CHAPTER XII 
LAKE RUDOLPH 
Final start for the lake—A desolate land—A curious fish—Trials during a hurricane 
—Remains of a catastrophe—An aquatic race—Disturbed by a “ shauri ”—A 
false alarm—A fisherman’s paradise—Signs of Europeans—Remedy for lessening 
the sick-roll—A fortunate coincidence—My first topi—At close quarters with a 
rhino—Wealth of bird life—A feathered jockey—My cook’s new entree—Simple 
Christmas fare—The kraals of Reshiat. 
On 2 nd December I made a final start for the lake, feeling that 
at last Reshiat was within my reach ; for I had sufficient food 
for all hands to last, with care, two months. For the first two 
days the going was comparatively easy, and water plentiful. 
The western face of Nyiro, under which our course lay, is 
almost precipitous and very grand, topped with dark forests 
and cut by narrow, giddy-looking gorges flanked with red cliffs, 
and here and there hang waterfalls from the mountain side, 
filled with the outpourings of the heavy clouds which often cap 
the summit. But all these clear, cold, rushing streams which 
pour out of the mountain disappear as if by magic in two or 
three miles. Occasionally gaps in the ridges to our left afforded 
glimpses of a wide valley beyond, in which a small lake could 
be seen shining far below. This is in fact, I suppose, the 
connecting portion of the “ rift ” stretching southward (or rather 
south by west) from Bassu in the direction of Baringo. 
We were now entering among rough, stony hills, which 
would have been hardly passable in places but for a capital 
elephant path which we followed. It had probably been used 
