Lake Bogoria National Reserve

Like most other Rift Valley lakes, Lake Bogoria, situated at 990 meters above sea level, has alkaline water and occasionally attracts vast numbers of flamingos. What makes the 30 square kilometer, 9-10 meter deep lake and its surrounding national reserve so unique, however, is the wild, forbidding landscape at its edges—a shimmering heat haze interspersed with dark lava rocks, hidden in a deep depression. Lake Bogoria is so well shielded from outside view that Joseph Thomson, the first European to pass through this area, was unaware of its existence. It wasn’t until two years later, in 1885, that the water body was spotted by Anglican Bishop Hannington, who was on his way to Uganda. Shortly thereafter, Hannington was murdered along with his followers on the orders of Mwanga, the King of Uganda. In his memory, the lake was named Lake Hannington, until the name was Africanized after Kenya’s independence.

In Bogoria, one feels far removed from the rest of the world, even though Nakuru lies just 50 kilometers to the south. This sense of being on another planet is heightened by the steaming hot springs and a few boiling geysers that surface here. Particularly in the early morning, the steam clouds create a magical atmosphere. They are unmistakable signs of volcanic activity in the Earth’s crust beneath the lake, just like the Southern Bay, a partially submerged crater in the southern part of the park, reminiscent of Crescent Island in Lake Naivasha.

A visit to the Lake Bogoria National Reserve, established in 1970 and covering an area of 107 square kilometers, is especially worthwhile for tourists because, like in Hell’s Gate National Park, one can move freely on foot and by bicycle. This freedom makes nature experiences, such as the masses of flamingos or the impressive herd of Greater Kudu—an antelope species otherwise very rare in East Africa—particularly striking.