The Wild Side

Photography by Victor Peace

Location: Ol Pejeta Conservancy

Did you hear about what happened in Georgia? There were some horrible floods recently that destroyed a zoo’s enclosure leaving hundreds of wild animals on the loose. I’m talking tigers and hippos… Talk about crazy. Thought the story was appropriate to share given that I’m about to talk about runaway chimps and last standing white rhinos.

I first heard about Sudan, the last male northern white rhino, two and half months back. I was trying to pick a bag when Salma, who was with me at the time, pointed out this purple leather cross body bag with a gold rhino feature on it. That was when she told me what she’d read about Sudan, the last of his kind on the planet. Even as I write this I go between feelings of disgust and hope. I get angry at the thought that humanity has let down yet another species, leaving us with only one male northern white rhino. Just one. I can’t stress that enough. But then my hope is restored when I read and hear about the well wishers and institutions who’ve contributed to all sorts of conservation efforts (including Ol Pejeta Conservancy which is home to Sudan). Projects like these deserve a gold medal and then some.

And if that’s not going to get you packing for the conservancy, maybe this will.

Ol Pejeta is the only place in Kenya you’ll get to see chimpanzee which happen to be four times stronger than humans and almost as smart. Don’t believe me? Listen to this. When we went to visit, we found two of them in a chimp jail of sorts. We asked why and found out that one of them – a girl, I believe – had figured out that if you made two wires on the electric fence touch, it could lead to a short circuit. The result? Prison Break – Chimp Edition. I mean, the girl didn’t even need to tattoo her back with blueprints of the conservancy. And that’s not even the highlight of my story! The chimps have an alpha male known as Oscar who took over from his from father, Ndaronse, after kicking his ass in a fight. He’s young, assertive and a bit of a jerk (we watched him snatch food out of his mother’s hands). Currently, George (an equally aggressive chimp) is trying to plot with an ally on how to beat Oscar and take over the place. Apes of Thrones, anyone? If you’re a director looking for inspiration for a movie, I think I know where you should go.

Now I may not have been to a lot of parks in my lifetime but Ol Pejeta Conservancy is one that I’d highly recommend, for obvious reasons. Not only do you get to meet The Last Male Standing and Oscar Lannister along with the rest of the Apes of Thrones cast, but visiting this place also gives you a chance to support an incredible community of people dedicated to conserving nature and wildlife. No doubt the conservancy makes the list on my must-see places to visit in Kenya!

Happy adventures and love.