Most travellers come to Kenya for the Mara. A few come for Mount Kenya. Almost nobody comes for the Aberdares — and that is exactly why we love it.
I have been guiding in Kenya for fifteen years. I have stood on Point Lenana at sunrise, watched cheetah hunts on the short-grass plains of the Mara, and lived through enough river crossings to last a lifetime. But when I want to disappear — when I need the mountain to feel like a mountain — I go to the Aberdares.
The Aberdares are a 160-km mountain range west of Mount Kenya. They are lower (4,001 m at their highest, Lesatima Peak), wetter, and far less visited. The moorland zone above 3,000 m is a vast rolling landscape of tussock grass, giant lobelias, and waterfalls.
**Karuru Falls is the highlight.**
Three tiers, 273 m total drop. Most travellers have never heard of it. You will likely have the viewpoint to yourself. The first time I stood there, in 2010, I had two clients with me. We sat in silence for thirty minutes. Nobody had anything to say.
**The bongo antelope lives here.**
Fewer than 100 bongo remain in the wild. They are forest-dwelling, elusive, and almost impossible to see. But the Aberdares is their last stronghold. Our track record is roughly one sighting per ten treks — still terrible odds, but better than anywhere else in Africa.
**The moorland is empty.**
On a five-day Sirimon trek on Mount Kenya, you will share the trail with fifty other trekkers and their crews. On a five-day Aberdare traverse, you might see three other people the entire time. The camps are quiet. The stars are unreal.
**When to go**
January to March, or September to October. The moorland is sodden during the long rains, and the tracks become impassable. We run two-night tasters and five-day full traverses — both are spectacular.
If you have done Mount Kenya and Kilimanjaro, and you are looking for the next thing — this is it. Reach out and we will plan an Aberdare traverse for you.