Mt Kenya Trekking: Sirimon Route

Elevation gain ↑1,500 m; hiking time approx. 3–4 hours

Your transfer driver meets you at your hotel in Nairobi in the morning – you leave the busy capital and the morning traffic behind and drive past tea and rice farms towards Nanyuki. At lunchtime you arrive at Sirimon Gate and meet your guide there. After a short briefing and introduction, your hike through Kenya’s unspoilt nature begins. You walk up a well-maintained road through dense bamboo forest. Slowly the forest thins and gives way to heath and moorland. Keep an eye out for zebras, antelopes and monkeys along the way and make a short stop for your picnic lunch. After roughly 3 to 4 hours you arrive at the first stop of your mountain ascent: Old Moses Camp. Enjoy your first dinner and your first night on the mountain at 3,300 m.

Early in the morning a hearty breakfast awaits you. Well fortified, you continue your hike through the expansive heath and moorland until, after about an hour, you reach the Ontulli River in the valley. Your path now leads uphill into the Liki North area. Once at the top, you can take a short break and enjoy the view before descending into Mackinder’s Valley. The expansive valley stretches for 7 km – picturesquely located, crossed by clear mountain streams and adorned with various species of senecios, lobelias, proteas and other flowers. Enjoy the view of the mountain panorama surrounding the valley. After a day’s stage of 14 km in total, you reach Shipton’s Camp, with a view of the impressive peaks of Mt Kenya. You spend the night at the campsite below Shipton’s mountain hut and go to bed early so that you are fit and well rested for the next day. For the summit ascent to Point Lenana begins as early as the night.

After a short night, your guide wakes you at 1:00 am for a snack of tea and biscuits. You have a long and exciting day ahead of you. Together with your guide you begin the steep ascent at 2:00 am. Passing the Batian summit on your right, you hike through the cold night before arriving at Point Lenana just in time for sunrise. The steep climb is worth it: pause and enjoy the spectacular view over the Mt Kenya massif as the sun slowly rises and bathes the Batian summit in its golden light. Now you continue to Mintos Camp on the Chogoria route, where a fortifying breakfast and a well-earned break await you. After this short rest you continue to the Meru Bandas. After this 17 km hike you have earned your tasty dinner and a restful night’s sleep.

Enjoy a last breakfast on the mountain before making your way back through the dense bamboo forest. With the impressions of your summit ascent still fresh in your mind, you begin your last relaxed hike. Your transfer driver is already waiting for you at the landmark “Kilometre Kumi”. After four eventful days, you arrive in the capital Nairobi in the afternoon.

Breakfast

Onward journey: After the Mt Kenya ascent you can travel back to Nairobi or, for a supplement, add a safari in the Mt Kenya, Laikipia or Aberdare region. We would be happy to put together a follow-on programme with a safari or beach holiday individually for you.