The Great Rift has been, for millenia, the major migratory route of
animals and man out of and into Africa. The earliest human beings
passed this way millions of years ago and their fossil remains are
scattered throughout the great length of the Rift. Some of the most
recent archaeological discoveries (at Kapsomin) are less than 50
km from Kerio View.
In southern Ethiopia / northern Kenya the Rift Valley splits into
two branches. The western branch passes to the west of Lake
Victoria, through Uganda, Ruanda/Burundi and Congo. The Eastern
branch passes to the east of Lake Victoria through Kenya and
Tanzania. It is in this part of the Great Rift Valley system --- the
eastern arm --- that the Kerio Valley (and Kerio View) is located.
animals and man out of and into Africa. The earliest human beings
passed this way millions of years ago and their fossil remains are
scattered throughout the great length of the Rift. Some of the most
recent archaeological discoveries (at Kapsomin) are less than 50
km from Kerio View.
In southern Ethiopia / northern Kenya the Rift Valley splits into
two branches. The western branch passes to the west of Lake
Victoria, through Uganda, Ruanda/Burundi and Congo. The Eastern
branch passes to the east of Lake Victoria through Kenya and
Tanzania. It is in this part of the Great Rift Valley system --- the
eastern arm --- that the Kerio Valley (and Kerio View) is located.
The Great Rift is a sequence of fissures in the earth's crust,
stretching for 5000 km (from the Red Sea /Gulf of Aden in the
north to the mouth of the Zambezi river in the south); it is so huge
a geological feature that it is prominently visible to lunar and
space-shuttle astronauts.
stretching for 5000 km (from the Red Sea /Gulf of Aden in the
north to the mouth of the Zambezi river in the south); it is so huge
a geological feature that it is prominently visible to lunar and
space-shuttle astronauts.
The most notable defining features of The Eastern Rift
are volcanos and soda lakes. The volcanos range from
the ancient and extinct, such as the huge mass of Mt.
Elgon, to the recently quiescent (dormant), such as
Teleki's volcano. The soda lakes, numbering about 10,
also range considerably in their characteristics. Some are
very small, others large. Most are shallow, but one or
two are moderately deep. They vary considerably in
soda concentration, from the slightly soapy freshwater
of Lake Turkana, which supports a rich aquatic flora
and fauna, to the intensely alkaline Lakes Magadi and
Natron, which have virtually no life, except highly
adapted and specialised algae and fish.
The deeply faulted and greatly eroded volcanic blocks
of the Eastern Rift Valley present some of the most
spectacular and wildly, beautiful scenery in the world. It
is a land of lowland deserts and highland plateaux and
mountain forests; a land of wide spaces, with always the
prospect of spectacular sunrises and sunsets over the
distant hills and escarpments.
are volcanos and soda lakes. The volcanos range from
the ancient and extinct, such as the huge mass of Mt.
Elgon, to the recently quiescent (dormant), such as
Teleki's volcano. The soda lakes, numbering about 10,
also range considerably in their characteristics. Some are
very small, others large. Most are shallow, but one or
two are moderately deep. They vary considerably in
soda concentration, from the slightly soapy freshwater
of Lake Turkana, which supports a rich aquatic flora
and fauna, to the intensely alkaline Lakes Magadi and
Natron, which have virtually no life, except highly
adapted and specialised algae and fish.
The deeply faulted and greatly eroded volcanic blocks
of the Eastern Rift Valley present some of the most
spectacular and wildly, beautiful scenery in the world. It
is a land of lowland deserts and highland plateaux and
mountain forests; a land of wide spaces, with always the
prospect of spectacular sunrises and sunsets over the
distant hills and escarpments.
KERIO VIEW
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Africa's Great Rift
