Great Rift Valley (Bonde la Ufa)

The Great Rift Valley, or Bonde la Ufa, consists of a series of goegraphic depressions starts in southern Turkey and stretches south through the Red Sea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania and Mozambique for some 7,000 km (4,300 mi). Where the depression is deeper, lakes exist, such as Lake Malawi and Lake Tanganyika. The Great Rift Valley also includes a number of wildlife parks.

The depressions are formed in places where tectonic plates separate from one another. The Great Rift Valley is the result of the African plate splitting into two new and separate plates that are generally referred to as the Nubian and the Somali plates.

The Ethiopian part of the Rift Valley is a beautiful lush area that includes 7 large lakes and several national parks. There is a bus service between the capital and the 7 lakes. More to the south the area becomes drier and finally turns into semi desert near the border with Kenya.

In Kenya the Rift Valley covers the area around Lake Turkana, the Cherangani Hills and the lakes of Baringo, Bogoria, Nakuru and Naivasha to the south. The area boasts some of the most interesting places to visit in the country. The northern part around Lake Turkana is semi-desert, while more to the south it becomes more covered with vegetation. In the Cherangani Hills the roads have hair-raising bends and the views are fantastic. South of the hills, the area around the smaller lakes attracts numerous bird species and other animals. There are several interesting towns and national parks in the Kenyan part of the Rift Valley.

In Tanzania the Rift Valley runs from the northeast towards the Indian Ocean in the east. The Tanzanian part of the Rift Valley includes three lakes, Lake Natron, Lake Manyara and Lake Eyasi. The Ngorongoro Conservation Area, as well as the Tarangire National Park partly cover the valley.