Mt. Kenya National Park

Mt. Kenya is Kenya’s highest mountain and the second highest in Africa. This is also the seat of Ngai, the god of the Kikuyu people. At 5199m, this massive stand has amazed most hikers being the only snow-caped mountain in the world that straddles the equator.

The mountain is among the most beautiful volcanic mountains with eye-catching undulating and awe-inspiring scenery.

The gigantic peaks, picturesque valleys and crystal clear streams cascading from the glaciers which seem to meet at the major peaks add elegance to this majestic stand.

Mt. Kenya’s highest peaks, Batian (5199m) and Nelion (5188m) can only be reached by mountaineers with technical skills.

However, Point Lenana (4985m), the third highest peak can be reached by trekkers and is the usual goal for most people, offering a fantastic experience without the risks of real climbing.

Maasai Mara National Reserve

Masai Mara National Reserve, now the Seventh wonder of the modern world, is an extension of Tanzania’s Serengeti ecosystem. Masi Mara is a country of breathtaking vistas, vast rolling plains and rounded hills, acacia woodlands, dense thickets of scrub.

The whole bisected by the Mara River and its tributaries margined with luxuriant riverine forests. Its vast plains teems with endless herds of game together with the associated predators.

Perhaps the most intriguing phenomenon in Mara is the Wildebeest migration that occurs between the months of July and October.

Every July and October, millions of wildebeest and zebra pass through southern Kenya on their annual migration, attracting an entourage of cheetahs, lions and other predators.

Samburu National Reserve

Samburu is the most accessible game Reserve in the northern region of Kenya. This park represents the semi-arid ecosystem of northern Kenya, displaying some of the most beautiful wild game in Kenya.

Some of the animals, typical of semi-arid ecosystems are the reticulated giraffe, Gerenuk, Oryx, Somali ostrich, and Gravy’s zebra. Many visitors to this reserve are amazed at the large herds of elephants that roam this area. Other animals include lions, cheetahs, leopards, buffaloes, impalas, elands, crocodiles, and hippopotamus, among others. Bird life is most abundant in this reserve with some of the most beautiful birds.

Lake Naivasha

L. Naivasha is one of the freshwater lakes in the Great Rift Valley. In Kenya we have only two of these lakes i.e. L. Naivasha and L. Baringo. Its home to an incredible variety of bird species, hippos, fish and various aquatic plants.

The fresh water from this lake is used to irrigate flowers and fresh vegetables grown in this area. Most of the vegetables sold in Nairobi come from L. Naivasha.

Some of the vegetables and flowers are exported.

Hell’s Gate National Park

Cleft deep into the floor of the Rift Valley, Hell’s Gate provides endless bio-diversity. The towering cliffs and undulating grasslands provide one of the few remaining places where you can walk alongside herds of Zebra, eland, hartebeest, gazelles, giraffes and buffaloes.

Its spectacular scenery including the towering cliffs, water-gouged gorges, stark rock towers, scrub-clad volcanoes and belching plumes of geothermal steam make it one of the most atmospheric parks in Africa.

It is a perfect place for walkers and cyclists.

Lake Nakuru National Park

At only 4kms from Nakuru town and covering an area of 180sq kms Lake Nakuru is a world famous bird and rhino sanctuary. The park encompasses Lake Nakuru, a rift valley soda lake, and two forests – acacia and euphorbia forests. Millions of flamingoes paint this park with its shimmering pink color. Other birds include pelicans, ostrich, marabou, ibis, eagles, vultures, woodpeckers, touracos, barbets, among others.

Apart from the bird life, Lake Nakuru is abundant with wild game including lions, leopard, rhinos, impalas, gazelles, eland, zebra, buffalo, and giraffe.

Amboseli National Park

Just at the foot of Kilimanjaro (5,894m), Africa’s highest summit, Amboseli is one of the most beautiful parks in Africa. This park is famous for its big game – elephants, giraffe, buffalo, lions, and cheetahs – and for its great scenic beauty. It is hard to beat the sight of wild elephants in front of Africa’s most famous mountain, Kilimanjaro. The 3,810sq km of this National park and game reserve encompasses various ecological zones of dry lake bed, acacia woodland, rocky lava strewn, thorn bushes, swamps and mashes and the massif of Oldoinyo Orok rising to over 2,760m. Sun rises and sunsets are romantic with the backdrop of the snow-caped Kilimanjaro.

