My Hike at Kereita Cave and Waterfall on Saturday, 5th Oct

Perhaps some of you have visited Kereita Forest for a hike or zip line activities.

My hiking activity with a group of friends was nothing but adventurous, with our youngest avid hikers being 6yrs and 9yrs old girls.

This terrain was naturally harder than Eburu Forest, since it was raining and foggy when we commenced the hike at 9am. Due to the steep slopes in the forest, especially closer to the waterfall, we experienced a rather difficult time descending in the mucky muddy forest. No hiking shoes could have stopped us from sliding down the forest, but on reaching the cave and waterfall, it was well worth the effort.

About Kereita Forest:

Highlights: Natural forest, Bamboo walk, Birdlife, Scenic waterfall, wildlife Black and White Colobus, Sykes monkey, Elephant swimming pool, Mysterious Bubbling water, Cave, Plunge pools, Cataracts. Additional activities; Zipline, Archery, Mountain Biking, Paintballing and Tree Planting.

Kereita forest forms part of the Aberdares Forest Reserve. The forest covers a total of 4,722 hectares. The forest lies within the Upper Highland Zone and forms an extension of the Aberdares range lying at an altitude of 2500 meters above sea level. The forest is an important bird area and home to a variety of animal and plants that have been threatened by years of illegal activities such as timber harvesting, commercial fuel wood harvesting, charcoaling, encroachment, destruction of catchment sites, overgrazing and poor resource management.

Kereita forest features many interesting hiking and nature trails; one of these trails the Carbacid leads to Kereita Waterfall on Gatamaiyu River and the adjacent cave that is home to a small bat colony.

Before the colonial era, Kikuyu warriors are said to have used Kereita forest for cover when fighting against Maasai warriors, taking advantage of the fog that typically covers the area in the mornings and evenings. The word Kereita in Kikuyu means “a place of warriors”. This was also the arena where the widely publicized Lari Massacre took place in March 1953 when Mau Mau fighters attacked a loyalists’ settlement in a nearby place called Kirenga, killing about 100 people related to or allied to the local colonial Chief. It is estimated that over 5,000 Mau Mau combatants and local residents perished in the subsequent revenge attacks by the colonial administration over several weeks following this incident. These unfortunate victims were buried in mass graves in Kereita forest. (I did not get to see the graves though).

Photos attached are taken when it was raining and foggy at 9am and in the afternoon, when the sunshine was all out and beautiful. Amazing views, clear clouds and fresh air is worth a trip there.

Amazing…def something to try out when my kids are older…

I ziplined when it was very foggy with some light rain. Very thrilling. Especially the 1st line which is the longest and scariest