When to travel: reading Kenya's seasons honestly

Kenya is asked the same question every week: when should we come? The honest answer is that the country has no bad season, only seasons that suit different journeys. What changes is grass height, water distribution, light quality, road condition and how many other vehicles you will share a sighting with.

Riding adds a further variable. Footing matters more on horseback than in a vehicle, and long rains can close ground that is perfectly rideable six weeks later.

From late June through October, and again from January into early March, grass is short, water is concentrated and game is easy to find. This is the period most people picture: dust, low golden light, big herds moving between predictable water points.

For riders these are the strongest months. Ground is firm, visibility is long, and fast canters across open country are possible without guessing what is under the grass.

November and again April into May bring rain — usually in defined afternoon storms rather than all-day grey. The country turns green in days. Skies become dramatic, birdlife multiplies, and camps are quieter and more available.

Game is harder to spot in long grass and some black-cotton tracks become difficult, but photographers frequently prefer these weeks to any other.

We start from what you want rather than from the calendar. A first safari with children, a serious riding expedition, and a photographic journey each point to different weeks — sometimes in the same month, sometimes six months apart.

Once the intent is clear, dates usually choose themselves.