Sibiloi National Park, Kenya (Center on Interactive Map)

Desert park in remote Kenya.

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Trips

Kenya Solar Eclipse

11/3/2013: Our arrival to Sibiloi National Park was a bit disconcerting. My first impression was a wasteland covered in dust and thorn bushes. Everywhere was battered by a very strong sun. I was nervous about spending two nights in that place. After some time and money spent, we were deposited by a "taxi" into some scrubland to set up camp.

All of our gear had been soaked on the boat ride over, so I ventured over to a nearby campsite where I borrowed some matches from a group of three from Nanyuki. This campsite turned out to be a good choice as we were invited over to share their fire. We met some interesting guys from the Kenyan Wildlife Service as well. The weather became much more comfortable after the sun went down, and the desert is a place that grows on you.

On eclipse day, we spent most of the day trying to avoid the sun. In the afternoon, we walked over to a monument that had been set up as a prime spot for viewing the eclipse. Just after first contact, however, the wind picked up. The sun was totally obscured by a combination of thunderstorms and sandstorms. Traditional dancers who had been trucked in brought additional surreal qualities to the event.

As we fretted about our chances for seeing the eclipse, we encountered the Nanyuki group. After some discussion, it was decided that the clouds were too thick to stay still. Yes, we were going to ignore the advice of Dr. Eclipse once again (His advice was to never move, and he was clouded out in China). We all piled into the car and started driving around the desert in search of a break in the clouds. This is the point where things got chaotic enough for me to ditch the camera...

With about five minutes to spare, we reached a spot that looked promising. We all got out of the car to get a better look, and sure enough, we had planned it just right. We got a very clear viewing of about 10 seconds of totality! We talked to some people who had not moved, and they saw the eclipse as well, partially obscured by the cloud cover.


Previous Visit (Central Island National Park: 11/2/2013)
Next Visit (Kainuk: 11/5/2013)

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