Tsavo National Park

This is the largest wildlife stronghold in Kenya. This park comprises of a diversity of habitats including open plains, savannah bushland, semi-arid scrub, acacia woodland, rocky ridges and outcrops, extensive ranges of isolated hills, belts of riverine vegetation, palm thickets and mountain forest on the Chyulu hills extension.

The extensive Shetani Lava is a clear example of a recent volcano. This volcanic zone also contains the famous Mzima springs, where hippopotamus and barbel live in springs and provide a dramatic spectacle.

Lake Bogoria National Reserve

This is the most scenic park in the rift valley with steep hills descending abruptly to the lakeshore, which are punctuated with a series of spectacular Hot Springs. The reserve – 114sq km - comprises the entire lake and its immediate surrounds. This place is well known for its Greater Kudu, and very large concentrations of Lesser and Greater flamingoes.

The steaming jets of hot springs that shoot from underground make this park a real spectacle. The high sulphur concentrated steams & hot springs are aesthetically healthy being medicine to skin diseases and many visitors have revisited this magical park both for physical and spiritual healing.

Lake Baringo

This is one of the freshwater lakes in the Great Rift Valley. In Kenya we have only two of these; L. Baringo and L. Naivasha. L. Baringo with its islands (two of them inhabited) and encircling mountains is a spectacular sight and a bird watching paradise. Local communities have myths of one of the islands ‘the Devils Island’ which they say is haunted.

They can take you there during the day but at night they fear this island saying you can see flames and hear people screaming even though no one lives on the island.

Kakamega Forest National Park

Kakamega forest in western Kenya is the largest remaining eastern African representative of the original Guineo-Congolean lowland tropical rainforest.

The virgin forest has plenty of hard-wood indigenous tree species such as Elgon teak, Ficus, Cordia etc, some of which are as old as 200 years. Kakamega forest hosts large populations of primates such as the blue monkey, red-tailed monkey, De brazza and black and white colobus monkeys and a sizeable number of duikers.

The forest is listed among the Important Bird Areas (IBAs) of the world, and for good reason, as the warm and moist forest environment supports over 300 species of birds including the Great blue turaco.

Butterfly collectors will find this an interesting area for their type of activity given the fact that over 400 species of butterfly have been recorded in the forest.

The best way to learn about the forest is do a nature walk, and there are numerous well maintained trails radiating from the Reserve headquarters in the north and the Rondo Retreat in the south. We hire local guides who understand the trails very well.

Through the guides you can also learn about local culture.

Mt. Elgon National Park

Beyond the largest water basin in Africa (L. Victoria) rises this impressively craggy extinct Volcano of Elgon. From the jungles that border Uganda and rising up to 4321m, this mountain harbors the largest caldera in Africa.

Its impenetrable rain forest where elephants roam fearlessly, its unique flora and fauna and the haunting silence of its caves leaves its hikers with memories that haunt them all their lives.

Loita Hills

Spreading from 2200m to 2400m above sea level, Loita Hills, is one of Kenya’s last remaining ‘true wilderness’ area harboring some of the most exotic and endemic plant species in the world. This is the one place that wild game gracefully wonders the savannah grasslands elephants roam silently the misty montane forests, eagles perch peacefully, and cool streams cascade the majestically standing hills of this remote region. As you walk its moist and springy ground with slowly decaying vegetation in these forests where trees, bushes, lichens and mosses flourish, you can’t help the feeling of the true jungle of Africa.

Cherengani Hills

North of Kitale, the Cherangani Hills rise up to a height of 3,581m and form a barrier between the fertile highlands surrounding the town, and a barren stretch of desert to the north. The hills are home to the Marakwet people, who migrated here from the north, and are dotted with small towns, although none of them offer accommodation. Offering geographic diversity, a myriad of dirt roads and some dramatic peaks, the highest and most remote to the north, the Cheranganis are great for hikers who are happy to rough it.

Namunyak Conservation Area

Namunyak Conservation Area covers the whole areas of Lerata, Serodipi, Oldonyo Uasin, Tipito, Ilkisin and the Mathew Mountain Ranges.

It was created to with sole aim of conserving the abundant wildlife as well as providing employment opportunities to the local Samburu people. “Namunyak” is a Samburu word which means lucky or blessed.

The creation of this Conservation Area in 1995 was a blessing to the people living in this area as many have been employed in this Conservancy.