As the sun rises, bright blue golden hues appear, reflecting the majestic beauty of the Indian Ocean on Kenya’s coast of Mombasa. The charming smiles of men and women who are ready, determined and eagerly looking forward to embarking on an expedition, are more apparent.
The smiles are simply justified because the Indian Ocean is arguably one of the most exciting destinations, largely because of its wide-ranging menu of activities. It is fringed by swaying palm trees and white sandy beaches to wind off the hectic day.
But beyond that, the members of the group on the excursion are media personalities who specialise in science reporting, who are this time, looking for the first-hand experience.
The expedition we are about to get on is that of Malindi Marine Park & Reserve, one of the six marine parks in Mombasa.
Everyone in the group was a first-time visitor at the park, including myself. While I have personally visited the Indian Ocean before, I had never thought of a trip to any marine park.
Before we could set off, our tourism warden Julius Ngeti told us to wait for some time as it is always advisable to visit the park when the tides are low. Ngeti explains a little bit of what we should expect, the dos and don’ts, and he gave us a sneak peek into the history of the park.
The park was established in 1968 and became the first protected marine area in Kenya. Eleven years later, UNESCO identified the area as a Biosphere Reserve – an ecosystem with plants and animals of unusual scientific and natural interest.
A group of science journalists from the region walk towards the Mombasa Marine Park to experience for themselves what science is all about.
I was personally intrigued by that because part of my work is largely driven by curiosity and the power of observation. It was, therefore, fair enough to be curious for what such a reserve could offer our eyes.
So, we departed at around 12 noon equipped with our tools (cameras, notebooks, swimming costumes), all in the name of making sure we capture and enjoy every moment.
Part of what we were taking with us were loaves of bread to feed the fish once we reached the park. It’s more like a tradition to do that if you want to interact with different species of fish.
As we got closer to the seashore, we meet Abdallah Godana, a captain for Mombasa Marine Park who’s also a marine protected area champion (expert on marine).
Godana directed us to a boat we are supposed to use, which was docked metres away from the seashore. The boat is a customized boat with a glass floor, allowing passengers to see for themselves underwater species.
"Our park has four habitats. The beach, the seagrass bed, corals and coral reefs and then we have mangroves which are important habitat for marine ecosystem,” he said as we set out to the park.
The diverse habitats of the park, the most prominent being seagrass, mangrove, mud flats and varied coral reefs, support a large variety of marine species and also provides critical nesting sites for sea turtles, including loggerhead, green, olive ridley and hawksbill.
The road to the butterfly pavillion, home to about 80 types of butterflies. / Julius Bizimungu
These habitats are also home to sea cucumbers, star fish, snappers, among others. Species like angel, parrot and rabbit fish, feed on seagrass. That’s how important conserving habitats is.
The beauty about going to the park lies in the fact that one is able to physically see all these habitats and how species feed on them.
As we rode towards the marine protected area, we started sighting varieties of habitats, starting with the seagrass before getting to the coral garden. From the glass boat, we could see different fish species with black surgeonfish standing out in abundance.
The park has a protected area of 10 kilometres reserved for recreational activities, research purposes and for breeding species. It is here that we met about two other boats that carried other visitors.
A host of activities were happening; from scuba diving to deep sea fishing, and snorkeling.
"If you don’t know how to swim and you think your days are numbered, try to jump into the waters,” one of our crew members warns as we majestically stare at the diverse activities.
A view of Indian Ocean from one of the hotels on the coast. / Julius Bizimungu
But since my pool-swimming skills are fairly good, I could not resist the idea of snorkeling because clearly it is something that I have always been looking forward to do in my life.
The crew could not frustrate me, so I put on the mask and nervous as I was, I jumped into the clean deep waters as everyone was watching in awe. Godana, a man who has been doing this job for more than 10 years, accompanied me.
To say the least, this is the most fun-filled activities one can ever do here. You get to interact with the fish as you feed them.
The two most popular activities in the park are both diving and snorkeling, and the clarity and quality of the water and underwater life make Malindi Marine Park, one of the top underworld destinations in East Africa for scuba divers.
And as I told my Malawian friend, science journalists must feel, taste and live the science. Oftentimes, we report without experience. I went into the waters to see what the park official was telling us.
We must not always believe without trying too hard to get the evidence.
The park
Malindi Marine Park is about 210 square kilometres, sharing the reserve border with its neighbour, Watamu Marine Park and Mida Creek. It stretches on Mtwapa Creek on the north and Tudor Creek on the south.
