Hell's gate national parkwestern Kenya
Hell's gate national park, the cliffs (left and in the distance) 1
One of few Kenyan parks to allow walking, horse riding or cycling without a KWS escort, named for the intense geothermal activity that goes on within it's boundaries.
It's landscape is filled with cliffs over 100m high, expansive woodlands and grasslands, hills, rock towers, volcanoes and geothermal wells belching plumes of steam.
Animals you may see here include buffalo, zebra, eland, hartebeest, Thomson's gazelle, giraffe, baboon, serval cat, antelopes and occasionally, elephants — visiting from neighbouring parks.
Big predators like Lions, leopards and cheetahs are a very rare sighting.
The park is also home to over 100 bird species, with the cliffs being home to swifts, the augur buzzard, the Verreaux's eagle and the rare Lammergeier vulture.
Hell's gate national park is also the site of a geothermal power project
What to do thereA Plethora of activities including hiking, cycling, horse riding, rock climbing most of which have equipment for hire available at the park's gates and nearby establishments.
Or go for camping, picnics, game drives, bird watching or a healthy spa treatment in natural spring waters.
Best time to visitAny time of the year
Location of Hell's gate national parkHell's gate national park sits near the southern shores of lake Naivasha, about an hour or two north west of Nairobi — by vehicle.
It, along with lake Naivasha is inside the East African rift valley.
How to get thereBy train, air, bus or vehicle — most of which have terminals in Naivasha, a small town near the park.
From there, you may need another mode of transportation.
References1. By Nao Iizuka from Tokyo, Japan - Hell's Gate National Park, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=51311077 - accessed on 2nd January, 2018
It's landscape is filled with cliffs over 100m high, expansive woodlands and grasslands, hills, rock towers, volcanoes and geothermal wells belching plumes of steam.
Animals you may see here include buffalo, zebra, eland, hartebeest, Thomson's gazelle, giraffe, baboon, serval cat, antelopes and occasionally, elephants — visiting from neighbouring parks.
Big predators like Lions, leopards and cheetahs are a very rare sighting.
The park is also home to over 100 bird species, with the cliffs being home to swifts, the augur buzzard, the Verreaux's eagle and the rare Lammergeier vulture.
Hell's gate national park is also the site of a geothermal power project
What to do thereA Plethora of activities including hiking, cycling, horse riding, rock climbing most of which have equipment for hire available at the park's gates and nearby establishments.
Or go for camping, picnics, game drives, bird watching or a healthy spa treatment in natural spring waters.
Best time to visitAny time of the year
Location of Hell's gate national parkHell's gate national park sits near the southern shores of lake Naivasha, about an hour or two north west of Nairobi — by vehicle.
It, along with lake Naivasha is inside the East African rift valley.
How to get thereBy train, air, bus or vehicle — most of which have terminals in Naivasha, a small town near the park.
From there, you may need another mode of transportation.
References1. By Nao Iizuka from Tokyo, Japan - Hell's Gate National Park, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=51311077 - accessed on 2nd January, 2018
Continue reading
Popular spots
