Mount Kenya Climbing, YHA Kenya Travel, Mountain Adventures.
Find best advice on Mount Kenya climbing information, prices, budget, best times, weather, climbing gears, route options, safety measures, what to take, guides, porters, and cooks including tour packages and book tours from travel experts in Mountaineering, Mount Kenya Climbing Adventures, budget holidays and Trips.
If you are looking for adventure travel activities in Kenya, Get to see as you discover the Heritage Mountain Kenya, Climbing Mount Kenya, A wonderful location to enjoy your adventure while on short break holiday in Kenya. We offer the best price guarantee on an All Inclusive package Prices.
YHA Kenya Travel prides itself as the best-experienced tour operator, offering good value tours with best prices on our personalized tailor-made Kenya adventure safaris hiking trips. That caters to all budgets independent travelers, groups, small groups, families, and travelers of all ages and size. We specialize in a wide selection of exciting mountaineering adventure tour activities in East Africa to Places like Mount Kenya, Mount Longonot, Hells Gate, Kilimambogo, and Mount Kilimanjaro among others.
Our expedition tour packages include the following activities. Bush Walking, Photography, bird watching, trekking, hiking and exploring mountains. Summit Peak climbing, rafting, jungle safari, wildlife safaris, cultural visits and family based adventure holiday trips.
Kindly please choose an adventure tour itinerary provided on this site that best suits your interest.
We have wealth of experience working with travel groups and independent travelers especially in organizing and planning expeditions for Explorers, climbers, Trekkers, and hikers of Mountain adventures in Kenya as well as Tanzania. These trips are most exciting, safe, affordable and of good quality to travelers of every nature.
We trust and hope that you will enjoy climbing Mount Kenya and touring around the Kenya National Parks/ Game reserves the most scenic places in Kenya. We will enable you to enjoy your adventure, take awesome photos and save on great budget travel deals that YHA Kenya Travel offers.
A Practical Guide to Climbing Mount Kenya.
How to organize a great Mount Kenya climbing adventure Safari tours, adventure trekking, climbing and hiking holiday expeditions to Mount Kenya.
This adventure guide to Mount Kenya climbing is intended as a useful resource tool for any adventure low or high budget trekker, hiker or climber planning to Adventure and experience Mountain Kenya.
Anyone looking to book an organized budget adventurous,fun-filled climbing expedition trek with experienced guides along with porters gets full support and private transport from Nairobi to the base of Mount Kenya where need be. YHA-Kenya Travel Tours and Safaris is offering you this expert advice on when to climb Mount Kenya, where to start, what you need to pack for the adventure hike, the best climbing scenic routes and recommended packages also best pricing! We can arrange an expedition to explore, trek along all the possible routes as you please.
Activities are very exciting and innovative we ensure that after climbing Mount Kenya you will have a real impact on your life memories.
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Climbing Mount Kenya Overview.
Mount Kenya is Africa’s second-highest mountain after Kilimanjaro. This extinct volcano is estimated to be 2.5 million years old. Time has taken its toll on the former, reducing the peak from 6500m to 5199 m today, while nature’s untiring eroding agents long ago eroded the crater.
Mount Kenya is located about 200km north of Nairobi within the Mount Kenya National Park.
It is very easy to get to Mount Kenya for an adventure hike activity by road in various travel options namely public transport from Nairobi or other towns using minibusses, privately hired vehicle, Taxi or private means.
These options will lead you to towns and trekking routes close to the mountain and mostly on dirt roads. The route town options are Nanyuki town for the Sirimon route, Naro Moru town for Narumoru route and Chogoria town in Meru for Chogoria route.
The park protected an area of 3200m above sea level was established in 1949 and covers an area of 715 sqm. Km. The mountain comprises three main zones: - the rocky peak zone, the afro-alpine moorland with its scattering of giant vegetation and the extensive tower slope covered with mountain forest and a bamboo there are over 81plant species. Any fit and a prepared person can reach point Lenana, the so-called trekker’s peak; the summit has the twin peaks of 5199m Batian and Nelion and is considered more technically challenging than the higher Mt Kilimanjaro at 5894m.
