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It is less crowded,
steeper and very strenuous.
It is for the experienced strong hikers.
Day 01 UMBWE CAMP
2900m 5 hours hike.
We hike from Umbwe gate to Umbwe camp 2900m.
We hike through the mountain rain forest with lush
vegetation, old trees and lilts of ferns and mosses
mark this as an area that gets reliable rain year
round.
The forest abounds with wildlife, small red duikers
and bushbucks as well as monkeys. The forest is also
inhabited by many species of birds. The first three
hours the land is gently rising while the last two
hours the land is steeper. The camp is near a cave
at 2900m.
Day 02 BARRANCO CAMP 3900m 4 Hours hike
We hike from Umbwe camp 2900m to Barranco camp
3900m. After breakfast we start a short hike into
the rain forest before entering the giant heath
zone. The trail has been following a ridge for
sometime and as it ascends through the heath zone
the ridge narrows and sharpens finally becoming a
knife edge with steep drops on each side. As the
height of the heath reduces there are stunning views
of both Kilimanjaro southern flank and across to
mount Meru some 50 miles away.
Wildlife changes with the vegetation, the jackal may
be heard barking and the huge Lammergeyer seen
soaring and circling overhead. The camp is at the
beautiful Barranco valley with views up towards
Arrow glacier, Western Breach and the Heim glacier.
Day 03 KARANGA VALLEY CAMP 3930m 3 hours hike.
This is an acclimatization day. We have short hike
to the Karanga camp 3930m, we scramble through the
Barranco wall approximately 300m high. The wall is
steep and we have to use our hands to scramble. At
the top of the wall we see the Kibo massif with the
Heim glacier and southern ice fields shining above.
We walk up and down until we descend into the
greener Karanga valley and uphill to the Karanga
ridge where we camp at 3930m. We eat lunch, short
rest and afternoon hike uphill and back for dinner
and overnight.
Day 4 BARAFU CAMP 4600m 3 hours hiking
Today’s hike is short but a steep uphill climb. We
start our uphill climb across barren landscape with
lots of boulders to the little Lava Tower rock where
we have long rests and eat snacks such as chocolate
bars, power bars, cashews etc. The southern ice
fields look so beautiful above to your left. As we
start climb through the last uphill section, we
follow a steep ridge where we need free hands for
scrambling and then a quarter an hour hike on loose
stone scree to our camp at the top of Barafu ridge
4600m. We have our lunch and rest, preparaing our
last hike gears for night. We eat dinner early and
prepare ourselves for the midnight final push to the
summit.
Day 5 SUMMIT 5895m & DESCEND TO MWEKA CAMP 3000m.
This is the strenuous day but the final push to the
summit is doable and a very rewarding experience. We
wake up at 10:30pm, eat a light breakfast and start
the climb at midnight. We need flashlights or
headlamps. We also need to dress warm enough to
avoid cold weather.
The hike is on Barafu ridge and the land surface is
a mixture of bare rocks and frozen or loose stone
scree. The trail is switch backs (zigzag) that
continue all the way to Stella point 5780m before
hiking along the crater rim to the summit. This is
the day we practice the rest steps or mountaineering
steps. We hike pole pole (Slowly)! At about 6:00am
in morning we have beautiful sunrise over the
Mawenzi peak 5149m on the eastern side. Soon will be
warm and reach Stella point 5780m. Every hour we
stop and drink lots of water. We have an hour hike
along the crater rim to reach the summit “Uhuru”
peak the Roof of Africa 5895m. After half an hour to
one hour summit celebrations we begin the short
steep descent down to Barafu camp 4600m for lunch
and rest. We have another 3-4 hours descent through
the alpine and heather zone to Mweka hut camp 3000m
for dinner and overnight.
Day 6 WALK OUT TO MWEKA GATE 1350m.
(3-4) hours hiking
We eat breakfast and descend the last 4500ft through
the mountain rain forest to the Mweka park gate
1350m. We “sign off” the mountain and say goodbye to
our mountain staff. Drive to the lodge in Arusha for
hot showers and lunch, early dinner then transfers
to airport to fly back home. |
