Lake Bogoria National Reserve is in the Great Rift Valley Kenya, covering Lake Bogoria and the land immediately surrounding the lake. It is administered by the Kenya Wildlife Service. Lake Bogoria lies in trough below the Ngendelel Escarpment, a sheer wall 600 meters (2,000ft) high. The lake Bogoria National Reserve covers 32 square kilometers (12 sq. mi). The only major river feeding the lake is the Waseges River which rises on the northern slopes of the Aberdare Range.
Lake Bogoria National Reserve is surrounded by grasslands dotted with bushes, there is acacia-ficus woodland to the south, and the north merges into a papyrus swamp. The reserve was established in 1970.
Attractions in Lake Bogoria National reserve.
Bird species.
Lake Bogoria National Reserve has got over 135 species of birds that are recorded, as they include the little grebe, flamingos, pratincole, swift, little bee-eater, cape wigeon, yellow-billed stork, African spoonbill, augur buzzard, gabar goshawk, water dikkop, great tit, starling, hornbill, crombec and among others, common ostriches are plentiful on the lake shores, black- headed herons around the swamps, ibis, hadada the reserve is the birding destination in Kenya with the most colourful and attractive bird species to thrill while on Kenya Safaris .
Wildlife.
Within the Lake Bogoria National reserve, there are animal species that are found in the reserve including the Greater Kudu, buffalo, zebra, cheetah, baboon, warthogs, caracal, spotted hyena, impala, dik-dik, the greater kudu (king of the antelopes) can be seen across the woodlands or spotted under the acacia trees, vervet monkeys and olive baboons can be seen around the hot springs and campsites, then predators such as the leopards, spotted hyenas and mongoose are hots of the reserve too.
Fascinating phenomenon of the hot springs.
There nothing much than experiencing the nature of the hot springs, an indication that molten rock does not lie far below the earth’s surface. The lake Bogoria has around 200 hot springs in total but has some large of these on one side of the lake. So by the time it spurts off the ground, the water has reached over 94 degrees after calculating at a great depth in the rock fractures, even the water can be hot enough to boil the egg.
Flamingos.
The main attraction in the reserve, are the flamingos who visit the still waters of the lake to feed on the algae, since the lake has no outlet, it is saline and therefore a lot of blue and green algae, which forms a different shades of the lake too apart from the pink of the flamingos.
Cultural centers.
Within the reserve there are two cultural centers, depicting Tugen and Endorois community cultures. Tugen cultural center displays traditional homesteads built in Tugen architectural design, old stools used by elders, traditional dances and dishes are viable at the center on request then the Endorois community culture is located near the reserve head office and similarly has traditional artifacts and resident traditional dancer’s troupes.
Activities done in Lake Bogoria National Reserve.
Flamingo Watching.
This activity is one of the most amazing and beautiful as you sit stare at them, there is nothing quite like the sight of thousands or sometimes millions of glittering pink flamingos blanketing the shallow lake, during flamingo watching, if you approach near them they protectively move but if you settle in for a few minutes they will shuffle back, the flamingos always be best to watch during the early or late of the day.
Cycling.
Here its taking a bicycle safari around the lake, this offers you a great way to appreciate the diversity of the land found in the park, as well you can be able to cycle past hot springs and boiling geysers, during that time you can carry your camera along in order to take the cool pictures.
Guided nature walks.
Nature walks is always the most environmental experience to any tourist, within the Bogoria national reserve the tourists can visit the hot springs in the reserve, as well to the lake to sight the flamingos, and the rest of the entire biodiversity can be identified in the reserve.
Boiling of the egg on the springs.
As the springs steams up this takes your attention in the reserve, within the just outside the reserve the local women sell raw eggs for curious visitors, after you can get your egg and submerge it in the hot springs to make it boil within a few minutes you can be free to pick your egg and go with it, and enjoy it while watching the flamingos.
Bird watching.
Within the Bogoria National Reserve there are various bird species, so the bird watching is most effective in that the guests can enjoy identifying various bird species, that is in the Kesubo swamp its lying just outside Lake Bogoria in the north, this area is a wonderful spot for bird watching for over 200 species of the birds can be spotted in the area.
Boat trips.
Lake Bogoria’s acquatic residents and soak up the stunning scenery from the water, with the high-trained, local guides at the helm, here you can explore the entirety of the beautiful Lake Baringo and inspect the minute details of this extraordinary ecosystem from a unique viewpoint.
Where to stay in Bogoria national reserve.
Bogoria national park offers accommodation ranging from budget, mid-range and luxuries, the accommodation incudes the Lake Bogoria Spa Resort, Spa Resort, and Lake Bogoria Zakayos Resort. Bogoria national park also offers camping with various campsites such as Acacia campsite, Riverside campsite, Fig tree campsite, The Lake Bogoria dryland Environmental education center campsite. These are found outside the reserve Loboi river camp and picnic site next to Loboi River Bridge, NETBON camping site near Maji Moto gate and Emsos community camp.
Best time to visit Lake Bogoria national reserve.
The best time to visit the reserve is during the long cool-dry from July to October and we consider this to be the best time to visit, the reduced rainfall limits the drinking water that is available to fauna, so animals tend to congregate around the few remaining fresh watering holes.
How to get to Lake Bogoria national reserve.
The reserve can be accessed by both air and road transport from Nairobi.
By Road means.
The reserve can be accessed by road, the distance between Nairobi and Lake Bogoria national park is 246.1km through A104 which takes you 5 hr. 30 minutes. The road map starts from Nairobi and continues through Hell’s Gate National park then to Lake Bogoria national park.
By Air means.
The reserve can be accessed by air through airstrips in Lake Baringo and then by road through the Marigat junction, you will need a good 4WD car to access the park well, as the roads are rough. However, anon- gazette and unclassified airstrip that can be used by light aircraft is located at the northern part of the reserve near the Loboi gate.
Lake Bogoria national reserve was declared as a national reserve due to its rich in biodiversity, scenery and hydrological features in 1970 and was made a Ramsar site of international importance in 2001. It is used to be an important communal dry season grazing area for the local communities, and has important sacred and cultural sites.
