As life continues, we come to realize Ralph Waldo Emerson was correct... it's not the destination that matters, it's the journey...
Most international visitors come to Kenya to see the animals, and rightly so! The diversity of habitat and the plethora of unique wildlife in Kenya is unsurpassed. As a result, it is often the national parks that attract the prime attention of visitors and tour companies. The exception is the birder. Although the birder will be interested in the national parks, they will also be looking for those specific locations, whether in the middle of the city or out of the way, where the presence of "that" bird is known. Such is the case with the Narina Trogon (Apaloderma narnia), a definitively beautiful yet elusive dweller of Kenya's southern forests.
The adult trogon is about the size of a large pigeon with spectacular tail feathers extending again its body length. Despite a bold red breast and flashing green back, it can be exceedingly difficult to see. When turned away from the onlooker, the seemingly bright plumage fades into dancing light and shadows of the upper forest canopy.
A challenge to spot, and an even greater challenge to photograph.
Our growth as birders has been an organic one. I have always been interested in my surroundings that often focused on the shape of the land. The topography, the environment, and the cultural impacts it created. It's the reason I studied geography. Juliet remembers visiting her cultural roots in the village... a feast for the senses... sights and smells and sounds everywhere open to observation and interpretation... She speaks with a fond heart the stories of walking with her mother's father who was a butcher. Spending time with him among the farms, the animals, and the people. As we learned about each other, we also found what gave us joy... what gave us inspiration... It starts with family... But we also realized that nature and the amazement of our surroundings gave us something special. Soon, we were sitting on the ledge of her parents' home or walking along the path by a nearby creek. Then that bird would fly by... the same bird that flew past one of us hundreds of times before without even a notice...but now... together... we noticed...
Our circumstances... created by the decisions we made... and by those events and realities that we needed to embrace... only heightened our interest in this whole new world that surrounds us. One that has been here all along... Our worlds full of everyday miracles, marked with color and music. gifts of nature. gifts of God. A gift of patience, of which neither of us has... and a gift of faith that something remarkable will happen today.
We found Ngong Road Forest when I was doing what I like to do... Look at a map. Our first home together in Kenya was a newly built apartment (or flat) overlooking the outskirts of Nairobi close to one of its major arterials, Ngong Road. When we live in our Washington State home, we find forests and trails to regularly explore. Soos Creek Trail in King County was always a favorite. Our new home in Yelm is only yards from seventeen plus miles of wooded paths adjacent to several lakes and streams. In Nairobi, I wanted to find trails. Surprising to many non-Kenyans, there are a couple great options. We were already into walking and finding birds... Nairobi Arboretum was a nice walk from our brother's home in Westlands near the city center and we were introduced by her family to Karura Forest across town to the northeast. Both were beautiful havens in this large metropolis, but they were also a challenging commute from our new home. While looking at the map, I suggested that there was this huge forest only 2 Kilometers away! Could it have trails? Juliet and her family knew much about the roads and communities in the area, having been around here for the last twenty-plus years. However, there was no knowledge of this forest other than a green belt along some of the highways and if there was... There couldn't be any trails and if there were... The dangers must be extreme with animals and thugs waiting to harm us... But our nephew Micky (you already met him in our previous blog), who also loves to walk, did a little more research... He "googled it"....
There was a forest, and the trail entrance was only 3.5 kilometers away! We three could walk that distance mostly on Ngong Road! A menagerie of trucks and cars... bikes and boda-bodas and humanity... amongst shopping malls, kiosks and furniture being sold off and on the street. The road had recently been renovated into something worse than it had been before. Half-finished pavement... unmarked or wrongly marked traffic lanes... a pedestrian flyover leading to nowhere... and sidewalks ending abruptly, although not stopping the throngs of people walking around open pits and dirt piles. The walk was interesting and colorful. It was also hot and exhausting. By the time we reached the forest, there was discussion about turning back...and then we found a little slice of heaven! This is a beautiful preserve with trails and forest and wildlife! The resident rangers were both informative and friendly! Their presence assured us that our safety, as well as care of the forest, was a priority. We have since become friends with all of them. Unlike our walk to the forest, the trails were serene and cool. The noise from the nearby roads was gone, replaced by an array of birds calling and trees rustling in the breeze...Paradise around the corner... A beautiful introduction to regular visits ever since... and yes, after that first visit... we took an uber home...
We immediately found birds at Ngong Road Forest, spotting a new bird for the first time in our lives on each of our initial visits (We've since learned when birders see a new bird for the first time, it is another "life" bird on their list... and yes, many birders have lists...). We first heard about the Narina Trogon from our ranger friend Steve, who we employed to guide us on one of our early visits.
As we were walking, he
stopped suddenly... "Hear that!"... We listened intently... "That's a Narnia Drogon!"... I heard what I had assumed was one of several common species of doves... I was wrong. I was also wrong on listening to the correct pronunciation from Steve. This bird does not breathe fire and I don't have to go into a wardrobe closet to see it... The Narina is an incredibly quiet bird when flying from tree to tree, usually not much further than 20 to 30 meters from the last perch. It can also be quiet when perching high in the branches above. Yet it carries a very distinct call used to establish territory and communicate with its mate. A droning high pitch Whoo-whoo. Different from a dove... or an owl... Its own unique sound. And from then on, with Steve as our lead, the hunt was on!!!! We could hear the sound above us! We could hear the sound over there... And for Steve, when it came to finding that bird, there was no stopping. We just followed. Ngong forest has many well-groomed trails we could take. Steve took us on none of them. We ran down the riverbank, hopping stones over the stream, pulling ourselves over branches and roots trying to keep up! Jumping from tree to tree... Listening...looking... listening...Looking! If there was a choice of going through heavy acacia brush or going back to the trail.... Yep... you guessed it!...
