The small lake
Calm among the trees.
Amr F.Nagy — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Queen Asali — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Eva Ayub — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Amr F.Nagy — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Mwintirew — CC BY-SA 4.0
Karura Forest is a large urban forest in Nairobi, covering 1,041 hectares and described as the second largest urban forest in the world after Tijuca in Rio. It is a calm escape from the capital's crowds, where locals come to walk, run and cycle at weekends. It was gazetted as a forest in 1932 and is managed by the Kenya Forest Service with the Friends of Karura Forest association. It has three parts separated by roads, and native species cover about 36 percent of its area. In the late 1990s plans to cut out portions for housing drew protests from conservationists. More than 50 km of trails run among pines, eucalyptus and native trees, with a calm small lake and a cave. Some 200 bird species live here, along with Sykes's monkeys, genets and small antelopes. Maps at the entrances show the routes, so choose your length before you begin. It is 6.4 km in a straight line from the Railway Museum, and a taxi will get you there. Morning is best for walking, so bring water and comfortable shoes. Keep to the marked trails, do not carry valuables in view and enter by the official gates. The trails also suit cycling.
Calm among the trees.
A rock hollow in the forest.
Walking, running and cycling.
Limuru Road and Kiambu Road, north Nairobi
Locals use it a lot, but keep to marked trails and do not carry valuables in view.
Morning, especially on weekdays if you want more calm.