Mt Elgon National park is located 420 kms from Nairobi. Access is via tarmac road to Kitale, branch to murram road then to the Chorlim Gate. At At 4,321 m (14,177 ft) Mt. Elgon is Kenya’s second highest mountain, an ancient eroded volcano with a huge caldera.
The park covers an area of 1279 km² and is bisected by the border of Kenya and Uganda. The Ugandan part of the park covers 1110 km² while the Kenyan part covers 169 km².The Kenyan part of the park was gazetted in 1968, the Ugandan part in 1992.
I got the chance to visit Mt Elgon National Park while taking part in Unexpected Kenya series. Seeing as we were scouting for locations to shoot we weren’t able to explore the park as much as I would have liked to.
Once you drive into the park you will most likely be greeted by the sight of zebras and bushbuck grazing peacefully in a field. They seemed used to humans so I was able to get pretty close to take pictures.
The vegetation inside the park consist mostly of forest and the temperatures in the park are cool.
The two locations we visited inside the park were the Kitum Cave and Making’eny cave. The two caves are among the three open to the public, the third is Chepnyali. You do need a vehicle to enter the park but you can walk from the gate to both Kitum and Making’eny if accompanied by a park ranger.
If interested you can have a picnic at a site in the beginning of the Kitum Cave trail.
Of the 3 caves, Kitum is the most famous. The cave which extends some 600 feet into the mountain has walls covered in salt. Each night for hundreds (possibly thousands) of years animals have travelled into the cave in the dead of night to use it as a giant salt lick. You can watch part of a BBC documentary about the elephants here
The cave also gets a mention in Richard Preston’s book The Hot Zone. It became well known in the 1980’s when two European visitors contracted Marburg virus
I didn’t get to explore the caves since there was not much time. If you have that planned be sure to carry a powerful flashlight.
Our next stop was Making’eny cave which can be accessed via a path as you walk on the trail to/from Kitum cave or you can choose to drive to the beginning trail that leads directly to the cave from the main road. The trail to Making’eny caves is steep. We all got to the top feeling rather winded.
That’s our driver at the bottom of the falls
Once you get to the caves you can walk down to the floor of the falls. The non-existent path is treacherous so practical footwear is a must.
You should also consider carrying protective (water-proof) clothing. It tends to rain most afternoons. On the first day there it rained heavily on while we were at Makin’eny cave. We had been told that it might happen but we weren’t prepared at all. We covered our equipment as much as we could and made it down the trail as fast as we could. By as fast as we could, I mean at snail’s pace since the trail had gotten very slippery.
.
Apart from the zebras and bush buck I was not able to spot much else. I did spot a couple of colobus monkeys but they were too fast for me to get any pictures.
Adorable,no?
.
If you are interested in staying inside the park, there is accommodation inside the park and the charges are as follows.
| Residents and citizens (Kshs) | Non-residents (USD) | No of units | Capacity per unit | |
| Kiotoboss guest house | 6,000 | 180 | 1 | 6 |
| Kapkuro cottage | 3,000 | 40 | 4 | 3 |
PARK CHARGES:
| EA Residents (Kshs) | EA Citizens (Kshs) | Non Residents (USD) | |
| Adults | 350 | 700 | 30 |
| Children | 250 | 350 | 20 |
This week Safari 254 links up with;
1. Reflections enroute #wkendtravelinspiration
2. Adelina’s Pack Me To in #SundayTraveler
3. Noel Morata’s Travel Photo Mondays
Please visit the sites for more wonderful photos and posts.
The Author All posts
28 Comments
HI Rachel, love your photos as usual, made me feel I was in Mt. Elgon myself. Another amazing park filled with natural wonders. I love the photos where the animals seem to be posing for you; So so adorable.
Rachel, I love those bushbucks! This sounds like a great place to visit! Just wanted to let you know, there is no link to the video. Thanks for linking up with #wkendtravelinspiration!
Beautiful…
Haven’t been to Elgon since I was a wee lad. Thanks for taking me back.
You’re welcome
Those bushbucks are adorable!
Your pictures are so great ! They make me drool and makes the places come alive. This place looks so nice. I really need to make my way there soon! 🙂 . I’m hanging out in Naija for a couple of weeks right now, so feel closer to everything ..lol
That’s awesome! I hope you are having a great time. I’ve always wanted to visit.
What an exciting national park to visit! The animals would be so interesting to see and photograph.
I would love to go there one day. I am in the US and have visited many of our national parks–they are are all beautiful!
Gorgeous! I love the shots of the waterfall, especially from the side / behind.
What a gorgeous place!
Adding Mount Elgon to my Kenya travel wish list. I’d love to explore those caves. And it’s so interesting that the animals use them for salt!
Gorgeous spot! I love the ability to get out and hike in these parks. 420 km is a ways, but sounds do-able for a long weekend out of Nairobi. Hope I can experience this beauty soon.
Now that you’re around you should definitely go. It is such a beautiful place.
Beautiful! I haven’t been in Africa since 1989 when I went back to Zambia and Zimbabwe. And have never been to Kenya. The falls look beautiful and you got a great photo of the deer.
Frank (bbqboy)
1989? That is looong time ago!If you ever come back, make sure you visit Kenya.
Such stunning pictures!! Would love to visit such an amazing place! I am pinning this on bucketlist for sure 🙂
Aaaah – this looks like a place a person could breathe deeply and be totally at peace. National parks are gems everywhere, but this one looks really lovely. Thanks for sharing.
Although I’ve never been there, I feel like I would absolutely enjoy exploring it! Wonderful picture. Would it be possible to explore it for less than $25 a day? You know me :D!!
LOL Agness, unfortunately not. You can bargain for alot in Kenya but not park entry fees.
What an absolutely beautiful park! I would love to explore this especially the caves. Your pictures are just beautiful and they really seem to capture the essence of the park. I think th animals are adorable 🙂
Looks like an amazing spot with so many photographic opportunities – and the cute factor of the animals is very high.
You captured the most amazing photos as always. It’s ironic because just last night I watched Anthony Bourdain’s show on Tanzania and Zanzibar. I was thinking of you during the entire episode, Rachael! 🙂
Thanks Mike.
i like the nice pictures of mt. elgon
Boniface is a Real Estate agent based in Nairobi and focuses on Houses for Sale in Nairobi Houses for Sale in Nairobi in the Kenya. Click here for Apartments in Nairobi for rent for for sale.
Thank you
I Must Visit This Magnificent Park This Summer!
My home place 🤭🤭🤭🙄 though its cold sometimes