Kenya is situated in East Africa from 5.5
North and 4 South latitudes 34 and 42 East Longitudes of Greenwich and borders
the Indian Ocean. The country is bisected from North to South by the Great Rift
Valley and from East to West by equator.
The Kenyan landscape covers a great range of terrain, stretching from
sea level at the coast up to 5199m on the snowcapped peak of Mt Kenya.
This is
one of the most geographically diverse countries on earth with vast expanses of
savannah, highland ranges, equatorial rainforest, extinct volcanoes, a series
of fresh water and soda lakes, alpine glaciers, arid deserts and tropical
beaches, all within the borders of a single country.
The great diversity of habitat is equaled
by a remarkable variety of species of flora and fauna. These include large
grazing herds of wildebeest, zebra and gazelle, large mammals such as
elephants, buffalo and rhinoceros and a range of predators including lion,
leopard and cheetah. Kenya’s world famous wildlife is protected in 48 National
Parks, Reserves and Marine Parks, as well as many private sanctuaries and game
ranches.
Kenya ‘s fascinating cultural history
stretches back over 4.5 million years , with some of the earliest known
evidence of early man uncovered on the shores of Lake Turkana. Over 42
individual cultures now call Kenya home including a wide range of nomadic and
sedentary tribal groups.
The Kenya coast has long been a centre for trade and
the blend of African and Arab cultures created the 19th century
Kenya was settled by the British, who built a railway 1000kms into the
wilderness from the Coast to the waters of Lake Victoria. Completed in 1901,
the railway was an epic undertaking it became a vital lifeline, bringing the
new capital Nairobi and the lakeside port of Kisumu to life Kenya became
independent in 1963 and attained its public status in December 1964.
Today this
is a peaceful, magical destination offering the visitors an unparalled variety
of travel option. No other country can offer the visitors as much as Kenya can.
SIZE: Kenya occupies an area of 582,646 sq
km. The water surface covers 11230 sq km.
SHAPE: In Kenya, the longest distance from
the North to the South is 1025km, while the longest distance from the East to
the West is 850km. Kenya has a coastline along the Indian Ocean of about 402km.
PHYSICAL FEATURES: These are the things we
see on the surface of the earth. The main physical features in Kenya are
mountains, highlands, plateaus, valleys, hill, lakes, rivers, plains, islands
and swamps
MOUNTAINS ALTITUDE
KENYA 5199
M
ELGON 4321
M
LONGONOT 2777
M
NDOTO 2637
M
KULAL 2381
M
SUSWA 2357
M
MARSABIT 1702
M
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