Spoilt for choice at Amazing Kenya Retreat

Amazing Kenya Retreat

What won me over is its proximity to the city, yet a considerable distance from the capital's traffic and the bustle.

Doesn't make sense?

Pick-ups from one's preferred location was also a big sell. My pick up point was Capital Centre, along Mombasa Road.

After leaving the office on Friday, I freed my soul in an expansive paradise 50 kilometres southeast of Nairobi.

As you go past Mlolongo, Athi River, Daystar and Lukenya turn offs, some five metres before the Mua-Mathatani turn off with Machakos Town further on, is the Maanzoni Ranch.

My inquisitive side is always roused whenever I use this highway, always wondering what lay beyond the Lukenya ridge into the mysterious Maanzoni and Mua neighbourhoods.

Perhaps a little background about the source of my curiosity will help in this journey.

In the list of world-famous migrations such as the migration of monarch butterflies from the United States and Canada to a small patch of highland forest in Mexico and, of course, our very own Mara-Serengeti wildebeest migration, not many know of the larger-than-life gnu migration within Kenyan borders.

It is in these same plains that several gnus recently sought sanctuary when the Amboseli dried up.

According to the Athi Kapiti Conservation Initiative, Abel Chapman measured Stony Athi and Lukenya Hill to be one of the most prolific wildlife areas in Africa, way back in1906.

The Athi Kapiti plains have also long been known as the favoured hunting grounds of Theodore Roosevelt, Richard Meinhertzagen and Denys Finch-Hatton.

While the glorious wild past with its spectacular gnu migration might be no more, a sizeable population augmented by other game species still calls the plains home.

Here, kongonis, zebras, Thomson's and Grant's gazelles as well as predators such as cheetah and hyena flourish.

The area also is an Important Bird Area that holds more than 500 bird species with over 40 birds of prey.

Speaking of birding, nature's own equivalent to golf, I was much delighted by an hour-long after-dinner show at Amazing Kenya Retreat, the lodge I was booked in.

I could not help but nurture this new interest, thanks to the presentation by avid birder and retired veterinarian Dr Jan van Duinen who boasts forty years of photography in Kenya.

The eating mats bear evidence of his work as does the lodge's photo album showcasing the area's birds.

In his company, on a game drive, I identified bird species including the spotted thick-knee, Northern wheatear, superb starling, grey hornbill, Northern-white-crowned shrike, red and yellow barbet, little bee-eater, common bulbul, fork-tailed drongo, Klaas's cuckoo, crowned plover, cattle egret, Hadada ibis, Egyptian goose, several kinds of doves, and a pair of dark chanting goshawks that we had mistaken for harrier hawks.

The lodge, from which Mount Lukenya in the west and Mount Kenya in the north are visible on a clear morning, was the brain-child of a Dutch couple, Ditty and Jan Peek who fell in love with the area while on a family holiday in 2007.

They erected a beautiful natural stone house, a piece of art all made from local materials. They later added a few rooms turning it into a homestay.

Keen on other endeavours, they passed on the property to a Kenyan investor in 2015. The place is managed by Steve Ndaiga who lives within the property with his wife Janet and their son Robin.

We were in this tranquil setting to celebrate Janet's birthday, on their kind invite. The simplicity, closeness to nature and breath-taking landscapes provided the perfect backdrop.

Visitors to the retreat can enjoy sundowners, bush breakfasts, game drives or walks and mountain biking. This getaway has conference facilities that can seat 18 people.

There is also the relaxing Japanese shiatsu massage, given by a masseur who overcame his visual impairment to learn this very heightened art of offering relaxation.

If you are a foodie, then chef Evans Juma Onyango will probably be your greatest draw, especially with the roast turkey served with a pineapple slice, chateau potatoes, spinach in cream, kachumbari, and apple gravy sauce.

The menu in the lodge's small, cosy restaurant is a three-course surprise meal, downed with wine.

As such, it is in your best interest to state preference when making a reservations.

Children under the age of two sharing a room with one or two adults are catered for free of charge, while those aged between two and twelve years sharing a room with two adults are charged 50 per cent of the adult rate.

The lodge also has a competitive resident rate for a double. Even better, two full board nights for a minimum of two earn one a free game drive.

So, as the easy Sunday rolled into dusk, after an afternoon siesta, I was content to be dropped off in Nairobi, energised for another round of its traffic and the bustle.