When I inquired about Ndere Island, I was informed that this place has no inhabitants and has no facilities really.   But what is adventure about, if not discovering for yourself what strangeness can exist in a place without inhabitants.   And so we began the drive from Kisumu town and took the road towards Bondo and one thing I enjoyed and appreciated during this Nyanza tour was that the roads had really been worked on well making the roadtrips not such a hustle.

Ndere Island is accessed via a motor boat ride from the main land and booking is done through the KWS office.   The charges would include the park fees and the boat ride which was about Ksh 3,500.   The boat has a carrying capacity of 8 pax, so the more you are, the cheaper it would cost.

And so we set off with Kevin who would be our guide for the day.   Now, what we did not know was that Kevin was not going to stay with us on the Island.    He would dock his boat, take us up through the path and show us where to follow (by literally just pointing some directions), then leave us to explore the Island ourselves and come back for us but through another route.   You can imagine the many things I thought would have happened to 4 lasses all alone on an Island where we have never been.   At some point I even thought, what if Kevin did not come back for us.    The good thing is that network coverage on the Island is very strong, which is not really consolation but hey- let’s explore.

And this is where we began, the hike or trek if I may call it.  The views from the small hills were just amazing.   From them you could see the lake with various small islands which formed amazing and expansive landscapes.  The island has beautiful sceneries with a distant view of Homa hills , Mageta island as Kevin explained.   It was interesting to note how many Islands are there in Lake Victoria- who would have thought they were numerous.

The Island doesn’t have much but it would be up to you to create activities to do.   This has very good grounds for having a picnic, but you would have to carry literally everything from the mainland as there is nothing and no one providing any supplies.

After spending quite some time walking around and enjoying the lovely open space, it was time to walk down to another exit where Kevin was waiting for us.

On the way to Ndere Island there is the famous Kit Mikayi which is a regional point of sightseeing interest, especially among the neighbouring tribes. It also has become a popular local pilgrimage site for locals who come to the rock to pray and fast for several weeks at a time.

The interesting bit about the land around Kit Mikayi is that there are too many rocks around right to people’s homesteads and they formed very beautiful sites.

This was a beautiful and lesson learning experience about culture, religion and beliefs and most of all the adventure was quite something to be treasured.

 

The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes. – Marcel Proust