As a Conservationist this is one of the greatest rehabilitation projects I’ve come across. Transformed from a quarry wasteland into one of the most amazing man-made nature parks I’ve been to. I can’t find the right words to express the feeling of this paradise thus the more reasons there is for you to visit the place. Haller park is located in Bamburi Mombasa actually adjacent to the factory. The transformation of this place is a great story and with that in mind when you take the walk all you have to your satisfaction is being in a nature haven.
After mining of limestone the quarries were left inhabitable and turned into bare wastelands.Bamburi cement company then decided to rehabilitate the limestone deserts and for me this is the greatest decision they made which according to them was one of the most challenging objectives to achieve.
As you enter the park, apart from the reptiles all over the place, the outstanding tree species is Casuarina (pine like) and red-legged millipedes, trust me the millipedes send a chill down but hey they aren’t harmful.
Not on my hand ofcourse …..haha.!
AS I later learned these were actually the engineers of the place. According to natural selection and the rule of biology the coexistence of casuarina and the millipedes developed the beautiful nature park we now see. With time a variety of plants and animals established and the management focused on making the park a sanctuary for endangered species.
A walk into the park leaves you stunned at how the place has a variety of well established plants with a very cool and serene environment. The Aquaculture in this place is something I haven’t seen elsewhere. They have a great fish farm( reminds me of going to Mamba village when I was a kid) and there’s a crocodile area which is quite remarkable full with yellow skinned crocodiles.
They have a variety of wild animals hippos, buffalo, zebra, eland, oryx, vervet monkey, a variety of birds and many other small animals and yes we are allowed to feed The Giraffes.
We fed the Giraffes and played with Tortoises and turtles(which are very old in age) and have interesting characters. (Touching its lower neck turns it on in a type of way it can’t withdraw back into the shell, “The Guards words, not mine”. But we tried it and it worked)
I Could go on and on about the history of the place but I don’t want to sound like a scientist, which I am anyway and it would be only fair if I left you with the curiosity to go find out more but in the meantime you can look at some of my photos. Sorry I Loved the reptiles more because that’s what I haven’t come across elsewhere as you can read in my other articles. Did I forget to tell you how sweet crocodile meat is,Yes something in between chicken and fish all in one. Read also on my Watamu Post.
Something I’ve noted over time, North coast has quite a number of unique and awesome places to visit while south coast has a very quiet and awesome beach to explore. While the choice is all yours just don’t miss out on some of these places if you have time.
Till Next time…………
Love and Love.
