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by Kate Dernocoeur, guest blogger If you are unfamiliar with Praia, Cabo Verde, you are not alone. From my journal, 4/19/2025: “I had never heard of Praia when this voyage was being planned, and today I am going there!” Located on the south coast of the island of Santiago, Praia is the capital...
by Kate Dernocouer, Guest blogger I arrived in Namibia after dark on a July mid-winter evening. On the flight north from Johannesburg, I sat by the window and had a preview of the light shows I would see in the coming month. The flat terrain below darkened by the minute from dusty,...
by Kate Dernocoeur, Guest Blogger After a few days in Windhoek to regroup from the southern tour to do laundry and check on the status of my missing luggage (see previous blog), my friend and guide, Ian Brown and I set off again. The first stop: Etosha National Park. Established in 1907, it is...
by Kate Dernocoeur, guest blogger It was a nice mid-winter day in July when my friend Steeve and I set out from Namibia’s capital city of Windhoek with our exceptional guide, Ian Brown. This meant the temperatures were nicely tolerable, instead of the extreme swelter of summer. The week ahead...
by Kate Dernocoeur, guest blogger One special aspect of the Great Walk of Africa is that it is the only “boots on the ground” safari allowed in Tsavo National Park. It was just us: eight tourists, our guide (Alex), the walk’s founder (Iain Allen), and four Samburu protectors versus the...
by Kate Dernocouer, Guest Blogger Two common things you see in the wilds of Kenya that are unusual to a person from North American are lots of really big thorns, and evidence of termites. If you want non-thorny acacia trees, go to Australia, but if you are in Africa, expect thorns. Even...
by Kate Dernocoeur, guest blogger Where you hang your hat—that’s home, to an adventurer. I love my real home, but when I’m away, it’s nice to know there’s a cozy place nearby ready to restore my weary body. Many times in years of wandering, home has consisted of an inflatable camping...
by Kate Dernocoeur, Guest Blogger From the very first moment I heard about it, I knew I had to do The Great Walk of Africa. Imagine! Being on foot, boots on the ground, kicking up the same dust as the wild animals of Africa. Yes, this trip became an instant “must-do” item on my Life List […]
By Kate Dernocoeur, Guest Blogger The social nature of elephants closely parallels that of humans, and nowhere is that more evident than in a mudbath or (for kids) a playground. While visiting the Nairobi Orphan Nursery sponsored by donations to The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust, we recently...
by Kate Dernocoeur, guest blogger They tilt their noses into the air as if peering through bifocals. Their necks kink in a way that would send me scrambling for my chiropractor. They groan, and bawl, and sometimes spit. They burp and fart like nobody’s business. They fascinate me: camels....