Interesting places in Nakuru:

Lake Nakuru		flemingo land
Lake Nakuru National Park		Moi Primary School
Nakuru Golf Club		Kenyatta Avenue
Showground		Railways Residential Estate Housing
Seawage Treatment Plant		Shabab
Rift Valley Sports Club		Vehicle Testing Centre
the railway club		Sarova Lion Hill Game Lodge
Baharini

Nakuru, the provincial capital of Kenya's Rift Valley province, with roughly 300,000 inhabitants, and currently the fourth largest urban centre in the country, lies about 1850 m above sea level.

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Top photos chosen by u all:

White Rhino
Made by Partha C
actually called wide rhino by the dutch...it late came to known as white (wide ) rhino. this kinda rhino eats grass and the face is wide which is suitable for grazing the grass. the other kind of rhino is black rhino which eats bush and not on grass and face is not wide but similar to zebra mouth. The Story ---------------------------------------------------------------- No of Days : 5 Days. Flights: Delhi - Dubai - Nairobi Delhi to Dubai by Jet Airways and Dubai to Nairobi by Kenya Airways. Depart Delhi at 7. 30 PM and arrive at Nairobi at 6 AM of Day 1. Nairobi - Dubai - Delhi Depart Nairobi at 12.30 PM of Day 5 and reach Delhi at 3 AM Flight cost INR 25000 per person. There are direct flights from mumbai though, but delhi mumbai sector is costly. Its better to take Dubai route from Delhi. Masai Mara: Stayed at Mara Sentrim Safari Lodge. good lodge, near entry gate, good food. but i felt that Kekorok Lodge and Fig Tree lodges are far better in terms of location. Kekorok lodge will give the awesome Savannah sunset view..its in the middle of Savannah grasslands. all other lodges are in the hills near the border of the national reserve. Lake Nakuru: Stayed at Merica Hotel. The best hotel in Nakuru town. less than a km from park gate. lodges get full during the peak season and we did not get the lodges. There are other lodges near the park gate but not at level of Merica Hotel. Nairobi : Stayed at Intercontinental opposite side of Parliament in heart of town. must have food in Handi Resturent. Man after 5 days continental food you wont belive how much you will enjoy a full fledged indian resturent. Time July, August and September : The time of great migration. this is the time to visit. book well in advance for cheaper rates and better hotels. book baloon safari also in advance. even though balooning cost $ 450 per person, it fills up so fast. We did not get booking. Highlights: 1. Game Drive in Masai Mara 2. Lake Nakuru Flamingo 3. Wild life viewing with a failed lion attack on Zebra 4. Sunset with Acacia/yellow fever tree. 5. Lake Naivasha boating and amazing bird life. Must Avoid: The Masai Village. This is fake and nothing but waste of money. Do not do it.


sunset at lake nakuru
Made by Partha C
The horizon is painted orange while dark clouds are still above us. The lonely acacia tree stands tall in painted canvas in the sky. This was shot while we were leaving Lake Nakuru after an evening game drive. The Story ---------------------------------------------------------------- No of Days : 5 Days. Flights: Delhi - Dubai - Nairobi Delhi to Dubai by Jet Airways and Dubai to Nairobi by Kenya Airways. Depart Delhi at 7. 30 PM and arrive at Nairobi at 6 AM of Day 1. Nairobi - Dubai - Delhi Depart Nairobi at 12.30 PM of Day 5 and reach Delhi at 3 AM Flight cost INR 25000 per person. There are direct flights from mumbai though, but delhi mumbai sector is costly. Its better to take Dubai route from Delhi. Masai Mara: Stayed at Mara Sentrim Safari Lodge. good lodge, near entry gate, good food. but i felt that Kekorok Lodge and Fig Tree lodges are far better in terms of location. Kekorok lodge will give the awesome Savannah sunset view..its in the middle of Savannah grasslands. all other lodges are in the hills near the border of the national reserve. Lake Nakuru: Stayed at Merica Hotel. The best hotel in Nakuru town. less than a km from park gate. lodges get full during the peak season and we did not get the lodges. There are other lodges near the park gate but not at level of Merica Hotel. Nairobi : Stayed at Intercontinental opposite side of Parliament in heart of town. must have food in Handi Resturent. Man after 5 days continental food you wont belive how much you will enjoy a full fledged indian resturent. Time July, August and September : The time of great migration. this is the time to visit. book well in advance for cheaper rates and better hotels. book baloon safari also in advance. even though balooning cost $ 450 per person, it fills up so fast. We did not get booking. Highlights: 1. Game Drive in Masai Mara 2. Lake Nakuru Flamingo 3. Wild life viewing with a failed lion attack on Zebra 4. Sunset with Acacia/yellow fever tree. 5. Lake Naivasha boating and amazing bird life. Must Avoid: The Masai Village. This is fake and nothing but waste of money. Do not do it.


