The Breathtaking Beauty of Mount Kenya
For many decades, Mount Kenya climbing expeditions have been the beautiful tourist attractions for many. You will most definitely be eager to find the highest mountain in Kenya as well as also the second-highest in Africa after Kilimanjaro. It may be only called an area of enchanting beauty and beautiful sights.
Mount Kenya has peaks which are naturally crowned with snow, and its slopes are covered with woods. Here you can perform adventurous activities, as the 5199 meter (17,057 ft) high summit is a difficult technical climb. Mount Kenya presents the perfect destination for the experience. It’s an extinct volcano with a few trees half a year old. Straddling the Equator, the mountain provides a mosaic of woods, moorland, stone, and ice, and is crowned by the glittering twin peaks of Batain (5,199m) and Nelion (5,188m). Regarded as the sacred home of Ngai, God of the Kikuyu men and women, Mount Kenya is Kenya’s premier mountain, a climbers mecca, as well as the state’s namesake. Mount Kenya is a favorite destination for a holiday. It is located 175km north of Nairobi and is readily accessible from Nanyuki, through the Naro Moru gate or Sirimon gate. Travelers from the Meru/Embu region can use the Chogoria gate.
Climbing higher up the slopes the countryside is scenic with a green carpet of tea plantations, coffee shrubs, and macadamia trees. The air is tantalizingly fresh with clear rivers running from the slopes, crystal-clear cold water gushing from the forest, skirting the farms and down to the plains. High over the tea farms, the old woods line creates the skyline and behave as mega-sponges, supplying the fresh water and also eye-catching waterfalls.
Chogoria is said to be the most scenic route to the peaks together with the noise of the water at every step along the way. Walking down the incline is a dam and then a couple of steps off, a stunning waterfall named Owinga gushing across the stones to crash in the base and continue its journey down the mountain. It’s the River Mara.
The road from Embu to Meru is full of scenic drives, bends, and twists and broad bridges over yawning rivers, providing the country with its hydro-electric power. Elegant raffia trees grow by the banks, their leaves, reputed to be the biggest in the plant kingdom, sweeping the heavens. Meru National Park is about an hour-and-a-half drive from town with the street from Meru lined with the old forest filled with the renowned massive Meru oaks.
The benefit of using the Nanyuki side is that it’s you can sample the joys of the two Mt. Kenya and the Aberdares. Nanyuki is an old colonial town with many holiday facilities which can cater for various budgets. For those keen on wildlife viewing, the Mt. Kenya National Park might not be the best as it is heavily forested and difficult to observe the animals.