Rusinga Lodge

Yet again another exhiliarating Kenyan expirience, and this time it's Rusinga Island Lodge. Not very well known by many, could be because of its remote location. Well, Rusinga Island itself is well famed for the hominid remains discovered there by Richard Leakey, is remains a place of interest in terms of history and scientific research and of course tourism. It is also very key in Kenyan history as the late trade unionist Tom Mboya hailed fom there. There are three possible means by which you can get there. Rusinga is approximately 500 kilometres to the west of Nairobi. And so theres a full safari expirience via road. Then theres a small airstrip at Kaksingri which can handle light aircraft, so you can opt to fly as that would be of great convenience and ensure you waste no time. You can as well travel to Luanda Kotieno via Kisumu then board a ferry which is even more fascinating, worry not about the car as  it accomadates vehicles as well. The cruise lasts about fourty five minutes before docking at Mbita Pier. It's only then that you get a close encounter with the lake. The persistent cool breeze is never enough. From the decks you can watch local fishermen do their thing, the commorants, african fish eagles and egrets fill the air and stoop low to catch fish, you will see the need to have a pair of binoculars. Once at the Mbita pier you can now get to Rusinga lodge just about 4 kilometres away. Mbita town is small centre but you'll be lucky to get a cab to get you there in no time just incase you did not come in one. The resort is cool and will be a safe haven from the tarbulence and noise. You'll be sure you are finally home, the resort has state of the art bandas with open balconies from where you can watch the magnificient Lake victoria the second largest lake in the world by area. You can as well watch the twillight as you sip some wine, the sun will for sure go down with your woes and leave you liberated. Theres a decent state of the art swimming pool and you could cool down your body as temperatures soar upto about thirty degrees celcius. Theres a spa and it would come in handy as you relax. It would be advisable to come with sunscream, sunglasses and hats. The resort offer lots of outdoor fun activities but in my opinion the most notable one is the fishing trip. I reminisce me and my crew sailing out in the open waters on a memorable fishing expirience. The catch was jaw dropping and we had fish for lunch that day, fresh and wiggling from the hook to the fork. If at all you have no fishing expirience dont worry as you will be assisted by the crew. Rusinga lodge have varied cuisines and you'll be spoilt for choice but I'd prefer the local Kenyan dishes for the real Kenyan expirience, and to be precise the fish which is a popular delicacy in the local luo community. The place is equally ideal for lovers, those on honeymoon or those just getting cosy. I coincidentally met a long time friend who had just but wedded a couple days ago and was on honeymoon. He invited me for a candle lit dinner under the stars and the whole expirience was fantastic and for a moment I thought i was in Maui. We set out for Ruma National park the following day, the only natural home of the roan antelope which is found no where else on the planet. The park is pretty far if you were to go by road and the roads are in a sorry state as well. So we had to go across the lake on reaching gwassi we had to alight and board a waiting van to the park. Ruma is a typical african park, and not much of a difference as compared to Tsavo, or Mara. The long stretches of savannah and scattered acacia trees give the mara a perfect safari setting. To be precise the park is not very much endowed with big game but you can never miss spotting zebras, giraffes, gazelles and ocassionally warthogs. Leopards are the apex predators here but because of their elusive nature you would have to delve deeper into the woodlands to spot one. There are no lions, elephants, rhinos among others but that does'nt deter you from enjoying the safari. There are many kestrels and eagles and many others raptors gracing the air. When dusks set in you can hear the hyenas howling and growling from far but they hardly ever attack people, judging from what the guides told us. We pitched our tents lit the bonfire and had a wild pary all night. The night out was very impressive and am looking up to a repeat of the same. Journey back is no different from the initial trip, though this time we were lucky enough to spot the African Hippopotamus. It's by far one of the largest land animals weighing just about 4 tonnes and known for its aggressive reputation, actually in record as being the highest human killer in the animal kingdom. It was one of those moments you would'nt want to forget. Crocodiles have been sighted too and have in the past attacked locals but they are hard to come by. We sailed to Mfangano islands, Remba and Ringiti as part of the bird watching safari and had the one of the  biggest party with my crew that night. Rusinga lodge has indeed earned a name for  itself and stands out as the one of the best resorts in the Kenyan lake region. There are many other resorts worth noting as the Safari Village, icipe guest house and Mbita tourist hotel. Other places include the museum at mfangano, icipe main research centre, several fishing beaches and Gembe hills among others. Its a very informative and inspiring place and leaves alot to be desired for the first time visitors.