Lake Bogoria is an alkaline and very salty lake in Kenya, which is home to a huge number of pink flamingos and 135 species of other birds. For half a century, there has been a national park of the same name on Lake Bogoria. Picturesque landscapes and an abundance of avifauna attract tourists from all over the world to these places. Travelers come here to watch birds and take memorable photos.
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| Lake Bogoria |
Basic moments
Lake Bogoria is located in the north of the Great Rift Valley. Since 2011, it has been recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and, along with other unique water bodies of the planet, is protected under the Ramsar Convention for the Protection of Wetlands of the Earth. The lake is 17 km long and 3.8 km wide. The water surface area is 33 km², and the greatest depth is 9 m. At the very beginning, in honor of the discoverer, the Kenyan lake was named Hannington, but later it was renamed Bogoria.
The shores of the natural reservoir are not swamped, and there are a dozen and a half hot alkaline geysers on them. Some geysers throw water up to 5 meters high. It is not difficult to approach Lake Bogoria, however, flamingos are very shy. As soon as the birds see people, they scatter in thousands across the water and rise into the air. True, even from a distance, a flock of flamingos is a grandiose sight.
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| Lake Bogoria |
Excursions to Lake Bogoria are carried out in the daytime, as overnight stays in the national park are not provided. For a tour of the lake, tourists are charged $50 per person plus $15 per car.
Natural features
The Loburu, Emsos, and Sandai rivers flow into the Kenyan reservoir. According to measurements, the pH index of lake water reaches 10.5, that is, it is alkaline. In addition, the water in Lake Bogoria is very salty. The salt concentration here reaches 100 g per 1 liter. Alkaline recharge occurs due to 200 bottom and coastal thermal springs, the water temperature which reaches +39 ... +98 ° ะก.
After scientific research, it became known that Lake Bogoria was once freshwater and deeper. For 10 thousand years, it became fresh and salty several times. Today the lake belongs to the so-called meromictic natural reservoirs. The bottom water in it is denser and more mineralized than on the surface, and these layers are separated by a powerful chemocline.
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| Lake Bogoria |
Despite the extreme chemical composition for life, many small organisms live in the lake, which serves as food for flamingos. There are so many tiny rotifers and spirulina here that graceful birds especially fly to Bogoria to feed themselves and arrange their weddings.
What to see
There are a lot of flamingos on Lake Bogoria, and from afar they look like a huge pink cloud. The number of individuals depends on the season and ranges from 500 thousand to 2 million. Birds never sit still. They are constantly moving through the water in one direction or the other. Sometimes flamingos lower their crooked beaks under the water and eat, and sometimes they perform wedding dances in front of each other.
The main goal of tourists is to take pictures of birds and make a memorable video. In addition, travelers arrange picnics on the shores of Lake Bogoria. In addition to flamingos, rare Great Kudu markhor antelopes, buffaloes, zebras, gazelles, baboons, vultures, bustards, and larks are protected in the national park.
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| Lake Bogoria |
How to get there
Lake Bogoria is located in the Kenyan province of the Rift Valley. It is not easy to get to Baringo County, in whose territory the reservoir is located. The nearest airport is Kerio Valley (KRV). There are no other tourist facilities, hotels, and campsites around the lake. Tourists come to the reservoir by car, and you can get to it only from the western, less mountainous coast.