One More Trip to Kenya

After Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania Mount Kenya is the tallest mountain in Africa at 17058 feet (5199 meters). It lies 124 miles (200 kilometers) north of Nairobi and is almost round with three main peaks rising up in the middle: Batian Nelion and Lenana. The peaks were named for ancient Maasai chiefs one of the four tribes that used to live around the mountain. It takes four days for any fit person to reach Lenana Point but only experienced mountaineers can climb the other two peaks.

In 1899 Point Nelion was scaled for the first time in history. Forty-four years later three Italian prisoners of war held by the British climbed to Point Lenana planted the Italian flag to tease their captors and then marched proudly back to prison.

Mount Kenya straddles the equator so you’d expect it to be very hot but in fact it’s so high that it’s topped with 11 glaciers. There used to be more but over the last hundred years many have disappeared completely. Since no new snow falls no new ice can be formed so the rest of the glaciers are shrinking and may disappear within 30 years. The weather on the mountain is summer during the day and winter during the night.

Climbing the mountain you walk through several different zones. The lower slopes of the mountain are farmlands. A little higher and the rainforest begins. Sadly many of the trees have been cut down for firewood. In the forest you must watch out for elephants and buffalo. But don’t worry too much … they usually roam at night when you are sleeping safely in a hut or tent. You’ll also see rock hyrax (a mammal that looks like a guinea pig) antelopes birds and monkeys.