Lake Nakuru is 73 square miles (or approximately 46,000 acres).  This means it is a  little bigger than Bryce Canyon and a little smaller than Acadia National Park.   Even though it seems small, one day is not enough especially when periodically, you will stop for 15-20 minutes to appreciate wildlife.

It was an eventful night, and we got an early start.  Mobilizing twelve tourists in an overland vehicle is no simple feat, and our guides Peter and Julius did wonderfully.  Although the motivation of yesterday helped inspire everyone to take care of their needs and get ready.

Meals were always efficient and delicious.  Peter was an aspiring cook and took this job to get some experience and contacts.  He worked hard at picking fresh foods.  For example when we were in Lake Victoria, he went to the market to get fresh seasonal foods that would keep until Arusha.

We left camp at dawn and immediately saw giraffes walking, black backed jackles, and a wide variety of animals out and about.   We saw lone jeeps here and there with people carrying larger cameras and lenses.  Just as we passed a man taking pictures of a solitary rhinoceros in the far distance, we saw this family of rhinoceroses basking in the sun right by the road side.

The Southern White Rhino is near threatened according to the IUCN Red List.  We watched the family laying together for 10-15 minutes with us all snapping pictures and whispering.  Eventually they got up, and we took are cue and moved on.

We moved to the shoreline.  The lake is at most one foot deep with no outlets.  It’s a soda lake with plenty of algae and shrimp.  Perfect for flamingos, pelicans, and spoonbills.

We got out of the truck and walked to the shoreline. With the engine off we could hear the electric buzzing.   I had never hear it before, but the hum-like buzzing was like that of a bee hive, or electric wires.  It was the flamingos.

The Lesser Flamingo is near threatened with a decreasing worldwide population according to the IUCN Red List.  Yet seeing this lake full, shore to shore, with flamingos it was hard to believe.  Nakuru is only one in a system of lakes in the Rift Valley.   While the surface area of Nakuru has increased over the past few years, the population is threatened due to soda ash extraction near their Lake Natron breeding ground.

We left lakeside and headed up to the Baboon overlook for one last look of Nakuru before departing.   This was a special area with plentiful wildlife.   We left Nakuru and headed towards Lake Victoria vis-a-vis Kisi.