A typical Kenyan holiday is either a safari through one of the numerous parks found in the country or taking in some sun and sand on the beach along the coast. Entrepreneurial tours and travel operators have over the years been promoting day trips with the aim of entertaining city revelers with activities such as rafting, zip lining, paintballing, birdwatching and many others.
However, there is a small group of thrill-seekers who are seeking to take it to another level, literally. The 7 Summit challenge is an undertaking that sees people climb seven mountains in a certain region within a specified time. Given that the participants get to travel to various countries, encountering different terrain, wildlife, and vegetation, the whole experience is shared on youtube, Facebook Live and other social media as it happens. The summits that are to be scaled in the African leg include Mt. Stanley, Mt. Speke, Mt. Meru, Mt. Karismbi, the active volcano Mt. Nyiragongo, Mt. Kilimanjaro and finally our very own Mt. Kenya.
Brand Kenya along with the government decided to take this opportunity to promote adventure tourism and Kenya as a favorable destination. The Cabinet Secretary for Tourism Najib Balala yesterday completed his five-day hike of Mt. Kenya. He made it to the highest point, the Lenana peak on the 16th November 2017.
His efforts have been lauded by Kenyans on twitter with people sending in their congratulatory messages. The president-elect Uhuru Kenyatta also lauded his efforts in placing the country on the tourism global map. Mt. Longonot, Mt. Elgon, Mt. Marsabit and Odoinyo Sapuk are some of the great areas of mountaineering in Kenya.
https://twitter.com/UKenyatta/status/929995466514759680?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=http%3A%2F%2Fnairobinews.nation.co.ke%2Fnews%2Fuhuru-wishes-cs-balala-well-tackles-mt-kenya%2F
The 7 Summits Africa challenges have begun to make future plans to scale the highest mountain in the world in 2020. An all African team is set to take part. Training will begin at Mt. Kenya for the expedition. Kenyans and people from the rest of the world are at liberty to join in the adventure.
