Wonders of Sergoit Hills

 By William Kiptoo Barngetuny Plaza is one of Eldoret’s seven landmarks building in town. It is located along Uganda road, just beside Zion Mall and the Sacred Heart of Jesus Cathedral. Barngetuny Plaza, is Eldoret's premier shopping and dining destination with a lively atmosphere with several businesses’ establishments inside. The building was built back in 1994 and is named after a well-known local figure, Ezekiel Barngetuny. He was a businessman in Eldoret and even served as a nominated Member of Parliament. Barngetuny was friends with retired President Moi, which helped him get started in the real estate business. He built two buildings in Eldoret and Kapsabet, both aptly named Barngetuny Ezekiel Barngetuny is fondly remembered for his amazing goat auctioning skills. Every year, he would participate in a big goat auction during Christmas in Kimalel, Baringo. Even though he didn’t have a lot of formal education, he was loved by many, including President Moi, because of his infec...

 By Barmoiben Kipkeemoi Araap Korir Barmoiben Kipkemoi Araap Korir e r n t s d S o o p g 7 0   5 1 2 2 2 a 7 J 3 l 5 8 t i 3 i y f c 2 m 0 6 h m 6 2 9   u 8 8 c 5 h m 6 1 l 7 l 5 t h c 2   · LORIEN How did this place get a Norwegian name? In the same vicinity as Bayete and Bindura is another non local name, Lorien So what is the origin and meaning of the name Lorien? To get an answer, we have to go a few miles across to a school called Arnenes Ole Christian Greiner Arnesen, after whom Arnesens School is named was a lumberjack in the region in the 1920s. He hauled massive logs from forests around and set up a sawmilling factory and named it Lorien Sawmillers. Lorien is the name of the three-masted sailing ship named "Loth Loriën" that brought Arnesen to Mombasa. The region later took the name. Lorien Saw Mills, became well known in colonial Kenya and beyond. In Norway cedar from Lorient Sawmillers fetched premium prices. 

 By William Kiptoo On the fringe of Eldoret town, where the rhythm of modern life meets the hush of memory, stands an aging relic with a name that refuses to be forgotten: White Highlands Inn. Set along Elgeyo Road in what was once the heart of Kenya’s colonial “White Highlands,” the inn is more than a building. It is a story carved in stone and cedar, one that speaks not just of bricks and beds, but of belonging, exclusion, and the slow turning of history’s wheel. In the early 1900s, Eldoret was a new town born of conquest and ambition. The British colonial regime, seeking to reward white settlers and affirm racial superiority, designated vast swathes of the Rift Valley as The White Highlands—land reserved exclusively for Europeans. It was in this climate of exclusion that the inn emerged. Back then, it wasn’t just a hotel—it was a social fortress for settlers. Local folklore recalls how Africans were only allowed in as kitchen hands, gardeners, or cleaners—never as guests. Step o...

 By William Kiptoo The Jacaranda tree (Jacaranda mimosifolia), with its striking purple-blue blossoms, is not native to Kenya. It originates from South America, particularly Brazil, Argentina, and Bolivia. Its arrival in Kenya is closely tied to the country’s colonial history and the migration of Boer settlers from South Africa in the early 20th century. Following the Anglo-Boer War (1899–1902), many Afrikaner (Boer) families sought new lands to rebuild their lives. The British colonial administration, eager to populate and develop the fertile highlands of British East Africa, encouraged Boer settlement in the Uasin Gishu Plateau—what is today part of western Kenya. Between 1908 and 1911, several Boer families moved to the area and established farms around what would later become the town of Eldoret. Jacaranda trees were already familiar to the Boers from their homeland, where they were widely planted in cities like Pretoria and Johannesburg. These trees had become emblematic of So...

 By William Kiptoo The name "Kipteberr" comes from the local Marakwet word for a bull’s hump, as seen in the hill’s distinctive, rounded silhouette. A popular legend tells of a meteorite crashing into the hill centuries ago. Story has it that a crow warned locals of impending doom—yet those who ignored it perished when the meteor struck. This folklore endures in local oral history . The hill is a revered ceremonial site for the Marakwet community, believed to be central to their ancestral origins. According to tradition, it was here that the five founding Marakwet territorial groups established roots along both the Kerio Valley and the Cherangani slopes. Today, local efforts are underway to document and preserve the hill’s heritage, weaving together traditional knowledge with sustainable tourism practices. Kipteberr Hill rises to approximately 2,774 m and is part of a trio of “foothills” alongside Kipkunurr (3,063 m) and Koisungur (3,167 m). It’s known as one of the easier pe...

By William Kiptoo   In the early 1900s, British colonial officer   William Spencer   marked a safety boundary along the Elgeyo Escarpment in Kenya’s Kerio Valley. This line was later known as the   Spencer Line.  It   was created to prevent human settlement on unstable, erosion-prone upper slopes. Spencer observed that further land clearing and farming beyond a certain point posed serious danger to both people and the environment. For decades, the Spencer Line guided land use. Locals respected it, and forests above the line remained intact, anchoring the fragile hills. However, after independence, pressure for land led to the slow abandonment of the line’s wisdom. Families began moving uphill, clearing trees for charcoal, and farming risky slopes. The land weakened. Then came the 1997–1998 El Niño rains, triggering deadly landslides in places like Kabawa, where entire homesteads were buried. What Spencer had warned against had now become reality. Today, ove...

 By William Kiptoo Despite its historical richness and cultural diversity, Eldoret lacks two critical institutions: a public museum and a proper archival center. This absence is not just a missed opportunity—it is a glaring gap that weakens our identity, memory, and ability to plan for the future. Every town that hopes to understand itself and tell its story with pride needs a place where its history is preserved and interpreted. Eldoret, and the wider Uasin Gishu region, has a remarkable and unique history. From the prehistoric Sirikwa communities who lived in stone-lined depressions and caves, to the early colonial settlement by the Boers, the contributions of Indian and Sikh traders, and the resilience of indigenous African communities, our past is layered, complex, and deeply meaningful. Yet today, there is no formal space where residents or visitors can engage with that history in a structured, educational, and inspiring way. A museum is not just about artifacts in glass boxes...

 By William Kiptoo Nine months ago, in September 2024, I highlighted the story of Jimmy—real name James Nderitu—as a humble hero of Eldoret’s Ronald Ngala Street. His story moved many: a man who, without pay or recognition, had dedicated more than a decade to beautifying one of our busiest streets. Today, his trees still bloom, the street still stands transformed—but Jimmy remains unseen, unsupported, and, heartbreakingly, harassed. Jimmy is not an official employee of Uasin Gishu County. He doesn’t wear a uniform or get paid from any public budget. Yet no one can deny the value he adds. Since 2013, Jimmy has cared for every tree lining Ronald Ngala Street—trees he planted himself. He waters them, tends to the flowers, and makes sure the stretch from the Tuck Center all the way down toward Zion Mall remains one of the most inviting corridors in our growing city. It’s hard to find a better example of civic pride in action. Yet despite widespread praise and attention last year, ...