African Safaris » Mountaineering Tour Africa

The great snowcapped peaks of Africarise on the eastern side of the continent. Kilimanjaro at 5895 m straddles the border of Kenya and Tanzania, MountKenya at 5199 metre stands in central Kenya. The Ruwenzori Mountain at 5106 m dominate the border of Uganda and Zaire.

Mountain Journey to Naro Moru Track

Day One:
Begin at the National Park gate which is 17 kilometres (10 miles) from Naro Moru township. Hike to the Meteorological Clearing at 3,046 metres (10,000 feet). Camp here or stay in the bunkhouses which can be booked through the Naro Moru River Lodge.

Day Two:
Walkup through the forest which soon becomes boggy moorlands. These are crossed to the edge of the Teleki Valley. Descend round into the valley and climb it to its head. At this point is the Mackinder’s Lodge at 4,143 metres (13,600 feet), which is a good place to stay. Good campsites also exist in this area. The distance to the lodge can be covered from the Meteorological Station in about five hours, but the entire day be spent slowly working your way up head of the valley.

Day Three:
A day spent resting and acclimatizing in the Teleki Valley.

Day Four:
Begin the trek to the summit of point Lenana at 3 a.m. The path contours up west side of the Teleki Valley, then up the screen on the south side of the Lewis Glacier to the Austrian Hut at 4788 metres (15,720 feet). Point Lenana is ascended by way of the ridge above the hut takes approximately one hour more. The descent to the Teleki Valley can be made in two hours and many parties go all the way to Meteorological Station in the afternoon.

Point Lenana is often ascended by way of Chogoria Track on the eastern side of the Kenya. The town of Chogoria is located on the main road linking Nairobi to and is 228 kilometres (141 miles) from Nairobi.

There are no hotels in Chogoria which fully equipped safaris up the mountain, but porters can be arranged.

The Chogoria track is a very beautiful way up Mount Kenya and three days should be allowed to reach Point Lenana. A good trek is to ascend the Chogoria track to Lenana then descend the Naro Moru track so completing a full traverse of the mountain.

The main summit peaks of Batian at 5,199 metres (17,068 feet) and Nelion at 5,188 metres (17,032 feet) should only be undertaken by experienced mountaineers who understand the intricacies of climbing steep ice and rock at altitude.

If approached in the correct way Mount Kenya can give the trekker a more rewarding experience than Kilimanjaro. It offers far richer flora and fauna than the latter and the scenery is more spectacular. It should be noted that although the equator runs through Mount Kenya, visitors should not underestimate the weather conditions.