Lake Bogoria National Reserve

Geysers split the earth without warning, shooting jets of scalding water skyward from the earth's crust, framed by a shoreline that has turned entirely pink. Then the smell hits you; sharp, sulphurous, unmistakable. Lake Bogoria does not look like anywhere else on earth. It feels like it. You really don't go to Lake Bogoria to look at animals. There are plenty of places in Kenya, never mind the rest of Africa, where the gameviewing is far better. Spotting the odd Zebra or Buffalo wandering along the water's edge is a bonus, and there are good herds of Greater Kudu to be found. But what draws most visitors is the extraordinary Loburu hot springs on the western shore, a landscape of otherworldly, bubbling pools and geysers that shoot columns of steam 2.5–3m (8–10 ft) into the air. Be very careful where you step; the superheated mud here can kill. It is highly scenic, the rich colours of volcanic minerals forming an artist's palette against the sheer face of the Rift Wall; and hanging over it all, unmistakably, the sharp, sulphurous smell that tells you the earth here is still very much alive.

About 260 kilometres (162 miles) north of Nairobi and sitting just below the Equator, Lake Bogoria is one of the smallest and shallowest of the alkaline soda lakes that line the Great Rift Valley, no more than 3 metres deep, with no outlet, fed entirely by rainwater draining off the escarpment. Its size and salinity shift significantly with the seasons. Like its sister lakes along the valley floor, it holds no fish, but its waters are exceptionally rich in blue-green algae, the primary food source of the Lesser Flamingo, which gathers here in numbers that can run into the hundreds of thousands. With the flamingos come a host of other waterbirds and raptors, from African Fish Eagles to Bateleurs.

The lake and its surrounding landscape fall within Lake Bogoria National Reserve, which together with the adjacent Lake Kamnarok National Reserve covers approximately 197 square kilometres (76 square miles) of protected Rift Valley wilderness. Within the reserve, visitors can stay at the lakeside lodge, home to one of Kenya's rare natural geothermal spas, fed directly by the same thermal springs that line the lakeshore, or at one of several campsites, ideal for those who want to spend more time exploring the lake on foot or by boat.