Paleo Trails Africa

Summit & savanna, one operator

About us

Treks and safaris, founder-led

Paleo Trails Africaexists to bring Kenya's two great journeys together: multi-day mountain treks and wildlife safaris, planned and led under one roof by the founder and a local crew.

By the numbers

The numbers behind every journey

Walking seasons guided

0 km

Average daily distance

Community-led

Team, end to end

What we do and why

A journey born from the land itself

Kenya has some of the most diverse walking terrain on the continent: highland moorlands, Rift Valley escarpments, savanna game trails, lake shores, and volcanic hills. Yet most visitors experience it from the window of a vehicle.

We started Paleo Trails Africato offer something different: the full range of Kenya's wild journeys under one roof. Multi-day climbs and wildlife safaris, planned around your dates and fitness rather than a fixed brochure, with every booking supporting the communities who keep these lands open.

Every route on this site is one we've walked ourselves, never licensed from a brochure.

Seven trails, three safaris

Rooted in the communities who keep the land open

Every journey is planned and led by the founder, backed by guides who know these landscapes inside out, so you never have to juggle separate operators. Pick a marker to see where we walk.

Tap a marker or use the chips to explore where we walk.

Central Highlands

Mount Kenya

Acclimatised multi-day approaches through five climate zones, from bamboo forest to alpine moorland below the peak.

Climb Mount Kenya

What drives everything we do

The way we walk

One operator, from summit to savanna

To offer the full range of Kenya's wild journeys under one roof: multi-day mountain treks and wildlife safaris, planned and led by the founder, supported by a local crew. One enquiry, one plan, one operator from trailhead to game drive.

Mission pillars

Four commitments that shape every walk

The principles behind every trail we scout, every guide we hire, and every route we lead.

Founder-led, locally supported

One person plans and leads your trip, backed by regional guides, porters and drivers. Never stitched together from separate vendors.

Routes we've walked ourselves

We don't license journeys from brochures. Every trek and safari route has been scouted, timed, and rated by our own team.

Small groups, real encounters

We cap groups at 8 guests per guide. You're not a convoy; you move at a pace that lets you see and hear the landscape, on the trail or on game drive.

Low impact, high value

Walking leaves no track. We pay per-guest fees directly to community landowner associations, making wildlife habitat economically viable.

Founder-led

Founder-led. Locally supported.

Paleo Trails Africa is built around one person who plans and leads your trip, not a call centre, and not hand-offs between vendors. On the ground, that person is backed by a small crew of regional guides, porters and drivers who know the terrain you'll be walking.

Founder-led planning, so you talk directly to the person who leads the trip
Advice based on routes we have actually walked, not brochures
Plans built around your dates, fitness and budget
A local support crew on every trip: guides, porters and drivers who know the terrain

Who you'll walk with

Every guide is from the region they walk you through: trained, certified, and paid a fair-wage standard. They know the birds, the weather signs, and the stories that maps leave out. Many come from Maasai, Kikuyu and other local communities with generations of knowledge of the land. Groups are capped at 8 guests per guide.

Meet Joseph

Joseph

Founder & Lead Guide

15 years guiding · Nairobi, Kenya

I'm Joseph, the person who plans and leads every Paleo Trails Africa trip. I've spent my life on these trails, and I still lead most of them myself.

I grew up with the mountains and savanna of Kenya as my backyard. What started as weekends out with family became a career guiding treks across the Aberdares, Mount Kenya and the Rift Valley, and later the wildlife trails of the Mara and Amboseli.

I started Paleo Trails Africa because too many travellers were being shuffled between operators they'd never met. I wanted one person, start to finish, who actually knows the ground they're sending you onto. Every route here is one I've walked and timed myself.

On a multi-day trek you end up spending more time with your guide than anyone else, so I keep groups small and the pace human. I'd rather you remember the people and the silence than tick off a checklist. If you're unsure which route fits, that's exactly the conversation I love having.

Wilderness First AidMount Kenya specialist

Plan a trip with Joseph

Why walk with us

Not another booking form. A trip planned by the person who leads it.

Most travellers piece a Kenyan trip together through three or four separate companies: a trek operator, a safari outfitter and a transfer agent, all of whom they hope will line up. We are one operator, end to end. Here is how that changes your trip.

One operator, not three

Trek, safari and transfers are planned by the same team. No juggling a mountain operator, a safari outfitter and a transfer agent who have never spoken to each other.

You plan with your guide

Your first reply comes from the person who will actually lead the trip, not a call centre. Any questions go straight to someone who has already walked the route.

Routes we've walked, not licensed

Every itinerary is scouted, timed and rated by our own team. We don't resell catalogues from operators we've never met.

Small groups, capped at 8

A maximum of 8 guests per guide. You move at a pace where you can hear the landscape, not in a convoy ticking off a checklist.

We pay communities directly

Per-guest fees go straight to community landowner associations, so the land that hosts you stays worth protecting.

Your trip, your dates

No fixed-departure calendar to fit around. We build the plan around your dates, fitness and budget, then adapt it as plans change.

What's involved when you book

Exactly what you get, start to finish

No hidden line items and no surprise add-ons. Here is what a booking with us actually includes, and what we ask you to bring. Full details are confirmed in writing for your specific itinerary before any deposit is paid.

What's included

A professional, English-speaking lead guide, all park and conservancy fees, full-board meals on multi-day trips, safe drinking water, and return transfers from Nairobi or the nearest airstrip.

Group sizes

Capped at 8 guests per guide, typically 2 to 8. Larger corporate or private groups are arranged with extra guides so the ratio never slips.

Guides, porters & crew

Founder-led planning backed by certified regional guides, porters and drivers from the communities you pass through, paid a fair-wage standard.

Equipment

Group camping, cooking and safety kit are provided on treks. You bring personal clothing and a daypack, and we share a full kit list before departure.

Food & water

Hot meals and trail snacks on multi-day walks and drives, with dietary needs catered for. Drinking water is carried and/or filtered on the trail.

Safety & support

Certified guides with wilderness first aid, agreed emergency and evacuation plans, monitored weather, and conservative group ratios throughout.

Not sure where to start?

Not sure which route is right for you? Ask Joseph.

Whether you're here for a mountain trek, a wildlife safari, or both, Josephwill plan one seamless journey around your dates and fitness, and answer every question himself. Tell us what you're after and he'll point you to the right trail.

Ask Joseph to plan it Message Joseph on WhatsApp