The Aberdares is the established name of a mountain range which thrusts directly north from Nairobi for more than 160 km. The range was named after the then President of the Royal Geographical Society by the intrepid Scot, Joseph Thomson, who explored the region in 1883. The Kikuyu name Nyandarua is slowly gaining prominence. Part of the range is protected as the Aberdare National Park and encompasses all land over 3200m together with a projection due east, known as the Salient, which reaches down to 2130 m near Nyeri town.
The park is a fairyland, awesome in its majesty and beauty. But crossing these mountains is an unpredictable event since rain is both frequent and heavy. The highest point of the range is Ol Doinyo Satima (the mountain of the young bull in Maa the language of the Maasai), which reaches 3998m. There is a road which traverses the mountains from Naivasha to Nyeri which can be handled by a sturdy car in good weather. At its maximum elevation the road passes through misty moorlands at about 3350m where strange six metre tall mutants of alpine plants groundsel, erica, hypericum, lobelia and sennecio - grow in profusion. Icy rivers plunge in glorious cascades and spectacular waterfalls. The Salient which thrusts a dense forest through rich farmland is where both Treetops and the Ark are situated. The salient's origin lies in an elephant migration route between the two mountains, now sadly no longer.
But the forest is rich in wildlife; elephant and rhino, warthog, bush pig and giant forest hog, waterbuck, duiker, suni, dikdik, bongo and reedbuck are all to be seen. In the canopy the black and white colobus monkey performs its aerial acrobatics and Sykes' monkey and the black faced vervet can also be found. The carnivores are represented by lion, usually more hairy and spotted than on the plains, leopard and serval, the latter often seen on the moorlands and sometimes in its melanistic state. Birds are not only plentiful but also dazzling.
The crowned eagle (which eats monkeys) is everywhere and the forest echoes to the shrill cries of the Silvery-cheeked hornbill. The resplendent sunbirds are well represented, among them the brilliant metallic violet Tacazze, the emerald green Malachite Sunbird and on the moorlands the Scarlet tufted Malachite Sunbird, with its very long slender tail. The number of visitors to the Aberdares is high in the park rankings but this is because of the Ark and Treetops.
An Aberdares Safari offers you something quite unique: with a mountain range running through the Aberdares you'll find moorland, ice-cold streams and thick forests. This mountainous area has been described as 'Scotland with Lions'. Despite its altitude and thick vegetation the Aberdares is not without its safari attractions and is home to most of Kenya 's wildlife, including the endangered Black Rhino. As the Aberdares mountain range slopes off to the east you'll find the well-known safari lodges, The Ark and Treetops.
These lodges are also one of the main attractions of the Aberdares as both are built above the ground beside floodlit waterholes with salt licks. Elephant, buffalo, rhino, leopard and bushbuck are regular visitors to the waterholes at night. This area was put on the tourist map in 1950 when Princess Elizabeth became Queen of England while she was on safari in the Aberdares.
Location:
Central highlands, west of Mount Kenya; Nyeri District; Central Province; 766km2.
Climate:
Mist and rain occur throughout much of the year, with precipitation varying from around 1000mm yearly on the north western slopes to as much as 3000mm in the south east. Heavy rainfall occurs through most of the year.
Major attractions
Lesatima peak, Kinangop peak, waterfalls, walks in the moorlands, Twin hills, Elephant hills and Table mountains, Elephants, Second largest population of black rhinos in Salient and Northern Aberdares, Queen Elizabeth learned of her accession to the throne at Tree-tops, The Kimathi Hideout, Night viewing of wildlife at the Ark & Treetops.
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