Seven hundred square kilometres
rising to five thousand metres.
Mount Kenya is an extinct volcano in the central highlands and the second-highest mountain in Africa. Batian, the true summit, stands at 5,199 metres and is a technical rock climb. Point Lenana at 4,985 metres is the trekking summit, and it is what almost everyone means when they talk about climbing Mount Kenya. The national park covers around 715 square kilometres and the walk up passes through bamboo, montane forest, giant heather and open moorland before the glaciers, which is four distinct worlds in a few days.
Nanyuki and Chogoria side
Approximate park area
Typical time on the mountain
Driest trekking windows
Why climb Mount Kenya
Point Lenana at 4,985 metres needs no ropes or technical skill, only fitness and proper acclimatisation.
A fraction of the traffic, and on some routes you can walk most of a day without meeting another group.
Bamboo, montane forest, giant heather and alpine moorland, each one distinctly different from the last.
The remaining ice sits almost exactly on the equator, and there is far less of it than there was.
Sirimon, Naro Moru and Chogoria differ in gradient and scenery, so the climb can be matched to your experience.
Most climbers who summit Kilimanjaro have done Mount Kenya first, and the altitude profile is why.
What there is to do
Summit Trekking
Guided ascents to Point Lenana at 4,985 metres, over four to six days depending on the route.
Forest Walks
Lower-slope walking through bamboo and montane forest, where the colobus and the elephants are.
Tarn & Glacier Viewing
High-altitude tarns and the remaining glaciers below the main peaks, reached on the upper sections of the route.
Birdwatching
Several hundred recorded species, with migrants arriving from November through to April.
Camping Under the Stars
Nights in mountain huts or tented camps on the moorland, well above the tree line.
When to go
The mountain makes its own weather. These are the windows with the best odds of a clear summit morning.
Prime trekking season
The driest and clearest window of the year, with the firmest ground underfoot.
Secondary dry season
The second reliable window, and the busier of the two on the popular routes.
Long rains
Wet, cold and slippery on the upper sections. Not the time to attempt the summit.
Cooler and cloudier
Walkable between showers, with fewer groups and greener lower slopes.
Plan a Mount Kenya climb
We run four guided climbs on the Sirimon, Naro Moru and Chogoria routes over five or six days.