Experiences
The river, the birds and the land around Gotu
Spend your days at the river, with the birds, or out at the crater.
What the camp offers
- Hospitality
- Recreation
- Fishing
- Bird viewing
- Conferences and events
- Local attractions
The riverside lounge
The lounge is perched on the river bank, with a view of Gotu Falls on the Ewaso Ng'iro.
From here you can watch crocodiles basking, our resident African fish eagle perched in the trees as it scans for fish, grey herons hunting, and animals grazing below, often with a sundowner in hand.
Bird watching
Simpirre is an Oromo name that means "bird". Birds are plentiful here, and the viewing is good.
The camp's list includes the fish eagle, vultures, starlings, spurfowls, guineafowls, hornbills, hawks, falcons, owls, swallows, swifts, kingfishers, woodpeckers, egrets, herons and ostriches.
Best months for birds: [BEST MONTHS TBC].
The Ewaso Ng'iro River
The Ewaso Ng'iro is the lifeline of the north. The camp stands on its banks, in the heart of the Waso ecosystem.
- Tour length on the old site:
- 1 day [CONFIRM TOUR LENGTH]
Fishing
Fishing is allowed at the river. It is free, and there are no fixed time slots.
There are crocodiles in the river, so take care near the water. [CONFIRM fishing spots and rules]
Gotu Falls
The river of brown water can be seen in its full glory at Gotu Falls. You can also see the falls from the riverside lounge.
Best season to see them: [BEST SEASON TBC]. How to reach the falls on foot: [DIRECTIONS TBC].
The camp has a video, "The Gotu Fall", on YouTube. Link: [VIDEO LINK TBC].
The Gotu springs
The Gotu springs give clean spring water, good for drinking.
Local accounts say that springs in the Buffalo Springs area are drying, while the Gotu springs keep flowing.
- Tour length on the old site:
- 1 day [CONFIRM TOUR LENGTH]
Magado Crater
The Magado Crater is 12 km from the camp. From its rim you can look down on the colourful small soda lakes, 140 metres below.
In the rainy season, herders bring their livestock to water in the crater, and it becomes a small market place where the pastoralist communities trade among themselves. As the lake recedes in the dry season, soda mining begins.
The Ameru community regards the crater as a sacred site. They mine salt there and sell it to the Borana people. [CONFIRM SACRED-SITE WORDING WITH A COMMUNITY CONTACT]
- Distance from camp:
- About 12 km
- Tour length on the old site:
- 2 days [CONFIRM TOUR LENGTH]
Wildlife in the reserves
The Samburu, Buffalo Springs and Shaba National Reserves are all within a day's visit from the camp.
Species found in these parks include Grevy's zebra, reticulated giraffe, Beisa oryx, gerenuk and Somali ostrich, as well as many kinds of birds.
- Tour length on the old site:
- 3 days [CONFIRM TOUR LENGTH]
Swimming
The camp has a swimming pool, set among trees.
Pool hours and rules: [POOL DETAILS TBC].
Food
Enjoy a variety of foods and continental dishes.
Menus and meal times: [MENU TBC].
Culture and learning
The Waso Museum and the camp's culture and nature education programme are on site. Read about them on the Programmes page.
Enquire
Ask about a visit
Tell us what you would like to see and when you are coming. We will reply with ideas, times and rates.
Message us on WhatsApp
WhatsApp: [WHATSAPP NUMBER TBC]Send an enquiry: Prefer to write it all down? Use the enquiry form on the Contact page. Open the enquiry form