Mount Kenya

Overview

Mount Kenya is an eroded stratovolcano rising to 5,199 metres at Batian, with Nelion a few metres lower and Point Lenana, at 4,985 metres, the trekking summit. Batian and Nelion are technical rock climbs; Lenana is a walk, and it is the goal for almost everyone. At close range the mountain is more beautiful than Kilimanjaro: the upper slopes are Afro-alpine moorland of giant groundsels and lobelias, tarns and hanging valleys, with the last glaciers clinging to the summit block. Three main routes lead up - Naro Moru, the fastest and steepest, with the notorious Vertical Bog; Sirimon, the driest and the best for acclimatisation; and Chogoria, the most beautiful, past the Gorges Valley and Lake Michaelson. Below the moorland the forest belt holds elephant, buffalo and colobus monkeys. The mountain is sacred to the Kikuyu as the home of Ngai, and the national park is a UNESCO World Heritage site.