We arrived at dusk after a couple of hours drive on a very rough mou
ntainous track. On the way we had seen signs of buffalo, elephant, eland and hyaena. We also came across my first flock of moorland francolin, a very attractive fellow to me!
Our Land-Rovers pulled to a halt at a ravine where there is small cable-trolley to haul our bags across, while we traversed on foot. We were in a remote moor on the northern slopes of Mount Kenya, the second highest mountain in Africa.
We stayed in the two cosy log cabins, heated by wood fires. My brother Damian, his wife Sally, and their two boys had ample room in their cabin, and Gillian, myself and our three offspring stayed in the larger one. 
This included the kitchen, a sitting-room furnished with sheepskin covered sofas and a dining table, and an outdoor porch with another breakfast table. There was no cellphone coverage, no electricity (the rooms being lit by safari style hurricane lamps), a self catering kitchen, and hot steaming baths were ready for us when we arrived. To us it seemed there was nothing lacking and it was ideal.
The following morning revealed a wild and stunning moorland and heather landscape with, a few minutes walk below the cabins, a pristine lake, Rutundu. My son Laurence, nephew Jasper, and my brother Damian, spent most of the day fishing for trout from the small Dory. Damian and Jasper caught a respectable trout the first day, and Laurence caught a two pounder the second day.
Gillian and I hiked with one year old daughter Olethea up to Lake Alice. The lake
is in a protected basin at about 12,200 ft asl. On the way we passed a herd of zebra and another of eland. I tried my luck at fishing there and we relaxed in the sun on the pebble beach. Olethea actually went for a paddle in the lake! It was wonderful to be hiking in this wild and remote landscape, surrounded by vast vistas of rugged peaks and rolling heather-covered hills.
Justin
