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Lake Bogoria Safaris
AHSKL003
6 Days Amboseli |
Naivasha| Masai Mara
LAKE BOGORIA NATIONAL
PARK
North of Nakuru, Lake Bogoria is not often visited by tourists and
yet it has stunning scenery. The shallow soda lake, which covers an
area of 30 sq km, is shallow, with a maximum depth of 9 metres. Like
other Kenyan soda lakes, it has no outlet and the intense
evaporation has led to high levels of salt and minerals. As a result
it has no fish but is rich in blue-green algae, which the flamingos
love. It also has hot springs and geysers which spout and steam.
Because of the extreme temperatures you need to be cautious and
don't be tempted to put your hands into the water if you are at all
fond of your skin. Lake Bogoria is just off the B4 between Nakuru
and Lake Baringo.
Lake Bogoria
At the beginning of Kenya’s great Northern Wilderness lies Lake
Bogoria.
The lake is the heart of an arid landscape, in the shadow of the
dramatic walls of the Siracho Range. The soda waters of the lake
attract massive flocks of Flamingo, and the lake is often carpeted
with pink.
The 32 sq km lake is still volcanically active, and the Western
shore is lined with spouting geysers, spurting steam and bubbling
geothermal pools. Fresh water springs at the lake edge attract an
abundance of birds and wildlife.
There are many Fish Eagles, which often prey on the local flamingos.
The shores are always lined with Gazelle, Zebra, Baboons and this is
one of the best places to see Greater Kudu...
LAKE BOGORIA NATIONAL RESERVE
Lake Bogoria is a saline water shallow located at the northern
region of the Kenyan Rift, 25 km south of Baringo. The reserve
covers the lake and adjacent lands, with 107 km². In the Colony days
the lake was known by the name of its discoverer, the Kampala bishop
James Hannington, who in 1885 was the first European to sight this
place while he was heading for his diocese following Thomson's
route. This would be the glory day for the priest, but also his last
journey, since upon reaching Lake Victoria he was murdered by order
of the cruel king of Buganda, Mwanga II.
If Baringo is increasingly attracting more visitors because of its
plentiful birdlife, Bogoria is, or at least it was until few years
ago, a place where the visitor can enjoy the spectacular African
scenery in full solitude. Except for ornithology lovers, who don't
forgive the pilgrimage to Baringo, this region is quite off the most
common itineraries, specially the one-weekers. The reason is that
Bogoria is far from outstanding for its mammals' wildlife, the
paramount objective for most tourists. Albeit, whether I had to
choose a single park for which just the beauty of the landscape is
worth a visit, it would probably be this one.
J.W. Gregory, the English geologist who travelled the region in
1892, blessed the site as "the most beautiful view in Africa". He
wasn't off track. The lake displays a superb scenery of bluish hills
populated with dry bush, grasslands and riverine forests, framing
the calm water shallow pinned with flamingoes. Beyond the eastern
shore, the soil rises abruptly to 600 m in the Laikipia Escarpment.
At the opposite edge, the earth forms strangely coloured swampy
crusts, which break up in deep gaps spitting stinky sulphur waters
and steam jets. The close-up geysers, the pink brushstrokes of the
flamingoes on the lake and farther the dramatic backdrop of the
Laikipia Escarpment, convey a hardly beatable aesthetical
composition. But watch out, don't get too close, the signposts
warning "Stop - danger zone - go back" are serious: the earth
collapses under your feet and beneath there is boiling water.
Bogoria is not even the least of a wildlife desert. Good wildlife
fans will appreciate the unparalleled value of being the most
accessible place in all the country where you have the chance to
spot the majestic greater kudu. In addition to other mammals,
flamingoes and a variety of birds fill up the wildlife supply of
this reserve.
Starting from the North, Kenya's Rift Valley Soda Lakes are Bogoria,
Nakuru, Elementeita and Magadi. Apart from alkalinity they all have
one thing in common - flamingoes. Bogoria and Nakuru may at times
have as many as a milliion flamingoes feeding there.
Lake Bogoria is dominated by the countless hot springs which pour
boiling water into the sterile lake. Sterile, except for the massive
flocks of Lesser Flamingos that flood into Bogoria each year.
Millions of them have been recorded at peak times of the year and
hundreds of thousands is common. Greater Famingo are also present,
sometimes in thousands and Black-necked Grebe are usually present.
Although no other birds could possibly stand the conditions that the
Flamingos find rather pleasant (standing up to your knees in
boiling, highly caustic, soda is guaranteed to strip the skin of
most animals) there is, nevertheless, an abundance of raptors
preying on the ready source of meat. Steppe Eagles, Fish Eagles and
Tawny Eagles are present in amazing numbers. In fact, at times the
eagles are so numerous you can see 8 or more in a single tree.
Bogoria is also one of the places in Kenya which offers a reasonable
chance of seeing the Greater Kudu.
In early 2000 there were a significant number of deaths among the
lesser flamingo population at Lake Bogoria. There are reports about
what happened and the possible causes by the BBC.
Lake Nakuru was the first place in Africa to be designated a
National Park primarily because of the birds. It has a comparatively
low concentration of salts (compared to the 'real' soda lakes) and
it also supports a fish population. As a result the wildlife is very
different although, in common with the other soda lakes, Nakuru is
home to a very large population of Flamingos which go there to feed.
In 1997 the lake was almost completely dried out, partly as a result
of drought and partly as a result of large amounts of water being
extracted upstream. The extremely heavy El Niño rains in 1998 saved
the lake but the numbers of flamingoes are still not as high as they
used to be. It is a marvellous place to see a wide range of waders
including Avocet, while large rafts of Pelican can also be seen
sweeping the water in unison (in a rather attractive pelican version
of synchronised swimming!). Probably the best view of the lake is
from Baboon Cliffs, the view alone is worth the drive but the road
up to the cliffs also provides a chance to see a number of chats.
Watch out for the baboons at the top, they'll grab anything they
think might be edible. Lake Nakuru National Park is also home to the
Kenyan Rhino conservation project - and so is an excellent place to
see Rhino.
Continuing south down the Rift is Lake Elementeita which has a
couple of places to stay fairly close to the shore. In the 1980s it
dried out completely leaving a dry salt lake. Like the others it is
usually inhabited by large numbers of flamingoes and, not being as
alkaline as Bogoria, by large numbers of other water birds. It has
Kenya's only breeding colony of Great White Pelicans and Great
Crested Grebe have beeen seen there. Grey-crested Helmet-shrike and
Jackson's Widowbwbird can be seen in the area around the Lake.
The most southerly, and most alkaline, of the Kenyan lakes is Magadi.
The salt concentrations there are so high that they are mined
commercially. Despite this there are quite a few birds which take
advantage of the hot springs. As with the other salt lakes the most
obvious birds are the flamingoes, which very, very occasionally
breed there, but there are plenty of other birds including migrant
waders from Europe and Asia such as Little Stint; more than 20,000
waterbirds can usually be seen there in January. Magadi is also
about the only place in Kenya where the Chestnut-banded Plover can
be seen regularly.
Still further South, in fact outside Kenya, is the world's most
alkaline lake, Lake Natron. Lake Natron is inaccessible and
inhospitable - unless you happen to be a flamingo; despite the fact
that the temperature of the mud around the lake can reach 50° it's
the only known breeding ground for East Africa's Lesser Flamingoes,
although they do occasionally attempt to breed at Nakuru or Bogoria.
The hot mud may help them to breed successfully by keeping predators
away from the nests
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