"Highest Peak in Kenya" Mount Kenya National Park by kucha

At 5,199 m. high, Mount Kenya is Africa's second highest mountain and Kenya's highest. It offers a combination of easy or challenging ascents and is truly beautiful.

The best months are January and February and late August through September. Serious climbers may seek advice from the Mountain Club of Kenya.

For those who wish to enjoy the mountain air, the glorious views and the tranquility of the mountain, there are many hotels around the foothills among them the famed Mount Kenya Safari Club. There is only one lodge inside the Park, seven climbers huts and three self-help banda sites.

To the Kikuyu, Mount Kenya is the home of the Supreme Being: Ngai, a name also used by the Maasai and Kamba tribes. In traditional prayers and sacrifices, Ngai is addressed by the Kikuyu as Mwene Nyaga: the Professor of Brightness.

Part of the mountain's appeal is the variation in flora and fauna. The lower slopes are covered with dry upland forest, while the the true forest begins at 2,000 m. and consists mainly of cedar and podo. At 2,500 m. a dense belt of of bamboo forest begins, which merges into an upper forest of smaller trees and glades.

These fauna belts are home to many different animals and plants with at least 10 unique species. Game includes: Black and White Colobus and Sykes monkeys, bushbuck, buffalo, elephant and lower down Olive Baboon, waterbuck, black rhino, black fronted duiker, leopard, giant forest hog, genet cat, bush pig and hyena. If you are quite lucky, you might spot a bongo -- a rare type of forest antelope -- although these have not been spotted of late. A most rare siting could even be an albino zebra.

• Pros:Beautiful, challenging trekking
• Cons:Can be tricky to summit, without some technical experience
• In a nutshell:Not to Be Missed!