Aruba Dam in Tsavo National Park
Aruba Dam in Tsavo National Park : Tsavo National park has two national parks that is Tsavo West and Tsavo East national parks that jointly form the Tsavo National park. The two combined national parks cover almost 4% of Kenya total size. The Tsavo National park is one of the largest national parks not only in Africa but the entire world. The Tsavo national park is dominated by the dry rugged rolling hills covered with scrubs, remotely located in the semi-arid area of Taru desert, the park takes you inside one of the best African juggle.
Tsavo national park is a home of the African wildlife especially the African big five (lions, leopards, rhinos, leopards and buffalos). The wildlife densities are very large and spotting the animals is much easier and possible anytime of the year when especially during the game drives.
Aruba Dam.
Aruba dam is located on the Voi River, and on the southern end of Tsavo East national park, it is less than an hour’s drive from the Mombasa-Nairobi highway and railway. Aruba dam attracts heavy concentrations of diverse wildlife; one of the park’s regularly spotted lion prides ranges around here in Aruba dam. Away to the East and Southeast, all the way down to the Bachuma Gate, the open grasslands provides the perfect habitat for cheetahs and sightings are more common here than almost anywhere else in southeastern Kenya. Aruba dam is an 85-hectare man-made dam and the world’s third largest nature conservation built by the parks authorities in 1952 to staunch the waters of the seasonal Voi River, which flows down from the Taita Hills in the Southwest.
Aruba dam is artificially constructed dam that was purposely constructed by the Kenya Wildlife Service as a water reserve. The Aruba Dam it’s a reserve water catchment area where animals go their mostly during the dry season, the dam it is said that it had been constructed during the colonial area and there is a lodge next to it, with a jetty that extends into the dam itself, the dam is a hippo pool and best place to view hippos. This is the only Tsavo East national park attractions where the guests enjoy wildlife viewing at close range, most animals come here to cool themselves as well as quenching their thirst.
Aruba dam was made or constructed by an old man, which serves as a valuable water sources for animals in the area, making a good destination for game drives. Around the Aruba Dam there is also a profusion woodpecker, sunbird, starling and pigeon whilst along the Galana River both the aasai and Somalia ostrich abound along with Kori bustard, Bateleur, Carmine bee-eater and an East African speciality, the Vulturine guinea fowl. Aruba Dam was constructed to attract many animals and birds.
Activities done in Aruba Dam.
Game driving is best done within and around the Aruba dam area with a number of animals to see-both predator, prey and those that live in water, as well as the other attractions in Tsavo East national park there are various attractions in the park as you’re seeing a congregating point over 50 different animal species of animals including birds which over 170 different species.
Nature walks. The guided nature walks are available in and around Aruba dam, where you explore the park on foot is a great experience that you will never forget because you see more animals their natural habitats as you walk around the park.
Birding. In Aruba Dam has a number of different bird species, the dam was constructed to attract and trap various bird species, the rare, migratory birds that come to look for food and breeding. Birding in Aruba dam can be done for quite number of days if one wants to study and identifying various bird species. Also great birding guides that are familiar with in the Aruba dam place and habitats of the birds for a great success rate. Birding is best done during the rainy season when the birds are nesting and breeding.
Best time to visit Aruba Dam.
Anytime of the year is good for visiting the Aruba Dam but as there is an airstrip and lodge nearby for accommodation, some of the roads in the other areas of the park may become impossible during the rainy season, so the Aruba Dam is best visited during the dry season when the vehicles can move smoothly in all the roads to Aruba dam. Though birding is best done in rainy season in the year in Aruba dam.
