Ride Kenya

What do you love most about the Masai Mara?

The diversity and numbers of the wildlife. There is always something to see which makes every day and every ride different.

What makes it a special place for horse safaris - and what makes horse riding in this place so special to you?

Miles and miles of rolling hills with rivers and drainage lines in between; good open areas for long canters often with wildebeest, zebra, topi, tommies, and giraffe; other areas of bush and trees with always the chance of coming across buffalo, elephant, lion, hippo, and occasionally a leopard.

Tell us the story of how you ended up in Kenya. What drew you there? What has made your passion for these places so enduring?

Ali and I met on a horse safari in Botswana and soon decided to spend our lives together. We could have ended up in the UK as I had a good job and a comfortable living but somehow Africa just drew us away. The thought of 12-hour days filled with sunshine and wild nature all around made it an easy decision. The first year was tough, living in a tent and learning the frustrations of the bush, but the bonuses far outweighed any misgivings. For the next 13 years, we built up horse safaris in the Serengeti, riding with the wildebeest migration every year and across the grass plains and savannahs of Tanzania. In 2016, we moved north by only 110km and set up in the Masai Mara of Kenya. We are within riding distance of the Mara River and have incredible riding terrain amongst an intense animal population. This is the best adventure horse riding country.

What wildlife is the Masai Mara known for? Is there anything in particular people travel to see? What do you recommend guests to the area should be on the lookout for?

People travel to see the migration that comes each year, but there are also many resident animals including a large number of lions. Guests always want to see the big five but there is also good bird life and even insects. On clear nights, the skies are amazing with the planets, constellations, and Milky Way clearly visible as there is no light pollution. It is always worth watching a group or family of animals just going about their daily life. A herd of elephants, a troop of baboons, a family of lion, or a wildebeest with his harem.

What time of year is best for game-viewing? When is the rainy season? When is it unbearably hot? What is the average summer high and winter low temperatures?

Game-viewing is available throughout the year. The short rains are generally around November/early December and the long rains generally April/May. Temperatures are fairly stable throughout the year, with summer daytimes around thirty and night-times around twenty. The winter is cooler at night and the rainy seasons can heat up before the afternoon rains.

Is there one thing in this area visitors shouldn’t miss?

For anyone that has ridden a horse before and has some experience, they should not miss the chance to ride in the Mara. We can offer 2-hour and 4-hour rides daily or multi-day camp to camp safaris.

Apart from the Masai Mara, where else do you love to go on safari?

Anywhere with free-roaming wildlife.

Do you have any interesting information to share on the history of horses and horse riding in Africa?

Essentially, the SA Boerperds are one of the only true South African breeds of horses and they are renowned for their hardiness and ability to cope with the challenges of living in Africa as far as diseases, terrain, and climate go. The lineage of the SA Boerperds can be traced back to around the time of Jan Van Riebeeck’s landing in Table Bay in 1652. They were used extensively in the Great Trek and the Anglo-Boer Wars.

The first horses imported into the Cape Colony were Berber Arabian ponies from Java. Breeding was slow and in-breeding was countered by the fortuitous stranding of a ship en route from Java to Persia carrying 14 of the best Arabian stallions from the Shah of Persia’s stud. These horses swam ashore and were captured by Van Reinbeck’s men.

Nearly a century later, the breeding of these original Java horses and the Persian Arabs was augmented by the infusion of Andalusian and Isabella horses and these formed the basis of what developed into a recognised breed known at the time as the Cape Horse. These horses became well-known for their sound temperament, bravery, intelligence, endurance, extreme sure-footedness, and hardiness. Horse-breeding had developed into a thriving industry in the Cape and even led to the exporting of war horses to the English Army in India around 1769.

Nature also played a crucial role in shaping the breed - in 1719 and again in 1769, many thousands died from the dreaded African Horse Sickness. This was seen as a process that removed animals susceptible to disease from the population and prevented their genes from being propagated - a natural selection process for an adaptive type of horse.

Between 1836 and 1899, from the Great Trek to the start of the Anglo Boer war, breeds such as Flemish Stallions from the Netherlands, Hackneys, Cleveland Bays and Norfolk Trotters were imported and bred into what eventually became known as the Boerperd.