A rosette of leaves seen on a trek around Mount Kenya, the 2nd highest peak in Africa. Kenya, East Africa.

A rosette of leaves of a native alpine plant seen on a trek around Mount Kenya, the 2nd highest peak in Africa. Kenya, East Africa. We trekked on Mt Kenya for 7 days sleeping in tents plus 1 hut to escape wind. Mount Kenya National Park is honored by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site and Biosphere Reserve. The Republic of Kenya is named after Mount Kenya, the second-highest peak in Africa (exceeded by Tanzania's Mt Kilimanjaro). We hiked up Mt Kenya's remote Timau Route, rounded the Summit Circuit counterclockwise, and descended the Chogoria Route. (Ascending Sirimon Route would be shorter and equally scenic.) The mountain's third highest peak, Point Lenana (4,985 m or 16,355 ft), is a worthy trekking goal, but icy rain forced our circumvention via the lower trail from Austrian Hut, climaxing around 15,715 feet elevation. The two highest peaks of Mount Kenya are technical ascents — Batian (5,199 metres or 17,057 feet elevation) and Nelion (5,188 m or 17,021 ft). Active 3.1-2.6 million years ago, volcanic Mount Kenya grew to ~21,000 ft high (higher than Kilimanjaro) before glaciation reduced its height. Now, its rapid glacial retreat threatens water reservoirs for much of Kenya. Mount Kenya's glacier remnants lost more than half of their 2016 extent by 2021-22. We noticed little ice left in February 2024. Mt Kenya is 10 miles south of the equator and 90 miles north-northeast of Kenya's capital of Nairobi. Hundreds of kilometers of electric fences around Mount Kenya discourage poaching and illegal logging, and also keep the park's wildlife from exiting and damaging adjacent crops.

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Filename: 24.02AFR-2944.jpg
Copyright: © Tom Dempsey / PhotoSeek.com
Image Size: 5472x3648 / 5.5MB; http://www.photoseek.com/; PhotoBest Plantae abstract pattern plants
Contained in galleries: 2024 Feb AFRICA: TANZANIA, KENYA, VICTORIA FALLS, AFRICA favorites, KENYA: trek Mount Kenya, Highlights 2024

A rosette of leaves of a native alpine plant seen on a trek around Mount Kenya, the 2nd highest peak in Africa. Kenya, East Africa. We trekked on Mt Kenya for 7 days sleeping in tents plus 1 hut to escape wind. Mount Kenya National Park is honored by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site and Biosphere Reserve. The Republic of Kenya is named after Mount Kenya, the second-highest peak in Africa (exceeded by Tanzania's Mt Kilimanjaro). We hiked up Mt Kenya's remote Timau Route, rounded the Summit Circuit counterclockwise, and descended the Chogoria Route. (Ascending Sirimon Route would be shorter and equally scenic.) The mountain's third highest peak, Point Lenana (4,985 m or 16,355 ft), is a worthy trekking goal, but icy rain forced our circumvention via the lower trail from Austrian Hut, climaxing around 15,715 feet elevation. The two highest peaks of Mount Kenya are technical ascents — Batian (5,199 metres or 17,057 feet elevation) and Nelion (5,188 m or 17,021 ft). Active 3.1-2.6 million years ago, volcanic Mount Kenya grew to ~21,000 ft high (higher than Kilimanjaro) before glaciation reduced its height. Now, its rapid glacial retreat threatens water reservoirs for much of Kenya. Mount Kenya's glacier remnants lost more than half of their 2016 extent by 2021-22. We noticed little ice left in February 2024. Mt Kenya is 10 miles south of the equator and 90 miles north-northeast of Kenya's capital of Nairobi. Hundreds of kilometers of electric fences around Mount Kenya discourage poaching and illegal logging, and also keep the park's wildlife from exiting and damaging adjacent crops.