Lewa Wilderness

AREA & ACTIVITIES

Habitat & Wildlife
Lewa Wilderness is located within the Lewa-Borana Conservancies, a 93,000-acre landscape including Lewa Wildlife Conservancy and neighbouring Borana Conservancy, which together create an important wildlife corridor between Mount Kenya and the northern wilderness.

Lewa Wilderness is on the Lewa Wildlife Conservancy which comprises around 48,000 acres of private land (predominantly owned by the Craig family who have been in the area since 1924), and 14,000 acres of national forest. It lies on the transitional zone between the Mount Kenya highlands and the semi-arid savannah to the north at an altitude of between 4,500 and 6,000ft above sea level. Although most of the conservancy is set aside for wildlife, some horticulture, stud cattle and dairy farming practises are still carried out, and furniture making (from local acacia woods) and rug weaving businesses create further employment for the local people. There is a Conservation Centre which is worthwhile visiting.

The habitat is extremely diverse with open grassland interspersed with acacia forests, riverine woodland, rocky gorges and ravines, montane forest and the Lewa swampland. Mount Kenya provides a scenic backdrop to the south.

The history of the Lewa-Borana Conservancies starts at Lewa at the height of the rhino and elephant poaching in the mid-1980s when Anna Mertz asked the Craig family to set aside an area for use as a rhino sanctuary. In 2013 a founding population of 21 black rhinos was introduced to the neighbouring Borana Conservancy. Once they were established, the fence between Borana and Lewa was dropped, forming one landscape which today hosts a thriving population of over 240 rhino (both black and white), making this one of East Africa’s largest continuous rhino habitats. In 2013 Lewa also gained UNESCO World Heritage Site status and is one of only 40 wildlife areas worldwide on the IUCN Green List for well managed conservancies with good governance. While Lewa and Borana remain independent entities, and activities for guests will be on the conservancy where their lodge is located, conservation and community efforts are approached jointly and they are increasingly referred to as the ‘Lewa-Borana Landscape’.

In addition to healthy populations of both black and white rhino, the Lewa-Borana Conservancies are home to around 90% of the world’s population of the rare Grevy’s zebra whilst other animals to be seen include elephant, reticulated giraffe, eland, lion, leopard, cheetah, the Burchell’s zebra, hartebeest, greater kudu, Grant’s gazelle, impala, bushbuck, dik dik, oryx and within the swamp area, the sitatunga. You might also be lucky enough to see the rarer gerenuk. After dark lookout for nocturnally active species such as aardvark, caracal, bat-eared fox, honey badger, porcupine, galago, and white-tailed mongoose. The birdlife is superb with over 440 species recorded – from the ridges, it’s possible to photograph vultures and eagles soaring within a few feet.

Activities
The main activity from Lewa Wilderness is game drives (by day and night) across the abundant Lewa Conservancy. Walking safaris are also possible, often accompanied by camels or you can have a go at riding these slightly uncomfortable creatures! Horse riding is also available across the plains for a different perspective.

Trips to the lodge’s local carpet factory and wood workshop, the Ngare Ndare Forest (where you are able to swim in the river, visit waterfalls and the raised canopy boardwalk) and local villages can also be arranged. For something a little more exhilarating, helicopter excursions around northern Kenya are possible (including fly-fishing on Mount Kenya).

If you are interested, a visit to see the working side of the ranch and conservancy can be arranged, and there is also a prehistoric site on the ranch where Acheulian hand axes can be found scattered on the ground.

If you are interested, a visit to see the working side of the ranch and conservancy can be arranged, and there is also a prehistoric site on the ranch where Acheulian hand axes can be found scattered on the ground.

Seasons
Lewa Wilderness is open all year round, however April, May & November are rainy months.