|
Country Info
....................................................................................................................................
The Great Rift Valley Lakes
Lake Elementaita 
I travel not to go anywhere, but to go. I travel for travel's sake. The great affair is to move. ~ Robert Louis Stevenson
Let's take a closer look at Lake Elementaita, which people tend to push aside very easily as a tourist destination. This is strange considering that it is located on the same Trans-African highway that leads past Naivasha and Nakuru, two favourite hang-outs and getaways for Kenyans.
So here are the facts. Lake Elementaita is a mere 25 minutes after Naivasha and 30 minutes before Nakuru (depending on the state of the road). Accommodation may be in either Lake Elementaita Lodge, Lake Elementaita Country Club, the new Lake Elementaita luxury Serena camp, Sunbird Lodge, Pinklakeman lodge or in campsites like Flamingo Camp.
We stayed at Lake Elementaita lodge, which is nestled amongst the trees only 500 metres from the main road, such that even public transport may be used. The rooms are cosy, and are no more than two adjoining in each block and beautifully painted in pastel colours. Plus they are situated far enough from the main lodge for that peace and quiet. There is a library (not common in hotels), with a fireplace where you can disappear for a few hours at a time while sipping on your favourite drink. Not to mention the outer dining area that overlooks the land sweeping out to the lake.
Activities
Activities include horse riding down to the lake, or a nature walk that could take anywhere between 1 hour to 3 hours depending on your interest. My walk was in the latter time span because the guide Ole Butu was just too interesting! Spinning tales of the colonial days and how this land came to be subdivided amongst the ranchers and the Maasai, to how agreements of old were signed not on paper that can burn or on stone that can be broken, but on cowhides that withstand the test of time. And pure white cowhides at that.
It's a downhill walk to the lake, through bushes used by the Maasai to brush teeth (I tried it, at first the taste is bitter but then you find yourself subconsciously chewing on it like gum throughout the walk).
The lake is beautifully set with abundant birdlife flitting among the reeds, and yellow-barked acacia trees sheltering the shores. There are underground hotsprings bubbling up into pools in which you may immediately soak- very therapeutic. This area is strewn with volcanic rocks so wear proper closed walking shoes. And when you finally get back to the lodge I guarantee you will have worked up an impressive appetite.
Hot air balloning
Dedicate the next morning to a hot air balloon ride, courtesy of GoBallooning Kenya that is the only company operating the balloon here. The ride starts in the cool crisp air before sunrise, so that you can catch the rays when already air-borne- fantastic! It takes off from Soysambu ranch, and is cheaper than the Maasai Mara balloon safari. The cost may seem prohibitive until you discover just what is included in the package, plus once you're done with the experience you'll be convinced it was worth every penny. Over an hour's ride, it takes you upto 4,000metres above sea level, to heights from which you may easily view lakes Nakuru, Naivasha and Elementaita- all at once, plus Mt. Kenya, Hell's Gate National Park, and the 'Sleeping Maasai Warrior' hill! Those afraid of heights- forget your phobia because the ride is so smooth you won't believe how much you would have missed out on!
This is a chance to see Lake Elementaita from an entirely different angle, with its flamingos taking off en masse in pink streaks, the only sound being the ruffle of their wings. The lake is bordered on one side by a wildlife sanctuary, so go on an 'airy' game drive and watch the giraffes, buffaloes and other animals running away from this strange object floating high above them. And back on the ground, a bush breakfast awaits- from sparkling wine to hot and cold courses, eaten at leisure- after all, you paid for it! And to top it all, GoBallooning give you a giveaway package to remember your 'voyage through diversity and time'.
Here's a tip - Sunbird Lodge offers an accommodation and ballooning package at agreat rate!
Some history...Early Man
Aside from the hot air balloon safari and the fascinating nature walks, those of you more historically inclined may visit the nearby Kariandusi, home to excavation pits discovered by Dr. Louis Leakey in the late 1920s. In these were discovered stone tools made from obsidian and black volcanic glass, used by early man.
Kariandusi facts
- situated in the Elementaita basin, two kilometers east of Lake Elementaita along the main Nairobi-Nakuru highway
- is managed by the National Museums of Kenya
- is one of the first discovered Lower Paleolithic sites in East Africa
- has a time range of about 700,000 to 1 million years
|
Kariandusi is one of those places that many Kenyans have learnt about in school but never visited to actually see where the famed prehistoric discoveries were made. Discoveries that have earned Kenya the international reputation of a rich archaeological site. Learned guides escort visitors through the grounds. There are 2 excavation sites in Kariandusi- upper and lower. The Upper displays a scattered assortment of stone tools with a similar teardrop shape, many made from obsidian which is the black volcanic rock found in lava flows. It is supposed that Homo Erectus used them upto 700,000 years ago, for digging, carving, hunting and skinning. The museum even re-enacts the construction of these tools to make it more real for visitors.
There is also a fossil of an elephant's molar tooth that existed in England and Europe before it became extinct. The lower site also exhibits stone tools, some of which have not yet been dated.
Commercial mining of diatomite rocks occurs here. It is a surprisingly white light rock that is crushed and commercially used to make water filters and abrasives amongst other things. It has been formed over millions of years from the shells of microscopic algae called diatoms that lived in a lake that once covered the entire Elementaita Nakuru region. Traditionally, the Kikuyu people use this rock for body painting, hence the name karia andus.
A one-room museum provides a summary description of the geological activity occurring during the formation of the Rift Valley that affected the lives of prehistoric man, as well as insight to his cultural activities. There have been major developments in man's capabilities to make useful tools by hand over the millennia, and explanations for this are given by comparing the size of the skulls of Australopithecus through Homo Habilis, Homo Erectus and finally to present man, Homo Sapiens.
In summary, Lake Elementaita is relatively untouched as it was only recently developed for tourism. So while everyone else insists on going next-door to Naivasha, be unique and visit this raw yet welcoming lake.
Accommodation rates and images
Other Rift Valley Lakes:-
Copyright Exotic Expeditions Limited. All rights reserved.
|