flamingo flight
Made by Partha C
flock of flamingo flies over lake Nakuru in kenya... Lake Nakuru is a volcanic lake with brackish water which has a lot of algae which attracts the pink beauties. The Story ---------------------------------------------------------------- No of Days : 5 Days. Flights: Delhi - Dubai - Nairobi Delhi to Dubai by Jet Airways and Dubai to Nairobi by Kenya Airways. Depart Delhi at 7. 30 PM and arrive at Nairobi at 6 AM of Day 1. Nairobi - Dubai - Delhi Depart Nairobi at 12.30 PM of Day 5 and reach Delhi at 3 AM Flight cost INR 25000 per person. There are direct flights from mumbai though, but delhi mumbai sector is costly. Its better to take Dubai route from Delhi. Masai Mara: Stayed at Mara Sentrim Safari Lodge. good lodge, near entry gate, good food. but i felt that Kekorok Lodge and Fig Tree lodges are far better in terms of location. Kekorok lodge will give the awesome Savannah sunset view..its in the middle of Savannah grasslands. all other lodges are in the hills near the border of the national reserve. Lake Nakuru: Stayed at Merica Hotel. The best hotel in Nakuru town. less than a km from park gate. lodges get full during the peak season and we did not get the lodges. There are other lodges near the park gate but not at level of Merica Hotel. Nairobi : Stayed at Intercontinental opposite side of Parliament in heart of town. must have food in Handi Resturent. Man after 5 days continental food you wont belive how much you will enjoy a full fledged indian resturent. Time July, August and September : The time of great migration. this is the time to visit. book well in advance for cheaper rates and better hotels. book baloon safari also in advance. even though balooning cost $ 450 per person, it fills up so fast. We did not get booking. Highlights: 1. Game Drive in Masai Mara 2. Lake Nakuru Flamingo 3. Wild life viewing with a failed lion attack on Zebra 4. Sunset with Acacia/yellow fever tree. 5. Lake Naivasha boating and amazing bird life. Must Avoid: The Masai Village. This is fake and nothing but waste of money. Do not do it.


beautiful beginnings
Made by Chris Lombardi
Yes, it’s a bit heavy-handed, and it’s not the greatest exposure, but I included it here for the kid’s sweatshirt. It may be a little hard to read, but it’s a “God Bless America,” “Pray For Our Troops,” “Operation Desert Storm” sweat shirt from 1991. How the hell did this 14-year old piece of propaganda end up on an orphaned street boy in Nakuru, Kenya? American second-hand clothing is all over Kenya. Strange stuff, too. I saw a Billy Joel concert t-shirt from 1993. An Alpha Phi sorority t-shirt commemorating an especially significant barbeque. A Philadelphia Renaissance Faire t-shirt. The funniest (and I still kick myself for not having the balls to take a picture) was a Kenyan man with a large pot belly wearing a “Caution: Baby Under Construction” t-shirt. The clothing donated to second-hand stores in the U.S. and Canada is being sold--for a profit--in developing countries. Which would be fine--better than the landfill, I guess--but for the fact that this secondhand trade has devastated Kenya’s textile industry. Kenya once had a thriving textile sector. It also once had protective tariffs on imported clothing to aid that native industry. But the Kenyan government dropped those tariffs, probably as a result of pressure by the International Monetary Fund--a condition on aid in the servicing of Kenya‘s World Bank debt, no doubt--and in flowed the tattered Toronto Maple Leaf jerseys and the “Virginia is For Lovers” pullovers, and out flowed desperately needed Kenyan jobs. A fine example of how “free trade” often works out for developing countries. I’ve heard that a documentary film is in the works exploring American secondhand clothing and the developing world. 247_4704


