kenya: mt kenya part 3 descent
ok, this part is comparatively boring since the most spectacular views were on the ascent and at the peak but there were a few interesting pics so here goes...
at the end of part 2 we were at mackinders hut - wiped out at 9 in the morning, so we walked in and fell asleep in various odd positions. mackinders hut was named after an english chap who was the first to reach the summit in 1899.
anyway, after a nap of an hour or so, we were preparing to leave mackinders when this hyrax conveniently posed for me. these are the same fellows who are among the four animals 'small but instinctively wise' mentioned at Pr 30:26 as 'the rock badgers are a people not mighty, and yet upon a crag is where they put their house'.
then we started the trek back almost to the bottom - about a 6hr trek starting with the wide and pleasant teleki valley (if i remember that name correctly).here you can see we are in the valley with the peaks receding into the background. sorry about my bag in the pic - its the tripod! as you can see sandi is smiling now - if you remember she was cursing me on the way up - on the way down she was saying stuff like, 'when we come back, id like to do the chogoria route' so i took that as a positive sign that she'd enjoyed the hike:)
then we moved on to the 'vertical bog' which is exactly what the word indicates - a bog thats on the side of a hill - mud, puddles of water, squishy and yucky for several hours. but hauntingly beautiful - like moorland. here you can see suzie following brother kariuki who was our guide downhill.
finally we got to the met station where we had a good nights rest and were ready for the short hike the next day to the park entrance, where dad was going to pick us up. only 2 hours, hahaha thats nothing!!! and so it was, a very pleasant hike to the gate in a gloriously brilliant morning - a fitting end to our fabulous trip! heres the whole gang at the end - lots of smiles on our faces now!
at the end of part 2 we were at mackinders hut - wiped out at 9 in the morning, so we walked in and fell asleep in various odd positions. mackinders hut was named after an english chap who was the first to reach the summit in 1899.
anyway, after a nap of an hour or so, we were preparing to leave mackinders when this hyrax conveniently posed for me. these are the same fellows who are among the four animals 'small but instinctively wise' mentioned at Pr 30:26 as 'the rock badgers are a people not mighty, and yet upon a crag is where they put their house'.
then we started the trek back almost to the bottom - about a 6hr trek starting with the wide and pleasant teleki valley (if i remember that name correctly).here you can see we are in the valley with the peaks receding into the background. sorry about my bag in the pic - its the tripod! as you can see sandi is smiling now - if you remember she was cursing me on the way up - on the way down she was saying stuff like, 'when we come back, id like to do the chogoria route' so i took that as a positive sign that she'd enjoyed the hike:)
then we moved on to the 'vertical bog' which is exactly what the word indicates - a bog thats on the side of a hill - mud, puddles of water, squishy and yucky for several hours. but hauntingly beautiful - like moorland. here you can see suzie following brother kariuki who was our guide downhill.
one enjoyable memory of the vertical bog wasnt the actual bog, but we as were walking down with krishna, uncle rajs' sister in law we had a really interesting conversation with her about india. its easy to think of the country as one uniform place (as many think of africa) but she explained the different parts, foods, languages, religions, history - wow what a history lesson. and while we are on the topic of krishna she is one incredible lady - walked all the way up and down with no complaint and she is the mother of 2 girls in their 20's. i was also impressed by her two girls, puja and ridhi whose pleasant company we thoroughly enjoyed during the trip.
anyway, after the vertical bog we came into the alpine forest which unfortunately i didnt get a good pic of, i think we were a bit wiped out by this point, but it was very beautiful and full of the most interesting plants and flowers - i really enjoyed this part of the hike.
finally we got to the met station where we had a good nights rest and were ready for the short hike the next day to the park entrance, where dad was going to pick us up. only 2 hours, hahaha thats nothing!!! and so it was, a very pleasant hike to the gate in a gloriously brilliant morning - a fitting end to our fabulous trip! heres the whole gang at the end - lots of smiles on our faces now!
