Lake Natron sits at the lowest point of the valley in East Africa at an altitude of 600m or 2000 feet above sea level. Here the water evaporates leaving behind very high concentrations of soda. Algae and zooplankton thrive in this water, which in turn supports great numbers of flamingos. The combination of remoteness and the hostility of the soda mud flats provides the flamingos with a relatively safe area to breed and rear chicks. The lake is also surrounded by scattered springs, some of which are fresh enough to provide drinking water for many species of animals, large and small.
The Great Rift Valley stretches from northern Ethiopia to Mozambique in the south, a distance of about 5600km. The valley is created by two tectonic plates moving apart causing the valley floor to drop down leaving intact and fragmented valley walls or escarpments. The prominent escarpment in this area lies to the west. Volcanoes and craters of different ages are scattered around the valley. Oldoinyo Lengai (Mountain of God) is the only active volcano in Tanzania. Volcanism around the Great Rift Valley produces soda (Sodium Carbonate), which is washed down by rain and groundwater.
Lake Natron lies about 70 miles (113 km) northwest of Arusha, the capital city of the Arusha Region in Tanzania. It is about 35 miles (56 km) long and 15 miles (24 km) wide and has a surface elevation of 600 meters (2,000 ft). The lake is fed by the Southern Ewaso Ng'iro River, which rises in central Kenya, and by mineral-rich hot springs.
