SEVEN DAY ITINERARY
DAY 1: Theme: "The marine park Sanctuary"
The Kisite Mpungutti Marine Park covers 39 sq.km on the southernmost part of the Kenyan coastline and is managed and protected by the Kenya Wildlife Service .The protection that KWS affords is essentially the reason that the park is such a success. There is no fishing in the park itself. Around the parks boundaries is a reserve limiting the type of fishing, so the protection is in a way enhanced by a barrier of self limiting fishing practices. Fisherman can count on the park to serve them as long as the boundaries are clear for all users .The community is still allowed to harness fish, so there is agreement that the park is not just a visitors privilege.
The Park and Reserve are both a paradise for marine life, water birds, boaters, snorkelers and divers alike. The water is refreshingly clean and extraordinarily clear. The morning boat ride starts at a civilized hour…. 0900.You fall out of bed and into the dhows awaiting you on the jetty. The ride out takes you round Wasini Island, and often the dolphins already emerge within the first 30 minutes at the prow of the boats. The Dhows anchor off Kisite Island, and you can now swim, snorkel, or dive along the pristine reefs edge. Its shallow ay this point, between 3 and 10 meters, so you see the fish very close up. It’s quite usual to see turtles, groupers, and dolphins in the deeper waters playing around the boats. On the way back, you might join the crew to hoist the sail, or just take in the wind and scenery.
Whilst in the water look out for:
- Lobsters peeping from under corals, trying to figure you out with their long waving white feelers when coming close...
- Large Blue-spotted Stingrays, apparently believing they are invisible when hiding under a thin layer of sand.
- schools of dolphins passing by occasionally to feed on the abundance of fish;
- many large colorful Parrot fishes wandering about the reef and nibbling on the corals with a very audible scratching sound;
- and many more fishes, more than 250 species in total, of groupers, angelfishes, butterfly fishes, trigger fishes, box fishes, sweetlips unicorn fishes, trumpetfishes, lionfishes, moorish idols...
DAY 2: Theme: "The Forest Reserve"
Our staff will invite you to explore the network of nature trails crisscrossing the southern part of the virgin coral rag forest covering the whole of the Shimoni peninsula with trees growing out of naked fossilized coral. While appearing lush and green like a rainforest, close inspection reveals that in Shimoni a highly specialized plant community has developed that survives with little water and humus in the soil, with a dense canopy keeping the scorching sun out of the forest, air roots absorbing the moisture from the air, and fleshy waxy leaves folding up during the heat of the day to reduce transpiration. Some monkeys will jump and screech overhead, and the peaceful colobus will just stare down and ignore you
The staff will help you to identify petrified stone corals and giant clams which are 15,000 years old, in the black rocky lunar landscape on the southern side of the peninsula where salt sprays from the sea prevent vegetation.
Listen to the birds hiding in the thicket, watch out for the hermit crabs busying about everywhere, and maybe, even try to spot the extremely shy animals.
DAY 3: Theme: "The Intertidal Zone"
When the tide is out far enough, Harun and his gang will take you out for a walk along the Wasini Island from one end to the other! Start at Mkwiro village, and see the community project we sponsor, life in the village, and then cross onto the kisite bay side end and enter the world of mangrove trees. In the intertidal zone you can see the marine park form here as well as Tanzania mountains.
Have a close look into little pools and crevices in the rocks. You will see juvenile fishes and a myriad of crabs, shellfishes, starfishes, oysters and other invertebrates. If the tide is not going out far enough, Omari will instead take you to explore the footpath leading down into a large intertidal foot paths on the island, where the seawater rises and falls with the tides, overgrown with mangroves and shaded by huge baobabs where many creatures specialized to these conditions can be observed. This feature is the hand work of the women’s group and is an ingenious way to see the mangrove forest when the tide is in. End the morning lounging in the lazy lagoon on Wasini Island, and have a large sumptous lunch. After lunch you can stay on Wasini or proceed back to Shimoni to you own cottage, and home!!
DAY 4: Theme: ”day of the dolphins” (Optional extra cost)
Join the dolphin dhow for a day of focused dolphin spotting. The Dhow trip will take you around Kisite and Pengutti spotting for dolphin, and you have a 70% chance of swimming with them. There are several types of dolphins that occur locally so you are likely to se at least 2 species. The dhow stays out till the afternoon and lunch is taken onboard in a simple but tasteful manner. Staying out these long increases the chances of dolphin encounters and swimming amongst them.
Day 5: Theme “Ramisi River and Funzi bay” (Optional extra cost)
Moving out of Shimoni and down to the Ramisi River near the Mwazaro beach on the Funzi bay. We enter the riverine estuaries that feed the plankton of Funzi bay. The Ramisi River can be boated upstream, and is home to crocodiles, fish eagles, Nile monitor lizards and other river animals and birds .Moving along on a canoe, you get up close and personal with the river and maneuver around the sand bars that dot the area. This is an area of 50 square kilometers of mangroves and inner lagoons, and is unlike any other sea scape along the south coast, more like a delta.
Day 6: Theme: "Visit to Shimba Hills" (Optional extra cost)
The Shimba hills game sanctuary is adjacent to the Mwlagunje elephant Valley, half way to Mombasa and home to hundreds of elephant and plains animals in a small area, only 1 hour drive from Shimoni. This park also allows for a guided walk into a water fall, and so it can be combined as a bush walk and safari trail. Other animals there include, buffalo, giraffe, bush pigs, Antelope, sable antelope, and leopard. Its a relaxed game drive, nothing rushed, and so close to the ocean that you find it hard to believe that these animals survive so close to a major town .Our driver / guides know the animals and area well, and will escort you on the walks and explain the flora and fauna of the area.
Day 7: One day is left to you to do whatever you liked most and do it again...
