Lake Nakuru National Park

flamingoes, rhinoes, lions scenery need i say more

A plethora of wildlife at the end of the dry season

We arrived at Lake Nakuru National Park on our Intrepid Travel safari bus and headed straight to the lalk, which was very, very low because it was at the very end of the dry season. The skies were overcast but it was dry!
Around the lake there was plenty of birdlife including a pair of elegant crested crowned srane. There were a variety of wading birds around the lake's edges including, ruff, little stint, greenshank, redshank and black-winged stilt as well as the ubiquitous Egyptian geese. In the bush good sightings of Rupeell's long-tailed starling were to be had.
Gazelles were plentiful and impala, Grants and Thompson's gazelle were to be seen around the park, as were olive baboons, black-backed jackal, warthog, African buffalo, Burchell's zebra and lion.
The highlight of the visit came at dusk just before we were leaving. We were treated to brief views of two blac rhinoceros before coming across a crash of 10 white rhinoceros.
A great trip to the National Park with great views of a variety of wildlife.

Lake Nakuru was really flooded when I went. But it was still a great place for wildlife and birds. Love the baboons!

its good to visit if you want a combination of big five.

When we were there it was flood issues to deal with. Heavy forest was a challenge but came away with many, many fine images.

Amazing!

Lake Nakuru was wonderfull and the organitation also was great!! I have a good memories about that trip! And all team are very simpatic!!

Flamingos, of course, but also rhinos and baboons and an orange-headed blue lizard (probably a Kenya Rock Agama).

At lake Nakuru the population of Flamingoes depends on the water level. As of Oct 2015 the water level was high and so the population was quite low. We could not see a "pink sea" but we did spot the Greater and Lesser Flamingo along with Pelicans, stilts and cormorants. The highlight was spotting the White Rhino which we did not manage to see anywhere else!

The best place for the White Rhino.

Did Not Live Up to The Hype

We had researched the Lake Nakuru National Park before our safari, and were particularly keen to include it in our itinerary to get that National Geographic picture of vast amounts of flamingos wading along the shoreline. Unfortunately, we were met by a rising waterline covering an expanse of dead trees, morbidly picturesque in their own right, but a sad indication of how things are no longer what they were. We did see a small number of flamingos, some pelicans and other water birds.

The park itself is situated close to Kenya's fourth largest city, and is adjacent to a number of private farm lands. Fence lines were clearly visible making the area feel rather confined and did nothing to hide the fact that this is a purpose-built wildlife sanctuary. The roads/tracks within the park did not offer as good a view of the wildlife as at other parks/conservancies... but, from the animals' perspective, maybe that is not a bad thing!

Flamingo disappointment aside, during a late afternoon game drive, we encountered a variety of wildlife including a Giant Spitting Cobra as it crossed the track in front of us, a small herd of Rothschild Giraffes, several buffalo, zebras, a small herd of Eland, a giant tortoise, Impala, two Dik Diks, and four White Rhinos wandering the through the bush and grasslands.

Because of the paucity of the park's main attraction the previous day, the next morning our driver/guide returned to the lake where we did see more flamingos than the previous day, but still much less than expected. We were, however, treated to an audience with a lone White Rhino at very close quarters.

It is difficult to judge a place having stayed only one night, but Lake Nakuru National Park was probably our least favourite of the five conservancies/national parks we visited on our safari. It would be wrong to judge it on wildlife alone (although it would have scored fairly well based solely on that), but the rising waterline and dead trees mean that the days of witnessing flamingos in vast quantities appear to be few and far between. I applaud the park's purpose and am delighted that it protects so many species of animals. However, from a wildlife viewing perspective, its proximity to adjacent farm lands with visible boundary fences make it feel too confined and therefore often lacking "bush vibe". And so, whilst I would not discount Lake Nakuru National Park from a safari itinerary, I would advise against having such high expectations.