Kenya, Day 2 - Rift Valley, Hell's Gate, Geothermal Spa

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Day 2, we woke up fairly early, had an.... interesting breakfast. The Galaxy Resort definitely tried and they were so, so friendly, but the food was strange. The resort in general was memorable for being so different. We then had a good 90 minute drive, back past Nairobi, heading north towards our next destination: Hell's Gate National Park.

Great Rift Valley

First though, we drove down a mountain road where you had incredible views of the Great Rift Valley. As a geologist, this is one of the things we learned about way back in University. We did not dwell on it much back in the US, but it was an area of interest for me. There area actually multiple segments on what has been known as the Great Rift Valley and we were in the area of the East African Rift, which starts from the Red Sea, goes through Ethiopia and then extends south through Tanzania, ending in the area of some of the deepest lakes in the world (i.e. Lake Victoria). In Kenya, the feature is clearly visible due to high escarpments on either end of the valley, as well as volcanoes and lakes within the valley itself.

As we drove north from Nairobi and headed toward the parks we would be visiting, we noticed the air was a bit cooler as we increased in elevation a bit. But soon we were traveling down a readout along the escarpment. To our left, were amazing views over the green valley below. We soon stopped at a busy overlook, which also had vendors and toilets (which I avoided). We spent about 15 minutes getting photos here. I was geeking out a bit - it was just such an incredible view and it was one of those times where I amazed at some of the places I get to visit.

Hell's Gate National Park

Continuing on for another 40 minutes or so, we went down and then into the valley itself. We passed by Mountain Longonot, a dormant volcano with a beautiful rim that I was supposed to have hiked back in January (dang you Covid!). It was beautiful. Mount Longonot erupted over 100 years ago, and affected the nearby areas, included Hell's Gate.

We soon drove up a gravel road to the park and there were picked out our bikes to travel within. Since there are no real carnivores in the park, you can wander freely, unlike many other national parks in Kenya. So, after getting our usual group photo, we made our way along the gravel road into the park. After just a couple of kilometers, with a view of zebras grazing in the distance, we stopped at a meeting point at the Lion King rock. Supposedly, this rock and area in general inspired some of the settings created for the animated film The Lion King. Indeed, you could see why. We saw some people rock climbing up and noted some hyrax animals (I just found out what those were) hanging around their little camp. What I mostly loved was seeing obsidian fragments along the ground! They were all over the gravel road and I saw a sign for Obsidian Caves, 6 km in the opposite direction, but sadly we were not going that way. Obsidian is my favorite rock, which is formed by rapid cooling from lava.

After meeting up, we took a little hike into the hills. Honestly, we were not given an accurate time of how long or how difficult the hike would be, so we should have had more water with us as it was getting to be a warm day. We walked down a 4WD road and then behind a hill where we hiked up about 40 minutes - I think we could have gone faster but some in group were slow, plus we were not really ready for an actual hike. We even got separated into three groups and had difficulty meeting up. However, it was totally worth it as we got incredible views of the Hell's Gate park below - we could see the iconic rock, zebras grazing, people hanging out, and Mount Longomot in the distance. We took lots of photos here.

We came back down and continued on our bikes to the end, basically going at our own pace. A van was parked just past our hiking spot to hand out some water to everyone. It was so beautiful and amazing to be so close to the wildlife. So many zebras were nearby and we saw some giraffes further down, as well as some gazelle and eland later. We also passed other cyclists, including a huge family group, who were enjoying the beautiful day.

After a total of 10km, we were directed to our stopping point. From here we got back into our vans and continued to our lunch spot. It was getting close to 3 at this point, but we did a short hike into the gorge, where we ate our packed lunch of various items from the Galaxy Resort (we actually had plenty of options: sandwich, fruit, fruit juice, chips). We picked our spots sitting on the rocks with incredible views over the gorge. The guides asked us if we wanted to hike down, but because it was getting so late, we were worried we would miss the next two points of interest.

