
Upon landing at Kilimanjaro International Airport, our representative will be there to assist you with your journey to the booked accommodation. The night before the climb, you will have a pre-climb meeting at the hotel to go through logistics and check gear. You will also check to make sure you have the required medical insurance and trip protection in place. He will then go, leaving you to unwind, have dinner, and sleep overnight.
It is just 45 kilometres from Moshi Town to the Mount Kilimanjaro National Park Gate through Machame, and in the morning you will be picked up from your accommodation and transported there. After registering at the park and making the necessary preparations, we set out to climb up a ridge track through the jungle. Experience the lush environment of the rainforest and its winding pathways while learning about the region’s native flora, fauna, and animals from your knowledgeable guide. We’ll be spending our first night in the woodland clearing at the Mandara Hut campgrounds. There are a few A-frame cabins and several outhouses hidden behind the main cabin in this camp.
We leave the rain forest after a restful night and a full breakfast to hike upward into the heathland in search of enormous lobelias and groundsels. Keep going up onto the open moorlands, avoiding the Maundi Crater’s base, which is covered in low plants. Take a break for lunch and admire the scenery as you go halfway to Mawenzi. Late in the day, you’ll reach the Horombo Huts, which are located just below the breathtaking Kibo Summit. The air temperature is gradually decreasing.
You may take it easy for a day and let your body adjust to the higher altitude. A few hikes may be taken from the hut, the most popular of which leads to the foot of Mawenzi Peak, the spectacular eastern peak of Kilimanjaro. This hike will bring you to an elevation of 4048 m and back to the hut in four to five hours; this will serve you well in the future. A Night at the Horombo Hut (breakfast, lunch, and dinner).
Today we continue our ascent into the Alpine desert of the “saddle” between Mawenzi and Kibo. Our camp, Kibo Hut, sits at the bottom of the Kibo crater wall. This afternoon we will have an early dinner, prepare your personal gear for the summit, and then get some sleep. Our summit trek starts around midnight.
Very early in the morning (around midnight), we begin our push to the summit. This is the most mentally and physically challenging portion of the trek. The wind and cold at this elevation and time of day can be extreme. We ascend in the darkness for several hours while taking frequent, but short, breaks. At Gilman’s Point (18,600 ft), you will be rewarded with the most magnificent sunrise you are ever likely to see coming over Mawenzi Peak. Finally, we arrive at Uhuru Peak, the highest point on Mount Kilimanjaro and the continent of Africa.
“Congratulations! ” “One step at a time, you have now reached Uhuru Peak, the highest point on Mount Kilimanjaro and the entire continent of Africa!”
After photos, celebrations, and maybe a few tears of joy, we take a few moments to enjoy this incredible accomplishment. We descend to Horombo Hut. For uncooperative loose gravel and volcano ash terrain, we strongly recommend gaiters and trekking poles. Later in the evening, we enjoy our last dinner on the mountain and a well-deserved sleep.
On our last day, we have a long trek through the lush jungle that is primarily downhill. Once you arrive at the park’s administrative building at Marangu Gate, you will collect your summit certificates to mark this important accomplishment. We will be met by a vehicle that will take you to the Moshi Hotel.
You will be taken to Kilimanjaro Airport in the morning, or you may choose to stay longer in Tanzania and enjoy a beach vacation on Zanzibar or a wildlife safari on the mainland.
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