Lake Naivasha

Lake Naivasha is a place I return to because it’s never exactly the same twice, even in the same month.

Getting there is straightforward if you plan around the road access and the weather window for the season.

The core habitat at Lake Naivasha is freshwater lake and papyrus fringe, and the best of it is concentrated in a handful of places that reward slow walking.

My default advice is to go year-round, best june through october. Outside that window there are still good days here, but the baseline quality drops.

Gear advice is boring: something long, something short, and enough layers that you’re not rearranging in the car.

On my first visit I missed the best light because I drove past the turnoff twice. I don’t anymore.

Anyone who tells you Lake Naivasha is an easy place hasn’t been on a day where the wind picked up by nine.

If you go, take nothing, leave nothing, and be quieter than you think you need to be.