5-Day Mount Kenya, Sirimon to Chogoria
Up the drier Sirimon side, down through Chogoria: five days that give your body a real extra day to acclimatise before the push to Point Lenana.
4-Day Mount Kenya, Naro Moru Route
Overview
Naro Moru is the route I put people on when the calendar, not the mountain, is setting the limit: four days is enough to stand on Point Lenana and be back at the gate, but it compresses the climb most other routes spread over five. You go from the Met Station at just over 3,000 metres to the summit ridge at 4,985 metres in two days of walking, which is a serious amount of altitude to gain that fast.
I say this plainly because it matters: Naro Moru has the lowest summit success rate of the three main routes, precisely because it gives your body the least time to adjust. If four days is genuinely all you have, we take it seriously and build in what acclimatisation we can, a slow pace, an early night before the push, and a guide watching you as closely as the trail. If your dates have any flexibility, the 5-Day Sirimon to Chogoria route gives your body an extra day and climbs the summit odds accordingly.
Day by day
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01
Nanyuki to the Met Station
We collect you in Nanyuki and drive to the Naro Moru gate, then walk up through cedar and podocarpus forest to the Met Station at around 3,050 metres, three to four hours on a good track. This first night is as much about testing boots and pace as covering ground; camp sits at a modest altitude and dinner is the last proper hot meal before the climb gets serious.
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02
Met Station to Mackinder's Camp, via the Vertical Bog
The day trekkers remember for the wrong reasons: the Vertical Bog, a steep, often waterlogged climb out of the forest onto open moorland, gaining several hundred metres in a short distance. Beyond it the ground opens into tussock grass and giant groundsel before Mackinder's Camp at around 4,200 metres, set below the peaks with the Teleki Valley falling away below. We keep the afternoon deliberately quiet, short walk, food, rest, since tomorrow starts in the dark.
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03
Summit day: Point Lenana, then down to the gate
We're up at around 2 to 3 am for the push to Point Lenana, climbing by torchlight over scree and frozen ground, the cold genuinely below freezing at that hour, to reach the summit around sunrise at 4,985 metres, with Batian and Nelion's rock faces catching the first light beside you. We do not climb those two peaks; they need ropes and technical rock skills that a trekking party doesn't carry. From the top we descend all the way back down through Mackinder's, the Vertical Bog and the forest to the Met Station and the gate, a long day on tired legs.
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04
Contingency day and return to Nanyuki
This day exists on paper as a buffer, in case altitude or weather has pushed the summit push back by a day, and in practice it is usually a straightforward drive back to Nanyuki with time to shower and rest before you move on.
What's included
Included
- Transport between Nanyuki and the Naro Moru gate
- Mount Kenya National Park entry and camping fees for three nights
- A licensed mountain guide, cook and porters for the full trek
- All meals on the mountain from lunch on day one to breakfast on day four
- Camping equipment: tents, sleeping mats and a mess tent
- Drinking water, treated or boiled, throughout the trek
- Soft drinks, juices, tea and coffee throughout
- Beer, wine and spirits throughout
Not included
- Transport to and from Nairobi (we can arrange this separately)
- Personal trekking gear: sleeping bag, waterproofs, boots
- Tips for your guide, cook and porters
- Kenya e-Visa or entry permit fees
- Travel insurance covering high-altitude trekking
Best time to visit
January through March and July through October are driest underfoot, which matters more on Naro Moru's steep, often muddy Vertical Bog than on the other routes. Whatever the season, this route's speed is its real risk factor: four days gives your body the least time to adjust of any route on the mountain, so altitude sickness turns back a higher share of Naro Moru parties than Sirimon or Chogoria, and no guide can promise you the summit regardless of fitness.
Common questions
Why does this route have a lower summit success rate?
Purely a matter of time. You gain roughly 1,900 metres of altitude between the Met Station and Point Lenana in about a day and a half of walking, which is fast by any mountain's standards. Altitude sickness is about the pace of ascent as much as fitness, so a strong hiker can still be turned back here where an extra day on Sirimon or Chogoria would have let them adjust.
What do the porters carry, and what do I carry myself?
Porters carry your main kit bag, up to a weight limit we confirm at booking, along with camp equipment and food. You carry a daypack with water, layers, snacks and anything you want immediate access to on the trail, which on summit night should include a headtorch and every warm layer you own.
What happens if I can't continue?
Your guide is watching for the early signs of altitude sickness, headache, nausea, poor coordination, throughout the climb, and their word on turning back is final, not a suggestion. If you need to stop, a porter or the guide accompanies you back down to a lower camp; we don't leave anyone on the mountain alone, and it doesn't affect the rest of your trip if you have onward travel booked.
Is a summit guaranteed on this route?
No, and I'd be lying if I said otherwise. Altitude sickness can turn back a fit, well-prepared trekker regardless of effort, and Naro Moru's pace makes that more likely than on the slower routes. What I can promise is an experienced guide, a sensible turnaround policy, and an honest account of your odds before you commit to this route over a longer one.
Are drinks included on the mountain?
Meals, drinking water, soft drinks, tea and coffee are all included and carried for you. Beer, wine and spirits are included on this trip too, but take this as honest advice rather than a rule: alcohol dehydrates you, and it makes altitude sickness both more likely and harder to spot in yourself. Above about 3,000 metres your guides will encourage you to leave it until you are back down. Nobody is going to stop you. They will just tell you straight what it does to your chances of standing on Point Lenana.
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