Nairobi to Turkana

Visiting Lake Turkana National Park is an adventure worth the effort for travelers. The region features stunning, arid volcanic landscapes surrounding a salty, crocodile-filled crater lake known as the “Jade Sea.” Additionally, there are traditional fishing villages and communities to explore.

If you’re travelling from Nairobi, it takes approximately six hours to reach Samburu National Reserve, which is about 300km away. Spending a night in a tented camp by the river is a great way to enjoy the beautiful setting. On day two, a shorter four- to five-hour drive will take you to Marsabit National Park, an unexpected oasis of green in the desert and home to an extinct volcano. Spending a night at Kalacha, which is located on the edge of the Chalbi Desert (around four hours from Marsabit), is an excellent way to experience solitude and the desert landscapes before embarking on an eight-hour drive to Loiyangalani on Lake Turkana’s eastern shores.

The highlight of the trip is walking and exploring the “Jade Sea” of Lake Turkana, with its crocodiles, hippos, and migratory birds. The El Molo tribe, one of Kenya’s smallest communities, lives in this region and makes a living from fishing. They braved the crocodile-filled waters to do so.