The heaviest rain I’ve ever been in was in the east of DR Congo and although you’re not in the same area I would imagine heavy rain is perfectly possible. Make sure your backpack is waterproof or has a waterproof cover! I had a pretty good bag which generally keeps out the rain in a normal shower. During that shower I had three inches of water inside the bag… and bring sandals too so if you do get soaked you can take off wet boots and socks and still move about.
And have US dollars with you as an emergency currency, a photocopy of your passport (and a picture of it on an email to yourself), a torch, a couple of protein bars as back up in case you get stuck without a meal, a water bottle and etc etc.
I speak from my own experience, most recently on a safari-type trip in the Brazilian Pantanal. The vehicle had searchlights to pick up animals at a distance. But my small light headlight was plenty powerful to pick up animals that weren’t too far from the vehicle, and was necessary if you wanted to see them in binoculars.
My experience of night drives (big game in South Africa) is that (after you get a bit of experience) a lot of the fun is in spotting things yourself. You are initially looking for reflections from the critters’ eyes, and they reflect light back in a tight angle - you will only see the eyes if you are close to the light source. So it’s nice to have a powerful spotlight that you control yourself. I would sit with spotlight in hand and binoculars on a strap around my neck. If the vehicle stops to identify something you spot, well - by that time, a bunch of other people will be shining other lights on it too, so you can switch to binoculars.
The other really cool thing about that Fenix light is that it has an even more ridiculously bright floodlight mode. You can only use that for a short time before it gets too hot, but it turns night into day, and illuminates everything evenly unlike a spotlight. This was great for photography of things closer to the vehicle.
So much good advice/replies - thank you very much. I feel a bit overwhelmed with deciding what to bring to be honest. Here is a list of the places we’ll be staying:
Lake Bogoria resort
Mara Sentrim camp
Katikati Tented Camp
Ngorongoro Wildlife Lodge
Maramboi Tented Camp
Osiligilai Masai Lodge
These aren’t tenting in the traditional sense but more “glamping” so I don’t anticipate being too cold at night. I imagine it’ll be cold in the mornings when we head out early as the sun is coming up. And I guess the night drives will be cold as well. I should probably pack a toque.
I’m very anxious about being unprepared and looking like an idiot.
I thought about packing one of those packaged rain ponchos rather than a rain coat. Does that seem like a good idea or should I really have a proper rain coat?
Unless I’m mistaken about where you’re going, you’re going to be dealing primarily with heavy thundershowers in basically hot and humid conditions. So I think poncho and umbrella are good, better than something close-fitting that will just make you clammy with sweat.
Bear in mind also that you need to ready to protect camera gear, spare clothing etc from rain in an open safari vehicle. These polycryo pack liner bags are excellent, you can stuff them away into your pocket but they are much stronger than trash bags:
I haven’t been to Africa, but I have been to a lot of other places in both hot and cold climates and the two things I find very handy as general travel tools are a plastic rain poncho and a large scarf.
A poncho has a few advantages over a raincoat, in that they are easier and smaller to pack, and if you need them to cover stuff other than just yourself (cameras, binoculars, a backpack) you can just throw the poncho over everything while that stuff is still on your body and you’re literally covered. Since they’re plastic they’re waterproof. The only downside is if you are in a humid environment they don’t breathe.
A scarf can be wrapped around your neck and ears for warmth, put over your head as a sun shield, to keep your hair out of your face in windy conditions, or for modesty if you are in a part of the world where it’s a good idea to cover your hair. You can also put it over your nose and mouth for a dust screen, or rolled and tied around your brow for a sweatband.
Anything you can use for multiple tasks is your friend when traveling.
Don’t worry. On a commercial tour there are sure to be others who look much more idiotic.
It’s one of the two dry seasons now, so I wouldn’t expect rain every day, but maybe a heavy thunderstorm in the afternoon every few days (if that).
Personally, I prefer a light poncho, since it allows air circulation, which is a consideration when it’s hot.
A small folding umbrella is handy if you need to dash between tents or to the vehicle when it is pouring. An umbrella is even cooler than a poncho, but it’s hard to use when using binoculars.
In intense sun, humid & buggy conditions - you certainly don’t want jeans, and cotton t-shirts are not the best either. Ideally you want long pants and long-sleeved tops that protect you from sun and mosquitoes, made in lightweight quick-drying synthetics. You’ll find this stuff in hiking stores like REI.
I expect there will be some rain though. Here on Vancouver Island we’ve just had a state of emergency from flooding so I’m really, really hoping to have a break from that!
I think I will just take the poncho. I do have a headlamp which I wasn’t planning on taking but now it sounds like a good idea.
There will be lots of down time to relax by the pool and read. Any suggestions for a book to read on an African trip? I’m also taking a notebook to use as a journal because it’ll be hard to remember everything.
Oh and don’t wear red. Maybe it won’t apply to other animals or is complete nonsense but I had to cover up my red T-shirt when visiting the mountain gorillas because I was told they don’t like it.
If you’re interested in history, I could also recommend The White Nile by Alan Moorehead, which details the travels in East Africa of explorers like Burton, Speke, Livingstone, and Stanley.
Many excellent recommendations. I’ll throw in one recommendation on a bird pamphlet. “East Africa Birds: A Folding Pocket Guide” is $8 from Amazon and was a great light bird reference. I’d guess that 50-75% of birds we saw were on it and we just had it in our back pocket all of the time.
And an app for your phone: maps.me has excellent pre-downloadable maps for the world, including Africa. Most restaurants and resorts are marked but it was interesting to see where we were with reference to rivers and base camp, etc.
Also, get a star/sky tracker app. The constellations are amazingly different and fun to see!
Oh, and a good water bottle is great. Kenya and many other places are trying to cut down on disposable plastic bottles so they use the 5 gallon purchased purified jugs. Having your own bottle for fill ups will save yourself in the long run.
Ah man! I would love to have this. I have a local folding pocket guide and love it. If I order it, it won’t arrive till the 10th and I will already be in Nairobi then.
Actually I bet this is something that I’ll be able to find when I’m there. We spend two days in Nairobi before heading out on the safari. I bet I can find it in the hotel gift store.
As for a book, Out of Africa is a great suggestion. Anybody read The Ghost and the Darkness?
I agree as to the utility of a scarf, but I would not bring one.
Instead, I would buy a nice kikoi or two as soon as I hit dirt. There are plenty for sale right at Nairobi airport but if you’re staying in town for 2 days you’ll find better deals I’m sure.
All the utility uses of the scarf mentioned above, plus can be worn as a sarong, plus a lovely colourful souvenir after the trip. All for $5 or so…
It’s the Hitch-hiker’s Towel of African travel, believe me (I’m never without one, at any rate)