Mount Kenya National Park.
Mount Kenya, at an altitude of 5199 [17058ft] is the country's highest mountain, has its higher slope permanently covered in snow and ice, even though it sits astride the equator.
The National Park comprises the mountain above the 320m [10,500ft] contour plus two salient astride the Naro Moru and the Sirimon routes.
The mountain consists of three peaks the Batian [the highest] Nelion and Lenana. Of these peaks, the original hard center core is all that remains; the bulk of the volcano has been eroded away with time.
Guide to Climbing Mount Kenya Adventures.
Fitness, Altitude, and Safety on Climbing Mount Kenya.
Climbing Mount Kenya is very accessible and therein lies the problem. With a decent level of fitness, it is easy to gain altitude quickly and find yourself the night before summiting with a throbbing headache and all the symptoms of acute mountain sickness.
Trekking with a well-experienced guide, taking a sensible easy pace and keeping hydrated makes all the difference. The best approach is always to allow extra time for your ascent, an extra day at Shipton’s Camp takes all the pressure of the itinerary and gives you time to enjoy the fabulous trekking around the peak. Generally speaking, it isn’t necessary to undergo a grueling fitness regime prior to attempting Mount Kenya, anyone who is trek fit and is comfortable walking 6-8 hours a day should be fine.
Climbing Mount Kenya Guides, Porters, and Cooks.
The trekking crew usually consists of a guide, cook, porter for the cooking gear plus a personal porter per trekker. It has been said before, but a well-experienced guide is so important on Mount Kenya, for two reasons; (1) they will regulate your pace, be able to draw on their experience to diagnose altitude sickness symptoms and have the confidence to make critical decisions and (2) their knowledge of the wildlife and fauna on the mountain will bring the environment alive. All guides and porters must be registered with Kenya Wildlife Services and hold a mountain guide park from Mt Kenya National Park. It is fair to say that all the guides will have a good knowledge of the routes, but only the good guides will have wildlife knowledge and experience of dealing with altitude sickness problems.
Mount Kenya Trekking, Climbing, Hiking Route Options.
There are 5 main Climbing Mount Kenya Routes to the Peak.
1 Mount Kenya Climbing the Sirimon Route:
Sirimon Route is the most popular ascent as the altitude gain is nice and steady and it offers one of the most beautiful approaches to the peaks. Allow a minimum of 2 nights to peak when ascending, although we recommend spending an extra night at the last camp (Shipton’s) on the way up.
2 Mount Kenya Climbing the Burguret Route:
If you want to avoid the crowds then Burguret is the best route. You’ll be hacking through the pristine rainforest on this little-used route, overnighting at wilderness campsites. Going up this route is challenging, it is little more than a game track in places, often muddy and rough underfoot. Burguret is usually combined with a Chogoria or Sirimon route descent. Allow a minimum of 3 nights before peak when ascending.
3 Mount Kenya Climbing the Naro Moru Route:
Naro-Moru is the most popular descent route, fast and easy (at least on the way down!). Naro Moru passes through the notorious vertical bog section which gets much waterlogged in the rainy seasons. The vegetation is at its most striking on this route. It can be descended in one very long day, usually done in two days and one night.
4 Climbing Mount Kenya The Chogoria Route:
If you have more time then choose dramatic Chogoria over Naro Moru for the descent, The Chogoria Route passes by Tarns, waterfalls, and an incredible gorge. Allow two or three days for your descent.
5 Climbing Mount Kenya The Timau Route:
Time is little used nowadays there is the little forest on this side of the mountain and no facilities, just lots of wide-open country.
Mount Kenya Climbing Adventures, Mount Kenya Climbing Chogoria Route Packages Itineraries, All inclusive Package prices.
