- Kikuyu:
- Kirinyaga
Mount Kenya
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What is Mount Kenya?
Mount Kenya, a long-extinct volcano in central Kenya, lies just south of the Equator. It is Africa's second-highest mountain after Kilimanjaro. The mountain's base sits at about 5,250 feet (1,600 meters), with a circumference of approximately 95 miles (153 km) at the 8,000-foot (2,440-meter) contour.
Its summit features steep, pyramidal peaks, including Batian (17,058 feet [5,199 meters]), Nelion (17,022 feet [5,188 meters]), and Point Lenana (16,355 feet [4,985 meters]). Mount Kenya has eroded over time, and its highest peaks comprise crystalline nepheline syenite that plugged the former vent. Radiating from the central peaks are ridges divided by seven valleys.
Mount Kenya National Park, established in 1949, spans 277 square miles (718 square km), encompassing much of the mountain's lower skirts.
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Where is Mount Kenya located?
Mount Kenya, an extinct volcano, is in central Kenya, just south of the Equator. It is the second-highest mountain in Africa, after Kilimanjaro, which is about 200 miles (320 km) to the south. The mountain lies to the north of Nairobi. The town of Nanyuki lies at the northwestern foot of Mount Kenya, approximately 120 miles (190 km) north of Nairobi.
Mount Kenya was added to UNESCO’s World Heritage List in 1997.
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Why is Mount Kenya considered a volcano?
Mount Kenya is considered a volcano because it was formed from volcanic activity. It is a long-extinct volcano that has been greatly eroded over time. The highest peaks of Mount Kenya are made of crystalline nepheline syenite, which solidified in the volcano's former vent. The mountain's structure consists of gently sloping layers of lava, agglomerates, and tuffs around this central core.
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What are the main peaks of Mount Kenya?
Mount Kenya, a volcano in central Kenya, features steep, pyramidal peaks at its summit, including Batian (17,058 feet [5,199 meters]), Nelion (17,022 feet [5,188 meters]), and Point Lenana (16,355 feet [4,985 meters]). This long-extinct volcano is highly eroded, with the highest peaks consisting of crystalline nepheline syenite that plugged the former vent. Radiating from the central peaks are ridges separated by seven principal valleys.
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What kinds of plants and animals live on Mount Kenya?
Mount Kenya's slopes support diverse plant and animal life across distinct elevation-based vegetation zones.
From 6,000 feet (1,800 meters) up to around 10,000 feet (3,000 meters), a dense forest thrives with cedar and yellowwood trees. At the higher margins of the forest, around 8,000 feet (2,400 meters), bamboo is predominant. Progressing into the high moorland zone, from 11,000–12,000 feet (3,400–3,700 meters), Afro-Alpine vegetation appears.
The Mount Kenya area and its environs are home to diverse animal species including elephants, buffalo, black rhinoceros, and leopards. Rare species such as suni buck and albino zebra can also be found. Highland rainforests are home to large mammals, such as elephants and rhinoceroses, bushbuck, colobus monkeys, and galagos. Predators such as lions, leopards, and wildcats are also found in the highlands.
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Why is Mount Kenya important for culture and the environment in Kenya?
Mount Kenya is culturally important to the Kikuyu people, who call it Kirinyaga and revere it as the home of their deity Ngai.
Environmentally, Mount Kenya is a vital ecological area with diverse vegetation zones based on elevation, ranging from grassland to Afro-Alpine vegetation. The mountain's forests are home to various large animals, including elephants, buffalo, and black rhinoceros. Its radial drainage pattern feeds into the Tana and Ewaso Ng'iro Rivers, making it a crucial water source. Mount Kenya National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage site, protects this unique environment.
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Mount Kenya, volcano, central Kenya, lying immediately south of the Equator. It is the second highest mountain in Africa after Kilimanjaro, which is located some 200 miles (320 km) to the south. The Mount Kenya area was added to UNESCO’s World Heritage List in 1997.
The base of the mountain lies at some 5,250 feet (1,600 meters). At the 8,000-foot (2,440-meter) contour, the circumference is approximately 95 miles (153 km). Its summit area is characterized by steep, pyramidal peaks, principal among which are Batian (17,058 feet [5,199 meters]), Nelion (17,022 feet [5,188 meters]), and Point Lenana (16,355 feet [4,985 meters]). This long-extinct volcano is much eroded, and the highest peaks consist of the crystalline nepheline syenite that plugged the former vent. Radiating from the central peaks are ridges separated by seven principal valleys. Several small, retreating glaciers, of which Lewis and Tyndall are the largest, feed the streams and marshes on the mountain’s slopes. A markedly radial drainage is characteristic, but all streams eventually flow into the Tana River or the Ewaso Ng’iro River.
Mount Kenya supports a succession of distinctive, elevation-based vegetation zones. Grassland (with species of Acacia and Themeda) covers the basal plateau in the west and north, and grasses and low trees dominate in the south and east. Beginning at about 6,000 feet (1,800 meters), a ring of dense forest covers the slopes up to about 10,000 feet (3,000 meters). Cedar and yellowwood are prominent on the drier western and northern flanks. On the upper margins of the forest—i.e., from about 8,000 feet (2,400 meters)—bamboo predominates, although these species decrease markedly in height with increasing elevation and merge into the succeeding zone of giant heather. Above a transition zone (11,000–12,000 feet [3,400–3,700 meters]) is the so-called high moorland, a peculiar zone of Afro-Alpine vegetation. This gives way to mosses and lichens, which grow up to about 15,000 feet (4,600 meters). Above that there are only bare rock, glaciers, and other regions of ice and snow. Mount Kenya National Park (1949) covers 277 square miles (718 square km), including much of the lower skirts of the mountain. The park and its environs contain a variety of large animals, including elephant, buffalo, black rhinoceros, and leopard. Several endangered and rare species, such as sunni buck and albino zebra, also live there. The fertile lower slopes are cultivated by the Kikuyu and the related Embu and Meru peoples.
The Kikuyu, who refer to the mountain as Kirinyaga, or Kere-Nyaga (“Mountain of Whiteness”), traditionally revere it as home to their omnipotent deity Ngai. Johann Ludwig Krapf was the first European to see the mountain (1849), and it was partially climbed by the Hungarian explorer Sámuel, Gróf (count) Teleki (1887), and the British geologist John Walter Gregory (1893). The British geographer Halford John Mackinder was the first to reach the summit, along with the Swiss guides César Ollier and Joseph Brocherel, in 1899. The town of Nanyuki, which is about 120 miles (190 km) north of Nairobi by rail, lies at the northwestern foot of the mountain; both Nanyuki and Naro Moru (to the west) are chief bases for ascents.