Born Free Lives on at Shaba National Reserve

Seeing as the celebrated book, movie and television versions of Born Free were released almost 50 years ago, there’s a whole generation of people who don’t know the famous theme song – or the story behind it. But the legend lives on at Cheli & Peacock’s camps in the region of north-central Kenya were both the Adamsons and Elsa once roamed.

Before my latest trip to Kenya, I knew the story of Joy and George Adamson and Elsa the Lion but little else about what the Adamsons did to advance wildlife conservation in that part of Africa. For instance, I wasn’t aware that Joy had gone on to work with a cheetah named Pippa and a leopard named Penny.

During my two days at the aptly named Joy’s Camp in Shaba National Reserve, I learned about Joy Adamson’s work with Penny at Shaba National Reserve before her tragic death in 1980. Joy’s last published and unedited manuscript, Queen of Shaba, was among the books on my bedside table in my stunning, Moorish-style safari tent.

Joy was already world famous when she adopted Penny in 1976. After successfully releasing several lions and a cheetah back into the wild, Joy set her mind to seeing if she could do the same with a leopard. Once the Kenya park service found an orphaned leopard, Joy was given the go ahead to set up camp at Shaba (adjacent to Samburu Natioal Park) and proceed with her latest big cat project.

Penny was only eight weeks old when Joy became her foster “mother” and began to raise the little spotted cat at her home at Lake Naivasha. She was successfully released into the wild and later had two litters of cubs. Unfortunately, after Joy passed away no one continued her research and monitoring of the leopard. As a result, no one knows the fate of Penny. But it’s possible that visitors to Shaba or Samburu could spot (no pun intended) Penny’s offspring.

Joy’s Camp lies in the eastern region of Shaba National Reserve. My tent (No. 7) is situated very close to where Adamson’s camp and last home once stood. Reading her description of the Shaba campsite, “We selected an ideal campsite in a grove of acacia trees next to a spring which fed a swamp where buffalo, lion, oryx, zebra, Grant’s gazelle, ostrich, and smaller birds came to drink.   … A cart track lead to the spring. To the north lay more swamps and plains intersected by ridges of lava. In the distrance the Isiolo Mountains loomed like a line of ships. Beyond the acacia trees which would provide Penny with shade and cover.:– I looked up and saw the scene she described pretty much unchanged from 40 years ago. Given it’s remoteness even today, you can also sense the isolation and loneliness that Joy Adamson must have felt during her long stays in the Shaba bush.

Tent Number 7

Several other Cheli & Peacock’s properties have Adamson connections including Elsa’s Kojpe and Kitich Camp in the Matthews Range. For more information on visiting Joy’s Camp, or to learn more about Joy and Penny, visit http://joyscamp.com.