest. There the ranger watched us materialize and then exclaimed, “I thought you were luggage!”

Even with a tarp covering, wearing raincoats, we somehow managed to get soaked through before we ever got out of the car.

We were entering a part of the forest that tourists never came to, so it was very overgrown and not groomed at all. We had to clear a couple of small branches and trees from the road, but when we came to two impassable blockages in a row, we all voted for leaving the car and walking rather than try our luck with a panga (machete).

Hauling trees off of the road...in the rain. 

Walking through the woods in a downpour is just a ridiculous experience. I couldn’t help but laugh a couple of times at the ridiculousness of it. But the rain only kept up for the first hour or so of the hike. Then as the birds started to sing and the sun came out, so did the butterflies and it was absolutely gorgeous.

This forest was unlike anything I have ever seen before. With the rainy season, mosses and a huge variety of mushrooms had popped out of what was dry sand only weeks before. But at the same time we passed aloe-like succulents and spiky palm shrubs and bromeliads. All this while fighting our way through mangrove trees and random thorny vines, walking on white sandy soil.

an Alice in Wonderland worthy mushroom. I kept expecting a hookah-smoking caterpillar to crawl out.

Not flowers - mushrooms!! crazy, right?

Several times we came across fresh tracks of elephants and buffalo. We even found some nice fresh piles of elephant poo, which the dung beetles were making good use of. Sadly, no large herbivores came crashing into view. Although a couple of elephant shrews did flee from us in the undergrowth a few times.. We were also screamed at by a group of baboons, but they were pretty far away.

A dung beetle doing it's thing...with elephant dung. 

a cool toad that Colin described as a "telephone frog" based on its call. 

Do you see the horrifyingly large Golden Orb Web Spider??

After over 18 kilometers and 5 hours, we made it back to the car – starving, damp, and bedraggled. When I peeled off my wet, muddy shoes and socks, my feet looked like zombies. It was weird. I took a picture, but it might be a bit much to showcase my rotting forest feet on my blog…

Part of the group, post-hike, in our truck bed. We're definitely ready to get back for lunch!

After a 3:45 lunch and a change of clothes, I collapsed in bed and had to force myself to get up after an hour. For all of the exhaustion (and the fact that my legs will be sore for a while since they’re not getting any break this week, with a 30 minute walk to and from my tidepool sites), it was a really nice hike and I really enjoyed getting to see a new part of the area and an entirely new ecosystem.

I can honestly say I have never experienced anything like that before in my life. 

A picture of our truck, laden with volunteers, in front of a bank on our way back. We had too much fun with the mirrored windows.