Ngong Hills Kenya
Ngong Hills Kenya are the peaks in a ridge along the Great Rift Valley, located southwest near Nairobi, in southern Kenya. The word ‘’Ngong’’ is an Anglicization of a Maasai phrase ‘’enkong’u emuny’’ meaning rhinoceros spring, and this name derives from a spring located near Ngong Town. For a spectacular hiking safari near Nairobi, head to the Ngong Hills, just a 40-minute drive away. The knuckle shaped hills offer the panoramic views of Nairobi and the surrounding mountain ranges, and you can choose to turn back at any point if you do not feel like scaling very peak (the highest rises to 8,071 feet above the sea level). The most great about hiking the Ngong Hills, takes about 4 to 5 hours depending on the fitness levels, is the satisfying of reaching the final peak is celebrated by the sprawling out on a blanket, enjoying a sandwich, and soaking in the views extending out from all sides.
The Ngong Hills, from the eastside slopes, overlook the Nairobi National Park, and off the north, the city of Nairobi, The Ngong Hills, from the west side slopes, overlook the Great Rift Valley dropping over 1,000 meters (3,281 ft.) below, where the Maasai villages have been developed. The whole mountain range is a gazetted forest reserve. The peak of the Ngong Hills is at 2,460 meters (8,071 ft.) above the sea level.
Part of the Great Rift Valley Escarpment, the Ngong Hills are actually the remains of the massive volcano, which formed from the basalt lava between five and six and a half million years ago. Around two million years ago, it is thought that the volcano was dissected by the faults, which caused its western slopes to drop into the Rift.
The Ngong Hills is managed by the Kenya Forestry services and ensures the nature is well preserved animals in the area and all the kinds of plantations. The tour guides as always available to ensure that the visitor’s safari to the Ngong Hills is well spent by taking them across to the strategic sites such as the power plant, The Great Rift Valley viewpoint, the forested summit to view Nairobi city and many other areas. The Ngong Hills proximity to Nairobi about 22km southwest of the city, makes it a very popular weekend safari destination for the visitors from all over the county. Some come for the walks while others picnics or worship on the hills, the professional and amateur runners will also be found in the morning jogging up and down the steep slopes.
Ngong Hills has some of the indigenous trees like the Acacia Croton, Wild plants and flowers, Cyprus, and others that grow according to the soil type and altitude. The animal species migrate in the Ngong Hills due to pasture and water searching that diminishes due to drought, also sometimes the animals can migrate due to fires and other reasons, during the Kenya safari to the Ngong Hills the visitors can enjoy the viewing of animals like Buffalos, Rabbits, lions, chimpanzees, wild pigs, porcupines and many more.
Ngong Hills Activities and Charges.
| Ngong Hills Activities | Charges (Ksh) |
| Filming | Approximately Ksh 40,000 |
| Video Shooting | Approximately Ksh 2,500 |
| Hiking | Approximately Ksh 200 to Ksh 600 |
| Zip lining | Approximately Ksh 1,000 |
Note; The Ngong Hills Entrance fee is approximately Ksh 200 and the facility is a managed by the Kenya Forest Service. The visitors are admitted from 6am and the hills should be cleared by 5pm.
Ngong Hills provides more variety activities for the tourists who come to visit the Ngongs Hills like the camping, team building, picnics, weddings, cycling, Hiking Ngong Hills, Video shooting, Archery, Zip lining, Religious practices such praying, filming and many others.
Best time to visit the Ngong Hills.
The best time to visit the Ngong Hills, that is the period when there is ideal weather between the period from the month of June 4th to October 28th or November 19th to April 15ht basing on the average temperature and humidity from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Where to stay in Ngong Hills.
Ngong Hills provides visitors with accommodation services charged apart from food and drinks. Tourists can also celebrate their special days at the hotels after having a great time at the Nongo Hills. The hotel’s provision packages come with trained staff’s affordable prices under safety guidelines for the quality services. The served meals can be breakfast, lunch, dinner as per customer’s request, the meal servings can be starter, desserts, soups, snacks, drinks and many other dishes to meet the guests’s desires, some of the hotels providing the accommodation includes the Savanna Sunset village, Oloolua Resort, Ngong Florida Inn, Sultan Gardens, Kin’s Hotel, Jordan Breeze, Aloha Cottage, Karen Village Art Resident, Ngong Forest View Apartments, Karen Gables and any more.
How to get the Ngong Hills.
The Ngong can be reached from Nairobi,
By Road transport, Take the Ngong road out of Nairobi and proceed through Karen to Ngong Town. At the T-junction in the Centre of town, turn right and follow the road around to the left for 1km (passing Ngong Police station) where the tarmac ends, turn up a rough, which leads ( in 1.9km) to the Kenya Wildlife Services barrier.
Ngong Hills is a very great place to engage yourself in a recreational activities with your family and friends, the entrance fee is quite cheap for the both residents and the non-resident, the best part of the Ngong Hills is the hiking safari, you get to experience nature at its best, that is from the great forest ecosystem to the cool breeze.