Thomson's Gazelle (Eudorcas thomsoni) grazing in Lake Nakuru
Made by Saran Vaid
www.saranvaid.com The Thomson's gazelle (Eudorcas thomsoni) is one of the best-known gazelles. It is named after explorer Joseph Thomson, and is often referred to as the tommy. It is considered by some (e.g. Kingdon 1997) to be a subspecies of the Red-fronted Gazelle (E. rufifrons). It was formerly considered a member of the genus Gazella within the subgenus Eudorcas before Eudorcas was elevated to genus status. They have light brown coats with white underparts and a distinctive black stripe. Their horns are long and pointed with slight curvature. The white patch on their rump extends to underneath the tail but no further. A mistake sometimes made is the misidentification of Grant's Gazelles as Thomson's Gazelles. Although some Grant's do have the black stripe running across their sides, the white on their rump always extends above the tail. Thomson's gazelles live in Africa's savannas and grassland habitats, particularly the Serengeti region of Kenya and Tanzania, though they can also be found in Ethiopia, Somalia, and Sudan. They eat low vegetation and grass. Most of the water they need comes from what they eat. Though it's one of the most common gazelles in its range, the population size is not large due to its limited range. Thomson's gazelles often congregate with other hoofed mammals, or ungulates, such as wildebeest and zebra and usually live and migrate in herds with hundreds or thousands of other gazelles. The social structure of gazelles consists of several types of groups. The gazelle is a favored prey item for the cheetah


Hippopotamus (Hippopotamus amphibius kiboko) Flodhäst
Made by Rαtαtoskr
This Hippo was all alone on this stretch. As far as we could see, Hippos here in Nakuru where never in large groups, like in other areas of Kenya. I don't know why that is. Many of the wild animals here where lone individuals or in very small groups, often 2 or 3. The word Hippopotamus come from the Greek words hippos, horse, and potamos, river. The Hippopotamus is semi-aquatic, inhabiting rivers and lakes where territorial bulls preside over a stretch of river and groups of 5 to 30 females and young. During the day they remain cool by staying in the water or mud; reproduction and childbirth both occur in water. They emerge at dusk to graze on grass. While hippopotamuses rest near each other in the water, grazing is a solitary activity and hippos are not territorial on land. Despite their physical resemblance to pigs and other terrestrial even-toed ungulates, their closest living relatives are cetaceans (whales, porpoises, etc.). The common ancestor of whales and hippos split from other even-toed ungulates around 60 million years ago. The earliest known hippopotamus fossils, belonging to the genus Kenyapotamus in Africa, date to around 16 million years ago. Hippopotami are ill-tempered animals. Adult hippos are hostile toward crocodiles, which often live in the same pools and rivers as hippos. This is especially so when hippo calves are around. Nile crocodiles, along with Lions and Spotted Hyenas, may prey on young hippos. Hippos are very aggressive towards humans and are often considered one of the most dangerous large animals in Africa. Hippos attack humans and boats.


Egyptian Goose (Alopochen aegyptiacus) Nilgås
Made by Rαtαtoskr
This was quite a fight. The Cormorant was agressive and launching at both parents. See how the parents put themselves in the way, protecting the chicks. The male Goose was the one physically fighting with the Cormorant, The female was mostly showing agression and hissing. Cormorants are quite smart so I'm wondering what the purpose of the taunting was. If any of you knows, please inform me. This 63 to 73 cm long species breeds widely in Africa except in deserts and dense forests, and is locally abundant. They are found mostly in the Nile Valley and south of the Sahara. It has also been introduced elsewhere; Great Britain, the Netherlands and Germany have self-sustaining feral populations. This is a largely terrestrial species, which will also perch readily on trees and buildings. It swims well, and in flight looks heavy, more like a goose than a duck, hence the English name. This species will nest in a large variety of situations, especially in holes in mature trees in parkland. Egyptian Geese usually pair for life. The sexes of this striking species are identical in plumage, though the males average slightly larger. Egyptian geese typically eat seeds, leaves, grasses, and plant stems. Occasionally, they will eat locusts, worms, or other small animals. Egyptian geese were considered sacred by the ancient Egyptians, and appeared in much of their artwork. Reference: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egyptian_geese


