Guide to the Great Rift Valley in Kenya

Guide to the Great Rift Valley in Kenya : The Great Rift Valley is an outstanding location to explore. The best part of any safari trip will be seeing how big and deep this amazing natural feature is and all the things you can do there. On the A104 highway, just north of Nairobi, you’ll find the start of the Great Rift Valley. As the valley drops away, the views are amazing. You can see for thousands of miles to the distance. The dry valley floor makes a long tunnel that is surrounded on both sides by mountains and thick forests.

Once you get down into the valley, the fun starts! You’ll see beautiful lakes and lava rocks, as well as many different kinds of birds and animals. Here is a list of some of the things you can see and do as you go north through the valley:

Mount Longonot National Park.

Mount Longonot is a pretty big volcano that rises from the plains. The crater itself is very big, and if you climb up the slopes, you can look down into it and see a thick forest covering the floor. The walk is fun because you can see wildlife on the way up and have a great view of Lake Naivasha from the top. Besides hiking, you can also rock climb, bike, watch birds, and see wild animals.

Hell’s Gate National Park.

Hell’s Gate gets its name from the huge red rocks on either side of the park’s natural hot spring geysers. This national park near Lake Naivasha is also known for its raptor and eagle nesting grounds, extinct volcanoes, rock climbs, and gorge walks.

Hell’s Gate is an ideal safari destination to go biking through areas with lots of wildlife. You can rent bikes there and ride on a variety of paths and roads. In the park, you can see Buffalo, Lion, Eland, Giraffe, Leopard, and many different kinds of birds.

Lake Naivasha.

This beautiful freshwater lake is a fantastic birding safari destination. Naivasha is surrounded by forest, and wildlife is drawn to the water. Hippos and Buffalo like the shallow water, and Giraffes like to hang out in the Acacia trees. This is a popular place to go on the weekends, and some of the best things to do there are hikes, rock climbing, fishing, and boating. Near Lake Naivasha’s western shore is a small lake called Sonachi or Crater Lake. The water is a bright green colour, and there are many walking paths and a game sanctuary all around it. Also, the birds here are great, and you can even see flamingos. You can go fishing, horseback riding, on game drives, or explore the area’s history.

Lake Elementeita.

This soda lake is extremely connected to Lord Delamere, one of the first pioneers of the colony of Kenya. The lake is in an area with a lot of plants and animals, and you can often see Flamingos in the water and animals on the land. In the area, there are hot springs and forests. People like to watch birds and go for walks.

Lake Nakuru National Park.

This is an iconic spot for large groups of Flamingos to gather. You can see a “sea of pink” as the birds move around on the water as a group. Lake Nakuru National Park is surrounded by many different kinds of environments, which makes it a great place to see wildlife and watch birds. It’s not strange to see a Rhino standing on the shore of a lake while Flamingos swim in the water behind it.

The lake is in the middle of the national park, which is home to Black and White Rhino, Rothschild Giraffe, Lion, Leopard, Cheetah Buffalo, and Zebra.

Lake Bogoria National Park.

If you can picture a brilliant blue sky around a pink lake, you will be thinking of thousands of Flamingos at Bogoria, which is a soda lake. This is a volcanic area, and along the lakeshore you can see hot water geysers and freshwater springs.

It’s a bird watchers haven off the beaten track but you can also see game including the rare Greater Kudu antelope in the surrounding grasslands.

This is the second freshwater lake in the Great Rift Valley, after Naivasha. It is very welcome in the dry northern border of Kenya, where it is the only water source for miles. The lake has a lot of fish, so water birds like Cormorants, Pelicans, and, of course, Fish Eagles come to eat them. At least 450 bird species have been seen at the lake.

Both hippos and crocodiles do well here as well. Boating and fishing are highlights and the park makes a pleasant stopover on the way to the far north.

Lake Turkana.

This is the biggest desert lake in the world and the last freshwater lake in the Great Rift Valley. Turkana is more like a rural sea than a lake. The best way to see how big it is to take a scenic flight over it. The water is a blue-green colour that sparkles. In this very remote area, there is a lot to see and do. Some of the best things are the archaeological sites and wildlife in Koobi Fora and Sibiloi National Park, the wildlife in Central Island National Park, boating, fishing, birding, and meeting some of Kenya’s most exotic and remote people.