Daily departure: 06:00 hrs Morning tour
Tour Duration: Full Day
Mount Longonot day trip hiking tour to the top of the Great Rift Valley will give you the chance to experience the freedom and awesome wildness of East Africa.
Mt Longonot is just less than 9100 ft above sea level with a tree filled the interior and a lonesome steam vent to the northeast. A climb up Mount Longonot is an ideal day trip from either Nairobi or Naivasha. Best time to visit / travel is the months of January to April and from September to December.
Mount Longonot day trip hiking tours departs daily from Nairobi after breakfast and the drive takes approximately an hour. You start the ascent at 6000 ft. Like all good uphill hikes, it will lull you into a sense of false security with a slow gentle rise to the first peak.
This gives you a chance to get your lungs and limbs freed up for the second section, which is the most awesome. At the end of each section there is a rest point where you can prepare yourself for the next part of your journey.
You will have started early to avoid the heat of the Sun but by the time you reach the end of the second section, you would have generated your own heat. This hike is not an easy hike but is achievable by people of average fitness. An indication of the fitness required is that most schools of the age of 14 and 15 take this climb while attending school in Nairobi.
Once you have finished the second section there is another rest bite of slightly less demanding terrain, before making the final climb on the fourth section. This again is a demanding section, though not as demanding as the second section.
As you heave yourself over the rim of the crater your reward is the awesome sight of Naivasha and the Great Rift Valley and you know that it was all worthwhile. Before making this climb you will need to acclimatize at 6000 feet. A ranger accompanies you on the hike.
He will act as a guide. As there are wild animals in the area he is armed. The whole tour is only about 8–9 km long but very steep so that the round trip of park gate - Longonot Peak - park gate takes around 5 hours hiking. The gate is around 2150 meters and the peak at 2780 meters but following the jagged rim involves substantially more than the 630 meters vertical difference.
Itinerary
6:00 am:- Nairobi- Great African Rift Valley
Pick up and depart from Nairobi for Mount Longonot National Park going through the Kikuyu lush green highlands and then on the eastern escarpment of the Great Rift valley system.
6:30 am: – Great Rift Valley View Point
You will make a scheduled stop at the viewpoint on the side of the escarpment to enjoy the view of the Great Rift valley floor from a bird’s eye view. The Great Rift Valley Was formed some 5 million years ago and the rift runs from the red sea through Ethiopia, Kenya and Tanzania. The Rift Valley is an active volcanic area and has some of the most interesting features including more than 8 lakes, dormant and active volcanic mountains and hot springs and geysers like the Olkaria geothermal wells and Lake Bogoria geysers. You can actually see the volcanic Mt Suswa and Mt Longonot from this high place with their evergreen craters and the undulating green rift valley floor. The view from here is just amazing.
7:00 am: – Mt Longonot National Park
Drive down into the rift valley and arrive at the Mount Longonot National Park for your hike up to the crater. The hike requires medium physical fitness and you will climb through the gulley that dots the sides of this mountain. You can make some rest stops at the designated places on the trek. You will get to the rim of the crater and look into the awesome crater below. If you have the strength for it, you can go round the rim of the crater.
12:00 pm: – Mt. Longonot –Lake Naivasha
Descend from the Mount Longonot for the base at the park headquarters. Relax for some while and take on the drive to Lake Naivasha.
1:00 pm: – Lunch at Marina Camp
Arrive at Marina camp and enjoy a sumptuous lunch at their restaurant by the lakeside while watching the lakes beauty and the birds flying by.
2:30 pm: – Boat Ride in Lake Naivasha
Go on an hour boat ride in this wonderful rift valley lake. The boat ride will take you to see the hundreds of birds in this lake including the diving African fish eagle which dives in the water to catch fish without ever missing. You will also go to the hippo pool and see the hippos as they swim and bleat inside the water while opening their mouths to over 180 degrees.
4:00 pm: – Lake Naivasha -Nairobi
Depart Lake Naivasha for Nairobi and drive through the lush Kikuyu highlands and arriving back to Nairobi at around 5:30 pm. You will be dropped off at your Nairobi hotel.
Mount Longonot Day Trip Hiking Tour Requirements:
• Good pair of walking boots (broken-in)
• Walking stick. An adjustable spring-loaded stick is best
• Camera, sun cream, plus your sweater that will be removed during the climb
• Pair of woollen socks as recommended by the boots manufacturer/salesman
• All of this hike is over rough ground and has all the hazards of hiking up steep inclines
• Do not underestimate dehydration. Drink water at the end of each section, and as required.
• Rucksack. Large enough to carry 2 x ½ litter of water plus few sandwiches to eat at the top
• The ranger's advice on all matters including your rate of progress should always be listened to
• Animals - There are numerous animals in the area; the most commonly seen is the giraffe or dik-dik.
• The crater can be circumnavigated; this takes another 4 hours via a narrow path. In some places, this path has steep slopes on both sides and is not without danger.
Rate Includes
* Price is based on per person and minimum 2 people required
* All entry fees, service charge and taxes
* Pickup from your hotel in Nairobi and drop-off to your hotel
* Day trip to Mount Longonot with lunch at Lake Naivasha
* Professional English speaking guides.
* All vehicle expenses and driver's allowance.
Rates do Not Include
* Tips or gratuity to your driver-guide
* Minimum of two persons required
* International airfares and airport taxes
* Visas, meals and drinks, any other sightseeing not included in the package
* Travelers insurance; laundry & communication charges
* Personal expenses such as transfers to/ from the airport (supplement airport transfer cost applies for tours starting from the airport), optional activities
