Safari in Aberdare National Park, Kenya

If you are planning a Kenya Safari, you must make sure you visit the Aberdare National Park. The scenery and the wildlife variety that can be found here make it a trip you will remember for a lifetime. And not only that but the Treetop lodge located in Aberdare is one of the most famous safari lodges in all of Kenya.

The Aberdare National Park varies in elevation from 7000 feet to 14000 feet. You will be treated to a wide variety of scenery including moorland, rainforests, mountain peaks and bamboo forests. Steams, rivers and spectacular waterfalls run through all of this gorgeous scenery.

This varied scenery means a vast array of wildlife live in the Aberdare National Park.

The varied elevation allows for different animal species in each different environment. The high moorland area is very like the Scottish Highlands. This is home to a rare antelope of the area called the bongo. A sighting of this antelope is very difficult to get as the bamboo hides him from sight.

Of course, everyone comes to see the big game on a Kenya safari holiday, and you won’t be disappointed. Elephants are the dominant animal at the watering holes, and even the lions make way for these giant creatures. Hippos, zebras, giraffes, hyenas etc will also be seenThere are even leopards to be seen, but you will have to keep a watch for them at night. Aberdare National Park even has a large population of black rhino - an unusual and remarkable site for these rare animals.

One curious aspect of a safari that we found – for the first day or two the sight of a lion or giraffe is enough to be thrilling, but after a few days you need to see a pack of lions, a herd of zebras, or a lion chasing a zebra etc – the thrills become harder to find - don’t let this deter you from taking an African safari holiday.

You will find that your guide / driver has a knack for seeking out the big game, or for spotting animals when they are just tiny dots on the horizon, so you are assured of a successful visit.

There is no danger of malaria at Aberdare National Park because of its high elevation. Precautions will have to be taken, however, because of the areas you must travel through in order to get there.

The famous Treetops Lodge is also located in Aberdare National Park. Treetops is a perfect name for this lodge where the walkways and rooms are located high up in the forest trees. The well-lit area allows each of the rooms to have a spectacular view of game in the midst of their waterhole. The lodge even has a system for waking guests if there is a particularly good animal sighting in the middle of the night. You will even find an underground viewing area so close to the animals’ waterhole that you could almost reach out and touch the animals in their natural habitat. Try and resist!

So if you are planning a Kenya safari your trip will not be complete without a trip to Aberdare National Park. You will be glad that you did.