Portal:Kenya/Selected location/22

Nakuru County is a county in Kenya. The capital and largest town is Nakuru, although Naivasha is another major significant urban centre. With a population of 1,603,325 (2009 census), it is the fourth largest county in Kenya after Nairobi, Kakamega and Kiambu in that order in terms of population. Nakuru County has an area of 2,325.8 km².

Nakuru is an agriculturally-oriented area and is home to Lake Nakuru and Lake Naivasha some of the Rift Valley soda lakes. Lake Nakuru is best known for its thousands, sometimes millions of flamingoes nesting along the shores. The surface of the shallow lake is often hardly recognisable due to the continually shifting mass of pink. The number of flamingoes on the lake varies with water and food conditions and the best vantage point is from Baboon cliff. Also of interest, an area of 188 km around the lake fenced off as a sanctuary to protect Rothschild giraffe and black rhinos.

Other sites of interest around Nakuru include Menengai Crater, an extinct volcano 2,490m (8,167 ft) high. The views of the crater itself, as well as the surrounding countryside, are spectacular. (Read more...)