Our last two days on safari while we were in Africa were spent visiting Lake Naivasha and Lake Nakuru in Kenya before heading to Nairobi. The only rainy day that we had during our time in Africa was actually the day that we arrived in Lake Naivasha. We were scheduled to do a boat ride out on the lake, but considering it was cold and rainy, we chose not to go on the boat ride. It really turned out to be a relaxing day and the only day on safari that we didn’t spend our time driving around in search of wildlife. The following morning we continued on from Lake Naivasha to Lake Nakuru, which turned out to be a spectacular way to end our safari. The two highlights of visiting Lake Nakuru are seeing the flamingos as well as both the white and black rhinos.
Before going on our game drive at Lake Nakuru, we checked into our lodge and were immediately greeted with the sight of baboons and gazelles in the field behind our room. We also had a wonderful view of the lake itself which we would spend the next day and a half driving around. We did see a family of black rhinos wandering through the trees on our first afternoon, but the real treat was getting up close to white rhinos the following day. White rhinos are not actually white, but they are larger than black rhinos and have a flatter mouth. Having all of the close encounters to the various wildlife was an experience that we’ll never forget.
In addition to the rhinos, we saw hundreds of flamingos who were enjoying the shallow waters of the lake along with pelicans, ducks, and other water fowl. There are two types of flamingos, the greater flamingo, which are more white than pink, and the lesser flamingo, which is the pink flamingo that most people think of. As with all of the national parks, in Lake Nakuru we saw many varieties of animals all mingling together. We saw many water buffaloes, including some baby buffaloes, as well as giraffes, zebras, and warthogs. We also saw a waterfall during our time in the park, which was wonderful to see as well.
Although Lake Nakuru National Park is not always on everyone’s safari agenda, we were certainly glad that it was part of ours. It was definitely a wonderful way to conclude our safari and was as interesting as our time in the Serengeti and Maasai Mara. Having the opportunities to see the rhinos with their strange heads was an experience that we will never forget. And even though we saw flamingos throughout our time in Kenya and Tanzania, the number of flamingos at Lake Nakuru was definitely a treat to see. We can definitely say that by the time we made it to Nairobi, we were completely satisfied with our safari experiences and felt that we had seen everything that we’d hoped to see.