Lesser Flamingo (Phoenicopterus minor) Mindre flamingo
Made by Rαtαtoskr
The Lesser Flamingo is the smallest flamingo. They generally weigh 2.0 kg, are about 1 meter long, stand 1 meter tall, and have a wingspan of 1 meter. This species feeds primarily on Spirulina, a cyanobacteria which grows only in very alkaline lakes. Although blue-green in colour, the bacteria contains the photosynthetic pigments that gives the birds their pink colour. Their deep bill is specialised for filtering tiny food items. Lesser Flamingos are predated on by a variety of species including Marabou Storks, baboons, African Fish Eagles and jackals. Like all flamingos, they lay a single chalky white egg on mounds they build of mud. Chicks join creches soon after hatching, sometimes numbering over a hundred thousand individuals. The creches are marshalled by a few adult birds who lead them by foot to fresh water, a journey that can reach over 32 km. Despite being the most numerous species of flamingo, it is classified as near-threatened due to its declining population and the low number of breeding sites, some of which are threatened by human activities. The population in the two key east African lakes, Nakuru and Bogoria, have been adversely affected in recent years by suspected heavy metal poisoning, while its primary African breeding area in Lake Natron is currently under threat by a proposed soda ash plant by Tata Chemicals. The only breeding site in South Africa, situated at Kamfers Dam, is threathened by pollution and encroaching development.


Great White Pelican (Pelecanus onocrotalus) Vit pelikan
Made by Rαtαtoskr
The Great White Pelican is one of the worlds largest birds with a wing span of up to 360 cm and a weight of up to 15kg for males. The length of the male is around 175cm and females around 150cm. The fishing technique of these birds demands the shallow, warm water of lakes, deltas, marshes and swamps. A social and cooperative bird, the great white pelican fishes in the early morning, spending the remainder of the day preening and bathing. Great white pelicans are exploited for many reasons. The pouch is used to make tobacco bags, the skin is turned into leather, the guano is used as fertiliser, and the fat of young pelicans is converted into oils for traditional medicine in China (what a surprise. They drive ALL world species to extincion with their ridiculous believes) and India. Human disturbance, loss of foraging habitat and breeding sites, and pollution are all contributing to the decline of the great white pelican. It was previously heavily persecuted by guano collectors as the pelican preys upon other guano-producing birds. Ref.: www.arkive.org


IDP camp
Made by .:exigeante:.
View On Black these are a few of the amazing women living in the IDP (Internally Displaced Persons) camp in Nakuru, Kenya. in the post-election violence of Dec 2007 these people had their homes and businesses torched and were chased from their land by other tribes. for months they lived along the side of the road, too terrified to return home. earlier this year an amazing businessman and humanitarian we work with purchased a huge plot of land for the IDPs so they could begin to rebuild their lives. We are helping to build permanent structures for the 250+ IDPs (ranging from babies to a 114 year old woman) to call home. in the interim, every single one of them are living under one leaky tarp held up by tree branches...but they are off the streets and have formed a community. on this day when we visited, we were welcomed by everyone standing in the rain, singing, dancing, and embracing us...and they then proceeded to share with us what little food they had. phenomenal, beautiful, resilient people.


Marabou Stork - Leptoptilos crumeniferus
Made by Rαtαtoskr
The Marabou Stork. Impressive, and the largest of storks. Height = 152 centimeters. Weight = up to 9kg. Life span = more than 30 years. Wing span = 3.2 meters. - Marabou storks are attracted to grass fires. They march in front of the advancing fire grabbing animals that are fleeing. - The pouch on their throat is not used for food storage; it is more likely used in courtship. - Marabous get much of their food through scavenging. They are attracted to lion kills, domestic stockyards, plowed fields, and rubbish piles. - Marabous nest in the dry season when carrion and evaporating pools that contain the natural prey necessary to raise their young are available. - These storks need to eat more than 700 g (1.6 lbs) of food a day. - A marabou stork’s bill grows all its life and can be 13.6 inches (34.6 centimeters) long. The large, heavy bill is a formidable weapon against other scavengers, even hyenas and jackals. - Storks are usually quiet, but they can make a variety of sounds that range from hissing, honking, and croaking to squealing, mooing, and whistling.


African Fish Eagle (Haliaeetus vocifer) Skrikhavsörn
Made by Rαtαtoskr
This is a great spot for the Eagle to sit and wait for an opportunity. This Acacia tree is just by the Nakuru lake where all the flamingos and other birds congregate in huge numbers. The African Fish Eagle is found near any water containing fish and so present across most of Africa except for the arid north east. It has a very distinctive call which is one of the distinctive sounds of Kenya (once heard it is never forgotten). It is particularly common in and around some of the Rift Valley lakes. Although, as its name suggests, it feeds extensively on fish, in some areas (eg Lake Bogoria) it preys on flamingos and other water birds. It is also known to eat carrion and is classified as a kleptoparasite ie it steals prey from other birds. Goliath Herons are known to lose a percentage of their catch to Fish Eagles. The African Fish Eagle is a large bird, and the female, at 3.2-3.6 kg is larger than the male, at 2-2.5 kg. Males usually have a wingspan of about 2 m, while females have wingspans of 2.4 m. The length is 63-75 cm.


