THE MARVELS OF MERU NATIONAL PARK

Meru National Park had an area of 870 sq kms and less than a thousand elephants within its boundaries but Meru park was special. It was my second park after Mt Elgon  and security issues between them were never the same. Elgon was a forest park while Meru had both open savanna and thick thorny bushes south of the park which were intolerable even to wildlife such that the only animals I remember seeing in there were Dikdik, the lesser kudu and some very poisonous snakes. 
The park had one major blessing in that it had more than eight rivers traversing its entire boundaries.They streamed down from the Nyambene hills that rise tall on the western side of the park and completely block the magnificent view of the mountain God, known to the Kikuyu , the Ameru and the Embu as "Kirinyaga" and "oldonyio keri "to the Maa tribes .  The Ngaya forest was small but we patrolled it often because it was frequented by a small group of elephants.

The rivers that I remember include Rojeweru, Mutundu, Kibangwa, Murera, Bisanadi, Kiolu, Punguru and Bwatherongi.  The Jilodima and the Gollo plains were full of life during the rains and sometimes the grass was so tall that we could stalk game better than the marauding cats that roamed the park in big prides. 
I have once had the urge to walk up to one of this lions just to confirm if they might be the descendants of Mr Adamson , the famous lion keeper of Kora , but I never brought out the idea for fear that my rangers would nail and force me into the challenge . 
we had so much of those escapades and I remember one time when I was almost made to snatch a cobra by its tail, but a sensible NCO sensed my willingness and shot the serpent before I proved my manhood to my piers. I had a terrible dream that night and I swore never to be lured into such heroism again. 

We were boys then and we always ended up breaking every promise and all oaths that we bestowed on our poor selves.We always knew that the Gods understood our actions and that they would almost all the time forgive us and our trespasses.

The Dakadima outcrop was also called the Rapsu rock and was near the Jillodima plains where hundreds of elephants came together for meetings and ceremonies only known to them every time it rained. Such gatherings have always invited armed gangs from the neighboring Garisa District, so our chores were always cut out for us . Placing an OP ( observation post ) on the rock was routine and a rear base close by to react to reports and sightings. We had plenty of contacts with poachers such that our platoon base in Korbessa was referred to as Bosnia . 

The Bisanadi river was a major hazard those days, it served as the eastern boundary of the park and a common watering point for the noisy Somali goats and their smelly camels. There were two crossing points used by the Somali poachers to enter the park, Machet and Gutishi, and our ambushes were always successful at this points. Malkarupia was the junction where Bisanadi river met the mighty Tana River and this was one of our preferred spots where we used as a listening post and a repeat business ambush zone.

There were times when things went quite in the park and we were forced to go out to look for mischief. We could choose between visiting the Kubiramata hills which would then lead us to Danyier village and to Scott market,  or we could walk the Mohamed Fujo cut line where we would end up in Garbatula to sample it's  hidden treasures. Kinna town was our preferred hub. There was only one telephone booth in the town serving the whole community and we were always given preference and the priority to use it over everybody else. We were the law and the Borana community of Kinna recognized our potential. We protected them from cattle rustlers and from their ancestral enemies ; the Somali gun men of Mbalambala. 

One day, one of our patrols saw foot prints of a big group of people outside the park who were heading towards Kinna town. We were not sure if they were of the local Borana community who also patrol their grazing area or they were from the Somali group who normally attack to rob shops or to steal livestock . 
The team radioed the base and an officer ( Platoon commander George Osuri ) was sent to Kinna to inquire if their men were out on patrol but while they were still talking to the village head men , bullets started flying every where, the village people responded quickly and the attack was repulsed very fast. By this time I had taken off on our spotter plane where we saw the whole episode as it was unfolding below. We could not do much but to report the fighting fast hand to all who were tuned into channel 5 on our VHF radio.  We latter saved the local youths from walking into an ambush laid on their path by the withdrawing attackers. This act and many others brought us in KWS very close to the Kinna people. 

Meru National Park remained as one of the high risk parks in the history of the Kenya National Parks until when the Government got a grant from the AFD ( the French Government ) which was used to rope in all the communities around the park and poaching was completely eradicated in and out of the Meru ecosystem . The communities benefited from taking care of wildlife and the park reclaimed its glory as being one of the most natural parks in the country. 

I am happy that we did our bit during the mucky years and I will always look back and reflect the good, the bad and the ugly incidents we went through to secure and protect the great places and species on earth for humanity. Having worked in Meru for six months, I was transferred south to Lamu to head the company in April 1994.