RTG Southern Cross Daily Dispatch low-res - Flipbook - Page 16
Day 7: Mount Kenya Safari Club loop, 22 February 2020
Dieter and Hildegard Baumhäeckel’s Volvo PV544 side of the road repair
Gerardus Mercator, Dispatch reporter
Denis and Jill Wilson, 1969 Rover P5B
www.rallytheglobe.com
Photos: gerardbrown.co.uk
Reto Mebes and Hans-Jürgen Benze, 1975 Mercedes-Benz 280SLC
At the gate we were briefed about the locals to keep an
eye out for. The list included more than 25 lions - with
cubs - leopards, cheetah and hyaena. Marjan Quekel can’t
have been alone when later she admitted that, with such
beautiful countryside and amazing wildlife all around,
it was difficult to keep her eye on the route books and
stopwatch. Needless to say her and Rogier did enjoy one
short diversion.
Willy Van Loon and Christiane Torfs’, Bentley ran out
of puff on some of the steeper sections but, as well as all
manner of wildlife, Andy Inskip and Malcolm Destro were
in the area. This sweep team quickly attached a tow rope
to the breathless Belgians and pulled them into lunch.
Penalties accrued by such a manoeuvre were a small price
to pay for getting to the buffet in time.
Climbing from their cars the heady scent of spicy curry
led the crews through some farm buildings to a set of
manicured lawns and well trimmed trees. An old bath
tub filled with ice served as the bar and cans of beer, soft
drinks, and crisp white wine bobbed enticingly. The tables
were laid out on a terrace overlooking the grounds and
there in the far, and sadly cloudy distance, rose Mount
Kenya. The Main Time Control was also here at the lunch
halt so, once Pete Stone and Jim Smith had taken the
details from the time cards, the crews were able to spend
the afternoon as they saw fit.
Freed from the tyranny of timing there was a great drive
back through the estate to enjoy, along a road which saw
zebra and giraffe heavily outnumbered by gazelle. A herd
of shy elephants was also spotted next to a watering hole.
On the way out of the reserve we saw Dieter and
Hildegard Baumhäeckel deep in the bush needing some
help with a broken panhard mount. Once again the sweeps
were straight onto this and the Germans in a Swedish car
got themselves back to the hotel for a more permanent fix.
Iris and Jean-Philippe Tripet’s Lancia Fulvia Monte Carlo
sadly seems to have lost its clutch. Bernd and Christiane
Dannenmaier stepped up to the plate and towed them into
the hotel, and now there’s some head scratching going on
with the option of continuing in a hire car on the table.
David and Jo Roberts’ well travelled Triumph was also
receiving some attention for a broken engine mount.
Tomorrow we move on from the highlands of Laikipia
and head West.
