Mount Longonot National Park

The name Longonot is derived from the Maasai word Oloonong’ot meaning mountains of many spurs or steep ridges. The volcano is dormant and is thought to have last erupted in the 1860s. The park was first opened to the public and visitors in January 1983. Longonot National Park comprises mainly of a savannah ecosystem with the dominating young volcano – Mt Lononot – that rises to 2,776 metres above sea level. The sides of the mountain are beautiful V-shaped valleys and ridges with little vegetation, but with dense forest occurring within the crater. A trail runs from the park entrance up to the crater rim, and continues in a loop encircling the crater a hiking round tour that takes about 5 hours. On the crater floor is forest vegetation dotted with steam vents around the wall of the crater. Animals: Buffalos, gazelles, impala and giraffe. Within the thick forest in the crater major wildlife attractions include lion, leopard, bushbucks, common zebra, giraffe, grant gazelles, Thomson gazelles and many other antelopes.