Satima Peak

Satima is the high point of the Aberdare range at 4,001 metres and, on Kenya Wildlife Service’s own description, the third-highest summit in Kenya. It is also the most approachable four-thousand-metre peak in the country, because the walk starts on moorland that is already high. That combination, serious altitude and a modest day, is what makes it worth a page of its own.

The Third Summit of Kenya

Only Mount Kenya and Mount Elgon stand higher. Satima sits at the northern end of the Aberdare range, on the eastern wall of the Rift Valley, with Mount Kinangop at 3,906 metres as the range’s second peak. Kenya Wildlife Service names Satima among the park’s attractions and lists Rurimieria, Table Mountain, Kinangop and Maritini as the other peaks suitable for trekking here.

The mountain is properly Ol Doinyo Lesatima, a Maasai name usually translated as the mountain of the bull calf, and it appears in print under several spellings including Oldoinyo Lesatima and Mount Sattima. Satima and Lesatima are both in everyday use.

Why the Walk Is Easier Than the Altitude Suggests

Most Kenyan mountain trails start low and climb through forest. This one does not. The northern moorland road puts a vehicle at around 3,600 metres, which leaves roughly 400 metres of ascent to the summit, and the ground between is open tussock grass, heather, bog and the giant groundsel and lobelia of the high Aberdare.

Published figures for the round trip cluster around fourteen kilometres and four hours of walking, though these come from hiking-club and operator descriptions rather than the park authority, so treat them as a guide rather than a timetable. The route hugs the escarpment edge above a run of valleys, which is where most of the view is, and the summit is a broad rise rather than a peak.

Easy gradient is not the same as easy day. Four thousand metres is four thousand metres, and people who have come straight from Nairobi at 1,795 metres feel it. The Aberdare moorland is also wet: bog is the normal surface for long stretches, and gaiters and boots that can be soaked are worth more here than any other item of kit.

Getting to the Trailhead

Kenya Wildlife Service’s Aberdare brochure puts it plainly, naming the Elephant and Satima hiking trails as one-day activities reached via Shamata. Shamata Gate is on the northern side of the range. The other approach used by walking groups is the Wandare track, whose roadhead sits at a saddle on the high moorland.

The park has eight gates, named by Kenya Wildlife Service as Ark, Treetops, Kiandongoro, Mutubio, Rhino, Ruhuruini, Shamata and Wandare. Park headquarters is 15 kilometres from Nyeri on the Nyeri to Nyahururu road. Getting a vehicle onto the northern moorland needs high clearance and four-wheel drive, and in the rains it needs both and a willingness to stop.

Satima and the Dragon’s Teeth

The Dragon’s Teeth, the volcanic towers that stand out of the northern moorland, are on the same ground. A number of walking parties combine the two, using the Teeth as the landmark on the way to or from the summit, and the combination makes a better day than either does alone. The rock itself is climbed occasionally, which belongs with rock climbing in Kenya.

Weather, Navigation and Escorts

The Aberdare moorland makes its own weather and changes it quickly. Mist can reduce visibility to a few metres within minutes, and on open moorland with few fixed features that is a navigation problem rather than an inconvenience. Kenya Wildlife Service’s kit list for this park names a compass and maps alongside warm clothing and walking boots, which it does not do for the savannah parks.

Walking inside a national park holding elephant and buffalo is not a casual matter either. Escorted walking is arranged through park management rather than decided at the gate, and the forest belt lower down is where the animals are. Comparisons with the other Kenyan high walks sit on the mountain climbing in Kenya page, and shorter moorland outings with hiking in Kenya.

What to Take

• Waterproof shell and warm layers. The moorland is cold and wet even when the lowlands are hot.
• Gaiters and boots that will be soaked. Bog is the default surface.
• Compass and map, and the ability to use them in cloud.
• Strong sun protection. The equatorial sun at 4,000 metres is fierce between the mist banks.
• More water than the distance suggests, and food for a long day.

When to Walk It

January to February and July to September are the drier windows and give the firmest ground and the best chance of a view from the top. The long rains from March to May and the short rains in October and November leave the moorland saturated and the access tracks at their worst. Rain is possible in any month here, and the mist is not seasonal at all.

Questions About Satima Peak