Lake Naivasha

Rift Valley stretches from the Dead Sea in the Middle East, south through the Red Sea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi and into Mozambique. Major geological upheavals caused a series of lakes in the Kenyan part of Rift, some of which are soda lakes, but others are freshwater, like Lake Naivasha which I had a chance to visit during a short stay.
The lake is almost 13kms across, fringed by thick papyrus. Its waters are shallow with an average depth of five metres. Lake area varies greatly according to rainfall, with an average range between 114 and 991 sq kms. At the beginning of the 20th Century, Naivasha completely dried up and effectively disappeared. The resulting open land was farmed, until heavy rains a few years later caused the lake to return to existence, swallowing up the newly established estates.
Afternoon wind and storms can cause the Lake to become suddenly rough and produce high waves. For this reason, the local Maasai christened the lake Nai’posha meaning ''rough water'', which the British later misspelt as Naivasha..

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