The R(ae)ction : Lake Nakuru National Park and the Menengai Crater

After a busy month or so of work, Joy Kay and I decided to take a mini break and check out a couple of the cool places that are here in Kenya. We are lucky enough to have so many amazing things to see, and as a Kenyan resident we also get to see it for a really good price! Haha! We decided to visit Lake Nakuru National Park, which is one of Kenya’s most popular parks. It is well known for its bird viewing, and is the home of a very large population of flamingos, which migrate between the lakes in the area. This was my first time going on a game drive of any sort, so it was really fun to get to see the animals up close! (Sometimes you’ll see zebra or baboons on the side of the road during travel, not the same but still pretty cool!) The game drive was so relaxing, but it was a bit weird to be wearing the tourist hat. Anywho, here’s a few photos of sites at the lake!

In front of the gate at the park!

Baboons just hanging out at the side of the road!

Impala just relaxing. There is only one male for a whole pack of females.

Zebras play fighting, very entertaining to watch haha!

View of Lake Nakuru =)

Myself at the lake overlook (rocking my SPH t shirt, thanks Laura!)

Rothschild Giraffe, you can't tell but there are no spots below the knees.

Awesome waterfall that sits at the edge of the park.

Lioness relaxing at the top of a tree.

Water Buffalo staying cool in the mud.

Family of White Rhinos.

Mama and baby rhino!

Flamingos!

In addition to the lake, we also visited and hiked a bit of the Menengai Crater, which is located in Nakuru as well. It is an extinct shield volcano that is 2490 meters high and covers 90 square kilometers. The crater is a place of pilgrimage for the religious, as well as a place where mystery and folklore are plentiful. The local Maasai tribe claims it is haunted by the 60,000 warriors who where killed there during a bloody civil war in the 1800s.

“Menengai" is a Maasai word that means "corpse", the crater cliff is said to be the site of an ancient Maasai battle during the 19th century, where people were thrown off the hill to their death. It is believed by the locals to be home to many demons and ghosts and is referred to by the Kikuyu of central Kenya as Kirima Kia Ngoma, "the mountain of devils". There are many unexplained mysteries associated in the crater, people have been found to be strayed and lost their ways, and some disappeared mysteriously. The crater has been active up till 1991, and in its last eruption also killed many people.

The views of the crater are beautiful, and it was a great experience!