March
Maulidi Festival, Lamu. Maulidi or Milad-un-Nabii is the Islamic celebration of the birth of Prophet Muhammad (during the third month of the Islamic calendar; in 2008, it falls in mid-March). It is celebrated throughout the world, but Lamu's 4-day Maulidi Festival combines traditional prayer with popular entertainment such as swimming, donkey and dhow races, a henna body-painting competition, a tug-of-war, football matches, a traditional board game bao contest, and performances of Swahili music and dance. The event attracts up to 20,000 people and the narrow alleyways are transformed with twinkling lights and brightly coloured banners, while the dhows on the waterfront are decorated with flags. For more information, visit www.lamuheritage.com.
May/June
Rhino Charge, Laikipia Plateau. This is an annual four-wheel off-road endurance car event organized by the charity Rhino Ark Trust (www.rhinoark.org), which is dedicated to protecting Kenya's rhino and in recent years has funded the ongoing project to fence the Aberdares National Park to protect it from poaching. The course goes cross-country for over 200km (125 miles), and it's a grueling race through rugged terrain of dense bush, ditches, and boulders. It attracts teams from all over the world, though not all of them manage to complete the course. The challenge is to reach 10 checkpoints, purposely put up in a difficult place to access by car, and their locations are only revealed to the entrants on the night before. Speed is not a feature, and the teams have to reach all the checkpoints by the shortest route possible. The winner of the event is the team who manages to complete the course with the least distance recorded, or on a route as close as the crow flies.
Lewa Marathon, Laikipia Plateau. The Safaricom Marathon and Half-Marathon was established in 1999 by Tusk Trust (www.tusk.org), a London-based charity dedicated to preserving wildlife in its natural habitat, and runners are asked to pledge a donation to take part. It's run on dirt roads within the Lewa Wildlife Conservancy (www.lewa.org) and is the only marathon in the world to go through a game park. Lewa is home to black and white rhinos, elephants, and a variety of plains and big cats. The runners are escorted by helicopters and armed rangers to avoid any confrontations with the four-legged residents, and it's a very exciting race. It's hugely popular with Kenyans, who are known as world-class runners, and recently it's attracted more international participants.
August/September
International Camel Derby, Maralal. The International Camel Derby is an annual camel-racing event held over a weekend around the small town of Maralal in northern Kenya. There's a short amateur race, with camels and riders assisted by a handler who runs alongside. Anyone can compete in this race; camels are available for hire, and for complete amateurs it's very amusing as they try to persuade their reluctant charges to even move forward, never mind cross the finish line. Then there's the more serious 42km (26-mile) professional race that circles the town; the local riders are colorfully garbed in traditional dress. The event is coupled with cycling races over similar distances run by the Kenya Amateur Cycling Association, and there is also good entertainment for kids and local dancing. The event is primarily a camping weekend for the budget travelers at the Yare Club (yare@africaonline.co.ke), although some upmarket accommodations can be had at the Maralal Safari Lodge. Yare can also organize longer multi-day camel treks into the desert with Samburu guides.
