Lake Natron is home to thousands of flamingoes it is the world’s biggest breeding point of greater and lesser flamingoes, it is strategically located along the northern circuit of Tanzania near the Ngorongoro crater and is surrounded by Mountain Oldonyio Lengai, an active volcano with unique Lava compared to other active volcanoes of East Africa, the Lake is defined as deadly by the locals because of its composition, it has high alkaline levels influenced by the presence of the volcano, sometimes the Lake is red, at times red-green, the waters are poisonous and animals cannot drink from it, they end up dead or turned into mummies according to findings.
Bird watching at Lake Natron is the best thing to do while here, you not only get to see birds but also the beauty of the rift valley region, there are over 200 species recorded at the lake, example species include greater Flamingoes, ostrich, white faced whistling duck, knob billed duck, Egyptian goose, red billed duck, crested francolin, helmeted guinea fowl, little grebe, speckled pigeon, red eyed dove, bare faced go away bird, red chested cuckoo, sombre night jar, little swift, grey crowned crane, black billed plover bird, common snipe to mention a few. Besides birds at Lake Natron there are mammal species present or example zebras, gazelles, eared Oryx, lesser kudus and golden jackals despite these being present they are rare to see.
Bird watching at Lake Natron is best done on a flamingo walk along its banks, this is led by an experienced guide who will take you through the checklist of birds of Lake Natron, birds are best seen in the months of October and august, this is also a breeding time for the species of Flamingoes and hence perfect timing for seeing the birds. To enjoy a birding experience at the Lake, it is wise to carry binoculars, proper hiking shoes, insect repellants, and any other items of personal nature.
Besides birding at Lake Natron, there are other things to do while at the Lake for example hiking Mountain OlOdonyio, it takes 2-3 days doing the activity, the view of the surrounding community is magical and great to explore, guided nature walks, and visiting the local Masai people, these are the original inhabitants of the Lake region, they have one of the most unique and strongest cultures. They perform and dance to their traditional music, visitors have the chance to enjoy the dancing and participate. Talk a walk to the humid foot print point, it a unique place of the world where human foot prints from homo sapiens have been well preserved for over 2000 years ago.
Bird watching at Lake Natron can be combined together with that of the Ngorongoro crater to have a chance to experience both ecosystems at a go, the Lake region is a perfect blend of the great northern circuit safari experience. Lake Natron can be visited any time of the year but best during the dry season between the months of December to February and June –August when the trails of are much drier and easy to access.