When summer is here it's time to plan an adventure holiday! Maybe an escape to the beautiful places in Kenya like Mount Kenya, Masai Mara, and the Great Rift Valley or even to the beautiful Kenya beaches? Whatever your desired destination, our expert team of tour advisors would love to book it for you!
Climbing Mount Kenya, YHA Kenya Travel Mountain Adventures.
Weather and When to Go Hiking?
Mount Kenya is a snow-capped Mountain temperature does vary with the season.
Well first things first, although Mount Kenya is on the equator, at an altitude of 4,000m above sea level, it gets freezing at night! You need to be prepared for overnight temperatures well below freezing (a good three or four season sleeping bag is a must). Minus 10 or even minus 20 degrees C are not unheard of at Point Lenana. Otherwise, expect plenty of hot overhead sun and rain if you are trekking during the short or long rains.
Kenya has two rainy seasons, the long rains from mid-March to mid-June and the short rains from September to October. Mount Kenya remains trekkable throughout the year, but during the long rains especially, you will need to be prepared for some heavy rainfalls and muddy tracks. The good news is that even in the depth of the long rains, there is usually reliable sunshine for a good portion of the day in the mid-morning and afternoon (10 am – 3 pm). Outside the rainy season, you can expect plenty of sunshine.
How to get to Mount Kenya.
From Nairobi to Mount Kenya is around a three and half hours’ drive. There are well- tarmacked roads all the way to the towns of Naromoru and Nanyuki or Chogoria to the east wall at the foot of the mountain, but the last stretch of the road up to the park gates is a rough dirt road that can get almost impassable in the rainy season when a 4wd is essential.
How to organize a trekking trip to Climbing Mount Kenya.
It is best to make your trekking expedition a great experience through YHA Kenya travel with a team of expert experienced guides with extensive high altitude experience. Each year trekkers die on Mount Kenya attempting to get to Point Lenana; it is easy to get lost in the cloud cover! If you do want to attempt the trek independently you’ll need to get yourself to the park gates by Matatu and taxis. The park authorities do not allow trekkers to enter the park alone, so there will need to be two or more. You’ll need to be prepared to bring all your own gear and provisions. Also, climbing gear is available for hire.
The biggest challenge you will find is navigation on the mountain. Paths are not clearly marked and cloud cover is common. If you don’t want to hire camping equipment, then there are huts all the way on the Sirimon route. Organize your trek with a reputable safari organization.
Book a trekking package; if you are short on time, this is the best option. YHA-Kenya Travel pre-arranges trekking trips for climbing Mount Kenya and this includes transport to and from Nairobi. At the cheaper end, this will involve your guide meeting you in Nairobi and travel with you on a public minibus (matatu) to the mountain. This saves a lot of money, but be prepared for delays and extra costs once you get to the mountain if it is raining as you’ll be forced to sort out a 4wd to get to the park gates. If you pay a little more than your trek will include the transfer of a private vehicle from Nairobi. Your trek crew and equipment will be ready and wait for you at the mountain and you can head straight up.
Pair Mount Kenya climbing with a Wildlife Safari.
It would not go well to visit Kenya to climb Mount Kenya and not explore the country a little bit. Most people will want to combine the trek with a Kenya budget wildlife safari. The nearest parks to Mount Kenya are to the North, These parks are the Meru and Samburu. Both are fantastic parks with arid scenery reminiscent of the Lion.
There is budget safari camping options as well as the usual luxury safari lodges on offer. You can get to Samburu in a couple of hours from Mount Kenya, and if you are short of time three days is sufficient to get a good taste of Samburu and then get back to Nairobi for your next adventure travel activity. If you have more time than you can journey on by road from Mount Kenya to Masai Mara via the Rift Valley Great Lakes. Allow around 6 or more days for this adventure extension.
NB: All Safari prices and local payments are subject to change.
Mount Kenya Adventure Climbing Packages.
Climbing Mount Kenya in Kenya, Mt Kenya Trekking, Hiking Mount Kenya, Adventure Safari Tours Best Budget Packages!