Hart antelope
Made by angela7dreams
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boy sniffing glue at post office, nakuru, kenya
Made by Chris Lombardi
One of the most difficult and instructive photos i've taken, for obvious reasons and many others. It continues to ask me some tough questions about both photography and the world. I was in Kenya visiting a friend working for Expanding Opportunities, a very small NGO seeking sustainable solutions to some of Kenya's most pressing problems. The flagship project is the Joseph Waweru Home School for Boys, a small farm run by a Kenyan pastor and his wife that provides shelter, food, schooling, and guidance to street boys like this one. The healthy, smiling, rapping, jumping boys in my are nearly all former glue-sniffing street orphans, now all enrolled in school and trade programs. Their resilience, energy, and good nature--in spite of the shitty hand they've been dealt--astounded me. These boys were my teachers. 237_3721 (the most interesting glue-sniffing image on FLICKR. SUPPORT AFRICAN DEBT RELIEF AND FAIR TRADE PRACTICES.)


starlings
Made by Chris Lombardi
My best wildlife experience in Kenya was not in the game parks, but up here, on the rooftop of a seedy hotel in the city of Nakuru. From here I would look out over the rusted tin roofs of Nakuru town to Lake Nakuru on the horizon, and feel despair for the future of Kenya’s natural environment. Lake Nakuru is a protected park, but it is surrounded on all sides by humanity and its rapacious demands. Kenya’s population growth rate is one of the highest on the planet, an astounding 4% per annum , so those demands are increasing explosively, leaving little elbow room for hope. It was the birds that would save me from a total funk. Especially the starlings. These beautiful, clever, resourceful birds, who visited the rooftop of the hotel to drink from its leaky plumbing every evening, spoke to me of life’s resilience and adaptability. 233_3387


evening stroll
Made by angela7dreams
File name Image size :1600 x 1200 Resolution :300 x 300 dpi Number of bits :8bit/channel Protection attribute :Off Hide Attribute :Off Camera ID :N/A Camera :E775 Quality mode :NORMAL Metering mode :Spot Exposure mode :Programmed auto Speed light :No Focal length :43.5 mm Shutter speed :1/112.6second Aperture :F14.0 Exposure compensation :0 EV White Balance :Auto Lens :Built-in


high
Made by Chris Lombardi
Consistent with glue-phenomenons in the third world the world over, Kenyan street kids turn to the cheapest, most available drug there is to forget the grumblings in their tummies, the dust, lice, and leaky public toilet roof. this high will last through the day, and this young man won't be hungry until this evening, when the shoe-shops are closed and the effects have worn off. only then will he need to ask passers-by for food and join in the evening's dumpster-barbecue. 247_4733 --caption by


White Rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum) in Lake Nakuru National Park
Made by Saran Vaid
www.saranvaid.com The White Rhinoceros or Square-lipped rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum) is one of the five species of rhinoceros that still exist and is one of the few megafauna species left. Behind only the Elephant, it is probably the most massive remaining land animal in the world. It is well known for its wide mouth used for grazing and for being the most social of all rhino species.


Marabou Stork (Leptoptilos crumeniferus) Marabustork
Made by Rαtαtoskr
It is sometimes called the undertaker bird, due to its shape from behind: cloak-like wings and back, skinny white legs, and sometimes, a large white mass of hair, which mine here has :) This massive bird is thought to reach a height of 150 cm, a weight of over 9 kg, and have a wingspan of at least 3.5 m. In the last regard, it shares the distinction of having the largest wingspan of any land bird with the Andean Condor. Ref.: Wiki


Yellow-billed Stork (Mycteria ibis) Afrikansk ibisstork
Made by Rαtαtoskr
A common stork seen in Kenya just about anywhere it's wet. Generally prefers larger bodies of water. The adult is a whitish bird with a long yellow bill. The juvenile is greyer with a duller bill. Both adult and juvenile have the bare patch on the face although this is more brightly coloured in the adult. Generally seen in groups, it has developed the technique of stirring up the water or mud with one foot to flush out prey.