The park is home to more than 600 species of fish, 145 types of hard coral, 12 species of echinoids, 135 types of gastropods and 200 species of benthic cover algae.
The Government collaborates with communities around to carry out responsible conservation of the park. A case in point is that of Antony Chalo, a captain and his crew who took us to the park with his own boat.
Abdallah Godana explains to the delegation some of the habitats and the different species at Malindi Marine Park. / Julius Bizimungu
The likes of Chalo ferry visitors to the park every day, allowing them to generate good income for their livelihoods. A boat with a capacity of 15 – 20 people, for instance, charges between 6,000 and 6,500 Kenyan shillings.
The Government charges a conservation fee of 130 Kenyan shillings on tourists who visit the park. Technically, it is a win-win situation.
According to Ngeti, the park attracts about 300 visitors per day during peak season (September to March when the weather is good) and can generate between Kenyan shillings 12 million and 15 million per year.
That is a big contribution to the country’s economy.
The shores have interested investors into establishing resorts and accommodation facilities. There are tens of hotels, lodges, apartments and private resorts along the sea.
Communities are also allowed to conduct fishing activities beyond the protected area. There are trading activities all along the shoreline of the ocean.
Mombasa has a list of hotels with swimming pools. A night swim is something that you don’t want to miss.
Coconut was the most famous fruit to try here and in fact, I told people after taking a few snaps with a fresh coconut that my name is "Uncle Coco” and that went viral.
Water skiing, windsurfing, kitesurfing, cultural tours or simply sipping a refreshing beverage on the beachfront, watching the pristine ocean and having a picnic with your friends and family, is recommendable.
Of course, there are challenges, including poaching activities. Sea turtles and fish are the most targeted species by poachers.
Litter of trash into the ocean is another challenge Kenya is facing. The attitude of people hasn’t changed despite the efforts to put bins everywhere across the city and city banks. Haller Park
Away from the ocean sits Haller Park, an artificial park and a result of the efforts by Bamburi Cement’s efforts.
In 1971, the cement company converted barren landscape of disused limestone quarries into vibrant and diverse ecosystem of forest, grasslands and ponds.
A fish farm at Haller Park. The farm is used as a breeding area for different species of fish for commercial purposes. / Julius Bizimungu
That ecosystem and the presence of different animals is what attracts hundreds of visitors to the park. Students and researchers are also attracted to learn how private individuals can play a critical conservation role.
When I visited the park on the morning on November 21, I found tens of tourists who had travelled from across the region and beyond to go and learn the story of unique conservation.
First forward, our guide was charming and quite experienced. We arrived at around 11 am and we were told that we could only see animals being fed in the evening, a bad impression.
Well, leaving the park without feeding at least giraffes is literally a waste of time. That’s why that statement frustrated me at a certain level. But we were lucky enough to find the giraffes still roaming around and being fed by tourists.
One of the oldest tortoises in the park. / Julius Bizimungu
Tourists who want to feed the giraffes buy pellets which giraffes feed on, then stand on a feeding platform. There are designated hours to feed them, but when you are lucky you see them like we did. They are friendly animals.
So we took a chance to feed them.
The park has other unique features to explore. A fish farm, butterfly pavilion, palm garden, game and bird sanctuaries are areas that you can’t miss.
The fish farm is currently used to breed fish for commercial purposes but also for tourists to visit. Previously, the farm was host to Tilapia but the park management is expanding the project, Wambua, a fish farmer attendant told us.
A game sanctuary has buffalos, hippos (including Poti which came from Germany and Sally a 47-year-old who was brought from Kenya’s Lake Balingo). It also hosts antelopes.
Crocodiles lie in tree shades in the morning sunny hours. The park is home to different crocodiles. / Julius Bizimungu
At the butterfly pavilion, we were told that about 80 species of butterflies are habituated here. And at a bird sanctuary, we saw Egyptian goose, parrot, pigeon, and Fischer’s lovebirds.
As we were concluding our trip, something dawned on me: I remembered that storytellers play a role of bringing communities together, and asked myself how are we doing that in the region?
From my training room, someone mentioned a story of how he took his children to the sea resort and asked them what they had seen, only for them to respond that they were disappointed that they didn’t see the mermaids they always see on TV.
The reality is that our incredible touristic features and the endless list of amazing species don’t shine through our content creation. We need to create stories that reflect the realities of our water bodies, parks, and community activities.
Honestly, when you think about it, it’s hard to contest the idea that tourism plays an irreplaceable role in global, regional and national socio-economic development by connecting people and moving services.
That’s the same lens the region should look at tourism.