8 Days Mount Kenya Burguret – Chogoria Trek

Nairobi (1,650) – Mountain Rock lodge (2,000m) by car (200kms /3.5hrs).
PM. Acclimatisation nature hike.
Span, 12kms /3hrs.

Your day begins with an early breakfast before embarking on the drive towards the lush green Mount Kenya national park to the North of Nairobi. After lunch at the base camp of Mount Kenya, you will participate in easy walking tours around the environs of the mountain learning about the way of life of the Kikuyu tribe that inhabits the lands around Mount Kenya. These short walks can be an advantage in learning how tourism especially mountain climbing impacts the local community, economically as you take short tours around the cultivated lands, farms and local schools.

Meals and overnight at the hotel/lodge. (L,D)

After meeting at the gate, your 8 days Mount Kenya climb via the Burguret – Chogoria route begins shortly after a hearty breakfast at the lodge. It is at the gate where you will meet with your mountain crew that includes your guide and porters plus the cook/chef. A 4 hours trek ensues crossing through dense forests as the trail passes along the famous Mau Mau caves (2000m) and some waterfalls. The Mau Mau caves once provided shelter and acted as a hideout for former Kenyan freedom fighters during the colonial period. it is also a perfect spot to take a short lunch break and enjoy your lunch while you listen to stories about the Kenyan struggle during the colonial era. After having your lunch, the trek progresses further to Elephant Moat camp (2300m) which lies at the beginning of the tropical rainforest for dinner and overnight.

The third day of your trek starts with the usual breakfast then a trek through the montane forest that is characterized by gigantic cidar and podocarpus trees and then crossing a dense bamboo belt to the Giant Bamboo campsite (2700m.) for dinner and overnight. The forest and bamboo zones on mount Kenya are a natural habitat for plenty of bird species and wild animals, among them,  buffaloes, elephants, bushbucks and a plethora of bird species.

You set off after breakfast. Today’s trek continues though bamboo, rosewood and heather zones before it opens up to a moorland terrain characterized by tussock grasses, Senecios and Giant Lobelias as you close up on the Highland Castle campsite. The trek of the day takes a duration of about 3-4 hours and you will gain an ascent of 900m. Midway through the day on this Burguret -Chogoria trail you will have a lunch break whereby you will have lunch before continuing with your trek to the Highland Castle cliff and enjoy stunning views of the Castle like rock formation as well as its environs.

After early morning breakfast, you will trek to over 4400m in 3 hours to converge with the summit circuit trail. Following this in the clockwise direction the trail winds down the Hausberg Valley and rises to the Hausberg Col to Kami, where you take a bend and descend the Mackinder’s Valley to Shiptons hut (4200m) which takes approximately 2-3 hrs. This day is meant for acclimatization as it follows the “climb high, sleep low rule”. Picnic lunch is served midway through the day’s hike.

Summit Attempt – Mount Kenya, Burguret – Chogoria Route

Today is the summiting day, we wake up very early at around 3 am (0300 hrs) and begin the journey and final push to the summit of Mount Kenya. We follow the scree filled terrain that leads up to Point Lenana at an altitude of 4,985m otherwise known as the “hikers summit”Hike up the steep scree to Pt. Lenana (4,985m), ‘the hikers’ summit’. The reason for beginning the summit attempt early is to make it just in time for sunrise and also to avoid the mid-morning cloud cover. The summit trek takes a duration of roughly 3-4 hours and usually when the skies are clear you can catch a glimpse of the summit of Mt. Kilimanjaro, 340km to the south.

Descending Mount Kenya via the Burguret – Chogoria Route.

After some moments at the summit and taking of pictures at the peak, Point Lenana, we take a descent to Mintos/Hall tarn campsite for a hearty breakfast then relax for the rest of the day. if you still have the energy and interest, you can explore the Gorges valley from here and marvel at the amazing scenery that this area offers including the Gorges Valley, the Temple and L. Michaelson.

We continue descending the mountain shortly after breakfast in the morning, a descent that takes a duration of about 5-6 hours to reach Meru Mount Kenya cabins located near the Chogoria Park gate (3,000m). The slope for descending is gradual and it offers enough time to enjoy the scenic surroundings along the trail. Among the attractions and places of interest as you go down the mountain, include the Vivienne, falls, Nithi falls, mushroom rocks and a variety of interesting montane plant species. A stay at Meru Mt. Kenya Lodge gives you the opportunity to have a proper bath/shower and time to relax and pat yourself on the back for taking on the challenge of climbing Mount Kenya.

Day 8 marks the last day of this great 8 day Mount Kenya climb via the Burguret – Chogoria Route as we continue with the descent towards the Chogoria rain Forest after a hearty breakfast. This last segment of the descent trail offers a chance to explore the bamboo and lush montane forest belts On reaching the gate where the vehicle awaits for the return trip back to Nairobi, picnic lunch is served along the way before reaching Nairobi in the evening.