Behind Mombasa, a short ride inland, the coastal plain lifts into the red Rabai hills, and in the forest on their slopes sit the kayas. These are the sacred forest groves of the Mijikenda people, nine related peoples who say their ancestors came from a legendary homeland called Shungwaya. Each kaya was a fortified village in the forest, with a council of elders, and the groves are still looked after for ritual and burial. Several kayas are protected as a World Heritage site, and the Rabai group is one of the best known.
The ride from Mombasa takes you off the coast highway and onto smaller roads that wind past palms, cashew trees, mango groves and little roadside stalls with pineapples piled in pyramids. The red earth is the colour of brick, and the air is warm, humid and green, full of birdsong. Surface quality varies, so look out for potholes, speed bumps in every village and the matatus, the minibuses, that dominate the main road and overtake without warning. Pick a morning in the drier months, June to October or January to February, because the long rains of April and May turn side tracks to slippery red clay.
Rabai also has a place in the story of Kenya as a whole. It is where the first Christian mission station in East Africa was established, in the 1840s, by the German missionary Johann Ludwig Krapf, and the old church there is still known. The kayas themselves have a more ancient story. Visitors are generally accompanied by a local guide or elder, who explains the customs: what to wear, what not to touch, and where you may not go. Inside, the forest is dense and cool, with big old trees and the sense of a place that has been listened to for centuries. Colobus monkeys and many butterflies and birds live in these remnants of coastal forest, which once covered much of the coastline.
As for practical things, Mariakani, a bustling town of about thirteen thousand, and Mombasa itself have fuel, food and mechanics. Do not expect fuel in the villages. Take small cash for guides and contributions, dress modestly, and ask before photographing.