辛巴山国家保护区(Shimba Hills National Reserve)坐落在肯尼亚滨海省,距离蒙巴萨(Mombasa)仅33公里。这片占地约192.5平方公里的保护区在1968年正式成立,不仅是东非最大的沿海森林之一,更因其特有的生物多样性被视为生态宝库。海拔从120米一直抬升到450米,凉爽的高地气候让这里成了躲避沿海热浪的绝佳去处。如果你正在迪亚尼(Diani)或者蒙巴萨度假,花上一天时间跑一趟辛巴山绝对能看到和马赛马拉截然不同的风景。
说起辛巴山最出名的动物,黑马羚(Sable Antelope)肯定排在第一位。这种羚羊有着乌黑亮丽的皮毛和向后弯曲的长角,雄性气质冷峻且高贵。由于栖息地碎片化等原因,辛巴山已经成了黑马羚在肯尼亚境内最后的据点。根据当地环保组织的监测,野生黑马羚的数量目前已经不足100只。想要在密林中窥见这些害羞的家伙,清晨或黄昏是最好的机会。运气好的话,你还能看到它们组成15到20只的小群体在草甸边觅食,场面非常难得。
这里的地形由草原、林地和沿海雨林交织而成。保护区内生长着超过150种珍稀植物,包括一些几近灭绝的苏铁科和兰花品种。这种植被环境孕育了高密度的丛林大象(Forest Elephants),它们的体型通常比萨瓦纳大象稍小,但性格更隐秘。虽然保护区曾经因为大象数量过多导致过人象冲突,后来搬迁了部分成员到东察沃,但现在林中依然生活着几百头大象。开车穿过狭窄的林间小路时,转角处冷不丁冒出一头大象是常有的事。
希尔德里克瀑布(Sheldrick Falls)是保护区里的头号自然景观。这座瀑布高约21米,以大象孤儿院创始人戴维·谢尔德里克的名字命名。去瀑布没法开车,必须在武装护林员的陪同下徒步前往。往返路程大约5公里,单程徒步时间在45分钟到一个小时之间。山路稍微有点陡峭,特别是回程的上坡路比较耗体力。瀑布下方有一个清凉的水池,徒步出汗后进去游个泳简直太解乏了。建议大家出发前带好泳衣,毕竟在东非森林瀑布下戏水的机会并不多。
彭戈山(Pengo Hill)是整个保护区的制高点。站在观景台上,你的视野能穿过层层叠叠的绿色森林,一直延伸到远处的印度洋海岸线。如果天气足够晴朗,你甚至能隐约看到察沃平原的方向。这里也是看日落的最佳位置,夕阳把森林镀上一层金边时,周围只有虫鸣和风声,那种静谧感是热门公园里体会不到的。除了看风景,这块高地也是观察猛禽的好地方,各种老鹰和隼经常在山谷上空盘旋。
从迪亚尼海滩出发到保护区入口大概只需1小时车程,路况整体不错。虽然普通家用车能开,但进入保护区后很多路段比较陡峭且湿滑,强烈建议租用动力充足的四驱越野车。关于游玩时间,6月到9月以及12月到3月这两个旱季是首选。雨季特别是4月和5月,不仅路面可能被冲毁,茂盛的草丛也会大大增加寻找动物的难度。其实辛巴山的温度常年维持在25到30摄氏度之间,湿度较大,即便在盛夏也建议带件轻便的防风外套。
目前的门票价格对非居民游客来说不算贵,成人通常在22到25美元左右,12岁以下儿童约为13到15美元。支付方式目前统一通过肯尼亚政府的eCitizen系统在线交费,大门口通常不接受现金。除了门票,车辆进入也需要根据座位数缴纳车辆费,普通的6座狩猎车大概需要300先令。如果你打算去瀑布徒步,记得在门口找护林员。保护区每天从早上6点开放到傍晚6点,早点入园不仅凉快,看到黑马羚的机会也更大。
非肯尼亚居民成年游客的入场费大约为22到25美元,儿童票价约为13到15美元。车辆进入还需要额外支付300到500先令不等的费用,建议提前通过KWS官方eCitizen平台完成在线支付。
从徒步起点到瀑布往返距离约5公里,普通体能水平的游客通常需要2小时左右完成。由于沿途有野牛和大象出没,法律规定必须在KWS持枪护林员的陪同下才能进行这项活动。
这里可以看到非洲五霸中的大象、水牛和豹子,但没有狮子和犀牛。豹子因为森林茂密很难被肉眼捕捉,所以这里最大的看点其实是稀有的黑马羚和生活在海滨森林中的象群。
非常适合,这里是蒙巴萨和迪亚尼海滩周边最方便的一日游目的地。从迪亚尼出发单程只需1小时,从蒙巴萨出发约1.5小时,早出晚归完全能覆盖主要景点和瀑布徒步。
Eliud Ngari It's a beautiful place. I enjoyed the panoramic view of the reserve. It was magical and I spend my time looking at the beauty that I didn't capture lots of moments. There were buffaloes, elephant, colobus monkey, Walking down the slope to Sheldrick's Falls and back was breathtaking. Everyone enjoyed and we had fun at the waterfalls. Infact we could spend more time there if it wouldn't be time limit.the forest and viewpoints.Our Ranger was Erick who through out the Waterfall trail was very Keen. He assist us all group members.
Niques H It's a beautiful place. I enjoyed the panoramic view of the reserve. It was magical and I spend my time looking at the beauty that I didn't capture lots of moments. There were buffaloes, elephant, warthogs, colobus monkey, tortoise and a giraffe. Walking down the slope to Sheldrick's Falls and back was breathtaking. Everyone enjoyed and we had fun at the waterfalls, the forest and viewpoints. Erick was a great ranger who had our backs through out the Waterfall trail. However, the reserve should have better washrooms.
MrXStryder My best experience when I was a kid. I saw a lot of animals and found the tour guides very informative about what they show you around. Though I went with the school, the experience was something I will never forget in my life. The tour guides knew what they were doing and were always ready to answer your questions without hesitation. The trails, hills and the serene nature gives you a sense of tranquility while enjoying the true form of Mother Nature. I love this National Resort. It's very cool and I highly recommend it to anyone who wants to take a vacation or holiday while enjoying something and getting cool information on the places.
Yvonne D It’s really pretty and quiet. My friends and I walked to the waterfall, which was worth it. We saw very few animals our two visits. I heard rumors animals had been relocated, I don’t know if this is true.
mo. goes We visited in the very dry season which is not the best time.. but we still enjoyed a self drive trip around the park for a few hours, and a ranger led walk to the Sheldrick Falls (free but please tip your guide). We saw lots of Grazing animals from the car (don't walk around by yourself in the park), and the swim and massage from the falls was wonderfully refreshing! Absolutely recommended if you have a free day, we visited in the afternoon from 12-5 and that was plenty of time. Most roads are passable by city car, but some only suited to 4x4.. your car will need a good wash when you get back to town!