Land of Hidden Treasures
A Summa Digest of West Pokot County
Located in extreme Western Kenya along the Rift Valley region, astride the boundary with Uganda, West Pokot County is named after the Pokot or Suk, the main indigenous community residing here. Sometimes spelt as Pökoot they, of course, form a section of the larger nilo-Kalenjin group. They speak Pokot or Pökoot language. Next to its charismatic residents, West Pokot County is best-known for its beautiful hills, primitive rugged terrain, and diverse ecosystems.
Lying northwest of Mount Elgon, with an area of 9,169 km2, West Pokot County, from a topographical point of view, can be conveniently divided into four parts; the Sekerr Range in the north, the highest point of which is Mtelo (10,910 ft); the southern hills including parts of the Cherangani Hills, which rise to over 10,00ft; the eastern plains, between the sharply defined eastern edge of the hills and the southern boundary of Turkana County; and the western plains, lying at 4,000 ft.
It is this great variation in its topographic features that earns it the epithet of land of hidden treasures. There is a splendid beauty in the extremes between 10,000 ft asl in the ranges to about 1,000 ft adjoining the parched plains of Turkana – with lovely escarpments, flat floodplains and wide rivers flowing along the stunning valleys. This reflects an altitude variation of over 8,000 feet. The climate ranges from that of a cold mountain rainforest and highlands, to that of a semidesert.
West Pokot is home, as we now know, to the Pokot or Suk people, who are semi-Hamitie in origin and occupy the whole of the county. They further occupy a large area of north Baringo County. Quite content with their homeland, the Pokot do not travel much. They are by nature self-centred and satisfied with their mode of life, primitive as it is, and historically tended to resent incursions into their country. Otherwise their attitude to visitors is signalled by a peculiar disinterestedness.
The Popot or Suk people are not today, as pointed in many historical journals, subversive, that made necessary for early visitors here to to exert considerable care and tact in dealing with them. They are divided into pastoral and agricultural groups, although the area under cultivation is almost entirely subsidiary to the main occupation of herding. The Pokot tend passionately to their humped cattle, together with flocks of goats and sheep. It is, perhaps, their reputation as fierce warriors and cattle rustlers that precedes their popularity. A centuries old sport!
If ever an inquiry was to be answered on the great nilotic sport of cattle rustling, misunderstood by all and sundry, West Pokot is idyllic. The area, especially down in the shielded desolate valleys, is laced with cattle-tracks and hillpaths, the latter following the contours and designed to conserve and conceal. This is a speciality of the Suk. Traditionally cattle rustling was sanctioned by elders, in an extreme death-defying game aimed at replenishing lost herds and for customs like dowry payment and brevity. On the receiving end, and predictably contraries, are the equally formidable nilotic kin communities of the Samburu and the Turkana.
The Maasai were also parts of these games in times gone by, before the Suk finally gained the upper hand. The historical battles between Pokot and Maasai tribes are etched in stone and in many of the oral traditions and songs for both tribes. These two fierce tribes fought and clashed hard in the 19th century and several places have been named after these struggles, that include Lounon village; where the Maasai were heavily defeated by the Pokots in the 1850’s. Ole Lounon, the leader of the Maasai, was killed in Lounon, near Kamitira, where his grave is situated.
Formerly inaccessible owing to dismal roads penetrating the county, successive Governments have brought substantial improvements to its network of roads and good roads now link its major towns. Because of these gainful changes, West Pokot County is now opened up for travellers. The largely quiet twin towns of Makutano and Kapenguria, in the south, where its economic and political life is focused, connected by a good tarmac road, the A1 international trunk, to Kitale, are the universal welcome to West Pokot County – the land of hidden treasures.
The jumping-off place to West Pokot County is Kitale, 40 km by road to Kacheliba and 100 km to Marich Pass – that infamous escape from the highlands. The main A1 Kapenguria-Lodwar-Moroto highway is the primary line of communication, running through Kacheliba, where it crosses the Suam River. From the main A1 road at Sigor branches a secondary road, the B4, running southwards to Baringo and Nakuru. From Kitale town, the journey to Kapenguria en-route Lodwar passes through Chepareria, its second urban centre. Both these roads are wildly scenic.
Furthest west, West Pokot County is naturally bounded by the epic and striking escarpments of the Great Rift Valley, as it continues into Uganda en-route the Mediterranean. Unlike other rangy areas around Kenya, the chains of hills and ranges seen in West Pokot could almost be said to hold the unrivaled element of surprise. Very few of its ranges have been fully explored. It has an abundance of trails which have not been touched by the hiker. Due to the huge differences in altitude and historic inaccessibility in remote West Pokot, these ranges have but remained lonesome despite their tourism potential, and the roads less travelled.
Salient Features of West Pokot County
- County Number 24
- Area – 9169 km2
- Altitude – 4921 ft
- Major Towns – Kapenguria, Makutano
- Borders – Turkana, Trans Nzoia, Elgeyo Marakwet, Baringo
Touring West Pokot County in Kenya offers a chance to explore a region known for its iconic, rugged landscapes, vibrant cultures, and rich traditions. Located in the extreme northwest part of the country, bordering Uganda, West Pokot County is primary inhabited by the Pokot community, known for their pastoralist lifestyle.
You Are Here: West Pokot County
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Explore Destinations in West Pokot County
A Guide to West Pokot County
A Summa Digest of West Pokot
About West Pokot Way Back When
32 Destinations in West Pokot County, arranged as one would visit these - south to northeast - with the aid of narratives, images, strip maps and distance chart:
Kaisagat Viewpoint, Barnley's Guest House, Kapkoris Hill Viewpoint, Dini ya Roho Church, Mount Murpus, Chewoyet High School, Kapenguria Museum, Kapenguria Town, Chelanga Gardens, Tartar Falls, Kacheliba, Holy Cross Church Kacheliba, Alale Gold Mines, Suam River Beach, Kamatira Forest, Lounon Village, Cherangani Hills, Marich Pass, Marich Pass Center, Kang'alan Escarpment, Kolloa Cross Monument, Weiwei Irrigation Scheme, Tamkal Valley, Mount Koh, Sekerr Range, Mount Mtelo View Lodge, Nasolot National Reserve, Turkwel Dam, Turkwel Gorge, State Lodge, Riting
Know More About West Pokot County: Geography, Land-Use, Highlights, Population, Roads - including a distance chart, Airports, Climate & National Monuments
What’s The Air Like In W. Pokot?
West Pokot has significant variations in temperature with the lower lands experiencing temperatures of up to 33oC, and highlands experiencing modest temperatures of 15oC.
What’s The Lay Of The Land In C.24?
West Pokot County is marked by a variety of topographic features – dry plains in the north, a hatful of ranges and hills in the mid, and in the south east Cherangani Hills.
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