{"id":1033,"date":"2024-06-13T10:23:20","date_gmt":"2024-06-13T08:23:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/royalafricansafaris.com\/simon-belcher\/?p=1033"},"modified":"2024-06-13T10:24:37","modified_gmt":"2024-06-13T08:24:37","slug":"meru-national-park","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/royalafricansafaris.com\/simon-belcher\/blog\/meru-national-park\/","title":{"rendered":"Meru National Park"},"content":{"rendered":"

There is something about Meru National Park which hits a chord in you.\u00a0 <\/span>Perhaps it\u2019s the vistas of distant volcanic mountains or the solitary hills thrusting up through the wide and gently rolling country. Maybe it\u2019s the lonely feeling of barely trodden wilderness or the thrill of expectation at the next bend in the dusty track.\u00a0 <\/span>Whatever it is, I always enjoy being in this overlooked and beautiful corner of Africa and no better way than under canvas.<\/p>\n

From the canopy of forests in the west, through dense bush, open woodland and savannah down to Kenya\u2019s largest river, the Tana, in the east, Meru offers by far the greatest diversity of landscape and habitat of all of Kenya\u2019s parks.\u00a0 <\/span>The dry bush is cut by several rivers with their lush strips of riverine forest and populations of crocodile, hippo, fish and waterfowl. Giant granite outcrops, known as \u2018kopjes\u2019, are another feature for which the Park is renowned and the whole area is sprinkled with the magnificent African Baobab tree.\u00a0 <\/span>To the west lies the volcanic Nyambeni mountain range and further south on a clear day, Mt Kenya raises her lofty peaks.<\/p>\n

It was in this unspoiled environment that George and Joy Adamson released Elsa the lioness into the wild.\u00a0 <\/span>Their story was made famous by the movie \u201cBorn Free\u201d and one of the park\u2019s attractions is the heritage of this romantic tale.\u00a0 <\/span>Later on George made his home in the neighboring Kora National park and continued his work releasing lion back to the wild.<\/p>\n

The variety of habitats in the area are full of game, including significant numbers of elephant acclaimed for their enormous tusks, large herds of buffalo, both black and white rhino, oryx, reticulated giraffe, lesser kudu, and two species of zebra. Predators include prides of lion, cheetah, leopard hyena and jackal. The park also offers fantastic birding, with over 300 recorded species, a real gem for avid birdwatchers.<\/p>\n

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There is something about Meru National Park which hits a chord in you.\u00a0 Perhaps it\u2019s the vistas of distant volcanic mountains or the solitary hills thrusting up through the wide and gently rolling country. 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