With dirt in our mouths and grime on our hands we persevered for half an hour... one hour... two hours... and then we found what we were searching for!... "Where! Where!" I asked... "there!" Steve pointed. It took a couple of minutes for Juliet to finally see the bright red deep within the shadow of the trees. The green was dull reflecting the surrounding foliage. But she could see the bird... and it was beautiful... I couldn't see a damn thing!... but Juliet kept pointing with authority "Can't you see it!? ...Right!... There!" shaking her finger upwards with forceful conviction! This, of course, would become our mantra following the birds! Juliet; the excellent spotter of everything... and Bud; the blind bat, who hopes to catch a glimpse to take a photo before it is gone...
We have since been blessed to have seen the Narina Trogon many times on our regular visits to Ngong Road Forest. Sometimes we could hear them in the trees, and we would search before finally spotting them. Other times, they would just come to us! Many times, it is too dark for any successful photo and sometime the shade changes the green to drab olive. Several of photos shown in this post were from one rare occasion where I was the one who spotted four of them together... Okay... so they came to me!... On another afternoon, just as we began our walk, we heard a significant amount of bird chatter and disturbance just inside the forest off the trail. Juliet gave me a look and said "I think we should check it out" as she said this, the chatter became less, and she suggested that we instead move on... But something inside me said "trust my wife's intuition"... So, we went back and looked.
Right in front of us less than 4 meters away! A trogon perched, looking straight at us and not moving anywhere. At the gate, we had heard that one of our ranger friends, Nicholas, was guiding three tourists from America who had come specifically to see the Narina Trogon. Juliet called the rangers as I took photos. They had been looking for this bird since 7am and were well into the forest when we called. Unfortunately, the trogon was gone before they arrived. Ironically, about thirty minutes later, we were in the vicinity of where the visitors had been earlier. Sure enough, we found one calling from the trees above.
Recently, in Nairobi National Park as we were leaving our camping experience, Juliet spotted a Narina Trogon perched high in the forest canopy in the morning sun causing its green plumage to glimmer as if it was a neon light. We have heard its call in Karura Forest and in the trees above our current Karen Villa home but have yet to see it in those locations. Much of the forest habitat required to sustain this elusive bird is threatened by encroachment and development. Our hope is that the trogon population continues to thrive in these scattered pockets of forests and trees. Many people have traveled from all over the world to find this bird and failed. Our ranger friends tell us that one is touched with luck if they get just a glimpse of Narina. To us this bird is a blessing every time we see it... or even hear it. And we will always be excited every time our adventures come across it again.
Often, when we hear the Trogon above us, we cannot see it. But we are certain it can see us! For when we are close, they will usually go silent... only to proclaim their presence once more as we are walking away.
The Narina Trogon often travels in pairs or small groups. It is rare to see more than two at any one time. The female Narina Trogon (above) differs with a cinnamon forecrown and neck. It is usually the quieter than the male and therefore less likely to spot.
The National Bird of Kenya is the beautiful Lilac-breasted Roller (We plan to show this species in later posts). However, some have suggested the Narina Trogon should be the bird that represents Kenya due to its bold presentation of colors also found on the Kenyan flag.
The Motoine River flows seasonally through the forest. However, even in the dry seasons, puddles of water can be found making the small valleys and ravines a haven for birds, butterflies, and wildlife. The forest is open to hiking, horseback riding and mountain bikes.
Walking the sometime darker corridors of this urban forest sudden noises would, at first, awaken our concerns. Now, walking these trails many times, we have grown to understand what we might be hearing or seeing. Fifty meters ahead, the sun beamed like a spotlight on the trail and just in front of that spot, a flash of fur, not more than a meter high, darted past. Then back into the darkness. We asked our ranger what we had just seen... "a redaker"... I asked, "Red Acre?". The guide just looked at me with a smile, not exactly sure of my question and said "yes." For the sake of expediency, we continued. Later that evening Juliet related to a friend the new animal we spotted. ... "A What????!!!!!" and with hilarious laughter, responded "Did you mean 'Red Duiker?'... Yeah... That's what we meant... Harvey's Red Duiker (Cephalophus harveyi) roams throughout the forest foraging on leaves, twigs, insects, bird eggs, and fruit. Very shy naturally due to their vulnerability to predators, this small antelope relies on the few still protected forests in Kenya and East Africa.
Sykes' Monkey (Cercopithecus albogularis) is a common sight within Ngong Road Forest. Sometimes quiet and shy, sometimes noisy and curious, they will sometimes pay as much attention to you as you towards them. At times, their activities in the trees and calls will drown out or scare away birds. They also don't mind grabbing an unattended purse or knapsack looking for food.
This Southern Tree Hyrax (Dendrohyrax arboreus) was injured when we found it in a lower tree. Thus, we were able to take photos and inform the rangers. We are not sure it survived as it was gone when we returned the next day.
As our journey continues, our destinations are sometimes clear and sometimes uncertain but always exciting. The results are blessings we find in everyday life together. It's not what we have seen or done. It's the joy of the journey. By embracing our journey with faith, we have found that every day can be a great day!