KIANG'OMBE FOREST RESERVE

This is the largest of Embu’s forest system and is easily accessible from the Ena-Siakago-Kiritiri Road or Embu-Kiritiri-Kitui Road. It occupies about 20 km2 of a predominantly indigenous forest, with less than 5% exotic plantations mainly found at the foot and top of the Kiang’ome Hill. Likewise, its wooded landscape is also one of the most over exploited hilltop forest, which has gained enormous support for its sustainable conservation and rehabilitation. The forest reserve is separated from Mumoni Hills, in Kitui County, by a broad valley through which the Tana River, and to the east – where the Mumoni Hill sits – the landscape is typified by semi-humid to semi-arid open plains. To the southwest, sits Kianjiru Hill. North and northwest of Kiang’ombe the area contains a superb display of a verdant undulating landscape backdropped by the magnificent Mount Kenya. It is the Kiang’ombe Hill, rising to 1804 ms, that draws walkers to the reserve. The eminent feature in the reserve is the block of resistant granitoid gneiss forming the central Kiang’ombe Hill. It’s found in Siakago about 12 kms north of Kiritiri.