Mount Kenya

High altitude Kenya offers something for everyone. There are refreshing hill walks through bird rich areas or more active hikes into montane forests. Above all there is mighty Mount Kenya, formerly known as Mount Kirinyaga; the name Kenya has been known to have been derived from Mt. Kenya whose slopes are the perfect trekking destination.

Mount Kenya Trekking

The mountain is located 180 kilometers north of Nairobi and can often be seen from high-rise buildings in Nairobi and from Thika. It is an extinct volcano, which formed a couple of million years ago. The mountain is located in the Mount Kenya National Park, which is a designated protected area around the mountain above 3200m altitude. The Kenya Wildlife Service manages the park. The national park covers an area of 700 square kilometers and was established in 1949.

The mountain has two main peaks - Batian (5200m) and Nelion (5188m); while the 5199 metre summit is a difficult technical climb, the lesser peak of Point Lenana (4985m) can be easily reached by any fit trekker. This trek takes between 3 and 5 days, through a fascinating world of forests, wildlife, and unique montane vegetation including podocarpus and groundsel, and finally one of the world’s rarest sights, equatorial snow.

Hiking Mount Kenya

The mountain’s alpine peak is a challenging technical summit for the experienced mountaineer compared to Africa’s Highest Mountain, Kilimanjaro which is relatively easier to climb and the main summit – Peak Uhuru can be reached by most climbers. Northern Kenya is a fairly arid region with little rainfall and abundant sunshine year round. This is camel country. Average temperatures vary between 104 and 68 Fahrenheit (40 and 20 Celsius). The best time to visit this area is June, July, August and December

ETS - Kenya safari