Mount Kenya National Park, Mount Kenya climbing safari in Kenya, mountain hiking Kenya Safari. When to visit Kenya, Attractions in Mount Kenya National Park, how to get there and accommodation in Mount Kenya. Mount Kenya National park is a Kenyan National park which is found on the eastern side of the Great Rift Valley. Mount Kenya National Park is about 175kilometers northeast of Nairobi the Kenya’s capital city and it occupies an area of 2,800 square kilometers and most of which is above the 3000 meters contour line.

The park has volcanic sediment in the surrounding soil in the region and the huge volume of fresh water coming down the slopes which makes the area particularly favorable for agriculture. Mount Kenya National park has six gates which include Sirimon Gate, Naro Moru Gate, Mawingu Gate, Chogoria Gate, Kihari Gate and the Kamweti Gate.

Mount Kenya initially was a forest reserve and later on was established as a National Park in 1949 to protect the region surrounding Mount Kenya National Park and its wildlife too. In the year of 1978 in the month of April, the area was designated as a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve and the park and the Reserve later on combined and became a UNESCO world Heritage site in the year of 1997 and currently the National park is within the forest reserve hence encircling it.

Mount Kenya National Park Major Attractions

Wildlife in Mount Kenya National Park

The park is a home to different wildlife species and the easily seen animals within the park include the Black and white Colobus monkey, elephant, Sykes monkey, buffalo, baboon, bushbuck, waterbuck, black rhino, eland, black fronted duiker, giant forest hog, leopard, genet cat, Olive hog, mole rats, porcupine, tree hyrax, white tailed mongoose and hyena and also the elusive bongo forest antelope which a rare type of forest antelope.

Bird life in Mount Kenya National Park

Mount Kenya National park harbors over 130 bird species which are recorded within the park and they include the alpine chats, sunbirds, starlings, Olive pigeons, giant kingfishers, Lammergeiers, Verreaux’s Eagles, Augur Buzzards and red-fronted parrots.

Mount Kenya

Mount Kenya at 5,199meters high is the second Africa’s highest mountain after Mount Kilimanjaro (5,895meters) in Tanzania and the mountain’s highest peak include the Batian at 5,199meter followed by Nelion at 5,188meter and point Lenana at 4,985meters and the mountain offers easy and challenging ascents with superb scenic beauty with an significant importance to the local Kenyan tribes who view it as a holy mountain. The slopes of the mountain are cloaked in forest, bamboo, scrub and moorland giving way on the central peaks to rock, ice and snow. The mountain is also an important water catchment area that supplies the Tana and the Northern Ewaso Nyiro systems.

Activities done in Mount Kenya National Park

Game viewing in Mount Kenya National Park

The National park is basically a forest reserve which is a home to different wildlife species hence giving you stunning views of animal species such as the elephants, white tailed mongoose, black fronted duikers, tree hyrax, mole rats, bushbucks, eland, waterbucks, leopards, black rhinos and buffaloes among others.

Bird watching in Mount Kenya National Park

The park hosts over 160 bird species with the 53 of the Kenya’s 67 African Highland biome species which also includes the rare and threatened Abbott’s starling, it bares 6 of the 8 bird species that are endemic to the Kenyan mountains and here through this activity of bird watching you will be able to spot other different species including the alpine chats, sunbirds, starlings, Olive pigeons, giant kingfishers, Lammergeiers, Verreaux’s Eagles, Augur Buzzards and red-fronted parrots.

Walking and Mountain Climbing

This activity involves walking and climbing the majority of climbs at Mount Kenya which involves rock climbing via the easiest route and the highest peak that can be ascended without climbing is point Lenana at 4,985 meters. Mount Kenya National park also has other several climbing routes which include the Kamweti, Marania, Themwe and Burguret and there are 8 walking routes up to the main peaks for the less skilled. Here the most common routes include the Chogoria, Sirimon and Naro Moru routes.

Accessibility – How to reach to Mount Kenya National Park

The park can be accessed by road from Nairobi through Nanyuki-Isiolo road via Sirimon Track which is 175km or Nyeri – Nanyuki road near Naro Moru. The park can also be reached from North of Nairobi 150km through Embu-Meru road.
It can also be accessed by air and the closest airstrip to the park is Nanyuki airport.