The late Kenneth Matiba
A political icon, heralded as a champion of democracy. But did you know that he was a mountaineer?
Introduced to mountaineering while at Alliance High, Kenneth Matiba was fascinated by the idea of climbing mountains. After 2 unsuccessful tries, he joined Outward Bound Mountain School on an annual trek of Kilimanjaro
With no equipment of their own, they had gear and accessories borrowed from the British Army. The experience was gruelling, but reaching Mawenzi peak got Matiba hooked to the mountaineer experience!
Matiba went on to conquer Kilimanjaro 2 more times, and climbing Mt. Kenya 7 times. But he needed more! In 1985, at over 50, he put together a team of 5 to take on Mt. Everest
Matiba’s 4 Mt. Everest accomplices were fellow mountaineers:
– Dr. Elijah Nyanjui
– Wallace Gichere (photojournalist)
– Solomon Kimani (Outward Bound instructor)
– Stephen Wohome (Naro Moru River Lodge instructor)
Carefully planning their trip through the Mountain Club of Kenya, they settled on tackling Island peak, considered introductory for Everest climbs. Landing in Lukla village, Nepal 🇳🇵, they were already at 10,000ft
The team was the talk of the villages, Africans having never been seen climbing Everest before. The mountain was challengingly different from Mt. Kenya, with ascents and descents all through. But they hung on!
It took them 8 days, but the 5 men eventually planted the Kenyan flag at 20,000ft on Island peak.
In pictures:Kenneth Matiba, Elijah Nyanjui (pictured), Wallace Gichere, Solomon Kimani & Stephen Wahome; pioneering mountaineers
