Mount Kenya Traverse – Four Base Camps

1. The summit circular

Four main summit base camps – Austrian Hut, Mackinder’s Camp, Mintos, and Shipton’s Camp – sit around the central peaks. They are linked by a roughly 12 km loop, known as the summit circular. My route covered around 10 km of the loop, passing through all four camps and offering a nearly 360-degree view of the summit massif.

2. Lakes and tarns

Mount Kenya has dozens of tarns, and this traverse passed several of the most distinctive ones.

3. Traversing the mountain

I prefer not to backtrack on a hike. Entering at one gate and exiting at another allowed me to move through different valleys – Gorges in the east, Teleki in the west, and Mackinder in the north – and experience more of the mountain over four days.

Day 1: Chogoria Gate to Lake Ellis

Hike: 7.7 km, 2 hr 7 min, 537 m gain, 85 m loss, 2950–3470 m

Difficulty: Moderate to Difficult

I began the traverse at Chogoria Gate shortly after noon and followed a jeep track for a little over two hours before reaching Lake Ellis (3470 m), my first camp. It was the shortest day of the trek, and intentionally so. The goal wasn’t mileage; it was acclimatisation.

Chogoria Gate, at nearly 3000 m, is already high enough to feel the altitude. I hadn’t done any acclimatisation hikes beforehand, and the last time I’d been above 2800 m was more than four months earlier – not ideal. Starting gently made sense.

Heavy rain began as soon as I arrived at camp and continued through most of the night. The cold, wet conditions were going to test both my equipment and my temperament over the next few days.

Day 2: Lake Ellis to Mackinder’s Camp

Hike: 16.6 km, 9 hr 57 min, 1570 m gain, 872 m loss, 3440–4790 m

Difficulty: Very strenuous

This was the toughest day. After a short first day, I needed to cover long distances on Days 2 and 3 to complete the 50+ km traverse in four days.

The morning began well. I joined a hiking couple – the only other hikers at the campsite – for breakfast. When I mentioned that I was heading to Mackinder’s, their guide overheard and said, “Impossible. I’ve been a guide on this mountain for over 20 years; you can’t get there in one day.” This wasn’t exactly the encouragement I was hoping for.

Almost 1600 m of elevation gain at an average altitude of 4300 m – where oxygen concentration is less than 60% of sea level – turns a difficult hike into a very strenuous one. To add to the challenge, my backpack weighed roughly 12 kg, as it was only the second day and I still had most of my food. I was also carrying more water than usual because there would be limited streams later in the day.

I set off shortly after 8 AM and reached Mintos (4280 m), the summit base camp on the Chogoria route, four hours later. After a slow one‑hour lunch, I continued on a steep ascent to Austrian Hut (4790 m). As if the climb and thin air weren’t enough, the weather turned and it began raining heavily.

I reached Mackinder’s (4200 m) shortly after 6 PM. My guide had judged the pace well: four hours to Mintos, five hours to Mackinder’s. His final words as we reached camp were, “Today was fun.” I thought: Yes, now it’s fun.

It turns out that I could get there in one day – but it was a hard slog.

Day 3: Mackinder’s Camp to Old Moses

Hike: 19.5 km, 9 hr 42 min, 766 m gain, 1514 m loss, 3390–4600 m

Difficulty: Strenuous

Sleeping at altitude is never easy, and I had the worst night of the traverse – not ideal after the previous day’s effort and with another long day ahead.

The first half of the day was defined by tarns. So far, I had seen Lake Ellis on Day 1, and on Day 2, Hall Tarns near Mintos and Lewis Tarn on the descent after Austrian Hut, with the Lewis Glacier behind it. Lake Michaelson, often visible from Gorges Valley, was hidden in heavy fog. This was a pity, as it is one of the most striking tarns on Mount Kenya.

I left camp at 7:30 AM under clear skies, which was a welcome change. After a steep climb out of Teleki Valley, I reached the first two tarns of the day: Two Tarns (4490 m) and Nanyuki Tarn (4480 m). A short distance ahead, I had a view down to Emerald Tarn (4340 m).

I continued for another 1.5 km, reaching Oblong Tarn and then Hausberg Tarn (4360 m) – my seventh and eighth tarns of the traverse. From there, I climbed back to 4600 m over Hausberg Col, before descending to Shipton’s (4260 m), the base camp on the Sirimon route.

After lunch at Shipton’s, I continued along the Mackinder Valley and reached Old Moses (3390 m) at 5:20 PM.

Day 4: Old Moses to Sirimon Gate

Hike: 8.9 km, 1 hr 35 min, 0 m gain, 740 m loss, 2650–3390 m

Difficulty: Easy

The two long days were behind me. I had covered 36 km from Lake Ellis to Old Moses, taking the long way around the mountain and passing the four main base camps. The final stretch was downhill on an uneventful concrete and tarmac service road, so I picked up the pace.

A pleasant surprise was crossing the equator on the descent – my first time doing so while hiking.

After four days, 53 km, 2870 m of elevation gain, and less than 24 hours on trail, I reached Sirimon Gate.

Altitude

Most of the route was above 3500 m, with long stretches above 4000 m and a high point of almost 4800 m at Austrian Hut. At these elevations, everything feels harder – climbing, sleeping, and recovering for the next day.

Long days

Completing the traverse in four days required two demanding days in the middle, with long distances and significant elevation gains at high altitude.

Terrain

The route included rocky paths, steep ascents, boggy sections, and high-altitude scree. The terrain changed constantly and was rarely straightforward. Many ascents had loose gravel, creating the sense of moving two steps forward only to slide one step back – at a time when the body was already working hard with limited oxygen.

Weather

Mount Kenya’s weather changes quickly. Wet gear, cold temperatures, and reduced visibility all added to the difficulty.