Masai

After lunch, we hiked back to the souvenir area, but then up the hill heading toward the Masai village. In fact, there was no longer a village here due to the nearby geothermal plants. They had been relocated at the plants' expense, but it was still considered an important heritage area for the Masai people. There was a small well-built hut that looked in great shape - apparently, this is the new type of structure that the Masai in the area now have due to the funds from the plants. There were a group of Masai men in traditional dress with one of their leaders who told us some of the information about their people.

The Masai have 5 important people in their tribe: midwife, herbalist, blacksmith, chief counselor and grandmother. Grandmother's house is the biggest and each night they use it to teach stories and basic skills. They have their traditional dances, which they selected me to participate in the jumping portion! I still need to find those videos! They also where tartan shawls, which was adopted from the Scottish culture, one of their first interactions with the west.

There are different types of Masai spread throughout Kenya and Tanzania. The Kilkonyet are pure nomads, while most now have permanent settlements and just allow their animals to graze. It was very interesting to hear about them, without interrupting their day-to-day lives. We made our way back to the vans, picking up a few souvenirs on the way.

Geothermal Spa

Our next stop was the geothermal spa, created from the output of the nearby geothermal plants. Again, I was geeking out as we drove through the plant area. While it is a bit sad to see such a huge industrial complex so close to a natural paradise, it was also well done and necessary. They also provide the outfall from the production for this beautiful spa park, similar to the way the Blue Lagoon functions (most people do not realize that these are not natural hot springs, but created from the geothermal extraction process). Anyway, most of us changed into our swimsuits (a few opted out) and headed into the hot water, having arrived just before they were to close. Wow, it was hot. There are a couple input areas, but the main one is located in the back of the giant pool and as you get closer, you can feel the higher temperatures. There is no real regulation of the heat of the flow, so it comes in waves. At one point, like five of us are in a group, and we decided this was as far as we can go. It was almost scalding! It was fun to watch some of the locals sitting right up next to the inflow - brave people! The spa had a great vibe - just families out having a fun day. I loved seeing the plants just behind the spa - it was really interesting. We stayed for just under an hour before heading out.

Lake Elementaita

We got back into the vans as the sun was setting and continued on to our accommodation for the night. About halfway there, we stopped at a decent mall (Buffalo mall?) where most of us went into the grocery store for supplies: alcohol and snacks, just in case the food situation did not improve. I got a bottle of wine. My bus was a little low key and I was the only drinker, so I drank from my bottle alone. At one point, we were supposed to cross a bridge, but the traffic was completely stopped. The guides heard there was an accident ahead and said we could be here for 30 minutes or until morning, who knows. Yikes. So, a few of us got out to stretch our legs, when suddenly the traffic started to move again. Yay! I think it was around 8pm at this point.

We got to our hotel at about 8:30pm and oh my god it was amazing!!! Sentrim Elementaita Lodge. I wish we could have stayed here the whole time and I definitely recommend it to others. They were so friendly, the rooms were great, the grounds were beautiful, and the food was actually (not great) good. Since we got in so late, we immediately sat down for dinner before going to our rooms. It was much better than the first hotel and we got drinks to go with it. I think we were all so happy to rest and it was a cherry on top to be at such a nice place. However, they kept us up at the restaurant for a while for a 'surprise' - the staff had a celebration for us where they sang and danced, and brought out a couple of cakes for Trekkup's 10th anniversary. The cake was a bit dry, but it was a great gesture and again, so nice! Finally, we were taken to our rooms, where we each had our own, and each was a large private circular hut. I loved it! I was supposed to go back out to hang with my friends, but I pretty much passed out immediately.

The next morning, I was up fairly early and walked along the grounds taking photos of the lake and resort. They had had an early morning nature walk at like 6am, but I think we were all just exhausted at this point. The breakfast was buffet style so had a bit more options and again, they were super friendly. So, day 2 was another success!

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Comments

[D MJ Binkley]

Nice photo
Nothing better than exploring the world.