The A2 is Kenya’s northern highway, and back in the day heading north one would know that there would be tarmac until what became the end of Isiolo County – a little nondescript point known as Archer’s Post. For decades this was the beginning of the northern frontier, as the roads became murram, then would disappear and reappear again for those journeying farther north.
Today, though, the tarmac runs all the way through Archer’s and beyond, and so the new marker is the mighty Ewaso Nyiro River… though its might is only evident when the rains have landed in Mt Kenya and it is no longer navigable! The rest of the year the seasonal river reduces to a stream, and we can no longer sing songs about it.
The Ewaso Nyiro (which means the muddy or brown river) runs the entire length of Isiolo County and between Merti and Habaswein lies its green floodplain.
Isiolo prospers in the tourism industry, through Shaba National Reserve, Leparua Community Conservancy, Buffalo Springs National Reserve and Bisanadi Game Reserve, this Kenyan county is filled with diverse and unique animal species. Did you know that wildlife and livestock co-exist easily within Isiolo?Here you will find The Special Five: Reticulated Giraffe, Biesa Oryx, Gerunuk, Somali Ostrich and the Grevy Zebra, all unique to this part of Kenya. The Isiolo Resort City is another coming boon for tourists, as the Lapsset Corridor Development Authority directed the County Government to set aside 10,000 acres at Kula Mawe for the development of a resort city. This will be Kenya’s first resort city under Vision 2030. Among the things envisioned for the resort city are high-end accommodation facilities, amusement parks, watersport facilities, golf courses and arts spaces. Other resort cities will be in Lamu and Lake Turkana.
On the other hand, Isiolo town is a major trading centre, as it acts as the midpoint for traders coming from the northern and southern regions of Kenya.
Isiolo town, the county headquarters, serves as a home to commuters travelling across counties, and now people will no longer only be driving, but also flying into county 011! The Isiolo Airport, which straddles both Meru and Isiolo Counties, was recently launched, making Isiolo even more accessible.
County 011 is one to keep a keen eye out for. A diamond in the rough if you will but soon to be one of Kenya’s most visited counties.
