Itinerary

JANUARY 10-11: MOSHI
3,000-ft/914-m

After arriving at Kilimanjaro airport, you check into our hotel. We spend two nights in Moshi allowing you time to regenerate and meet with your guides as they give you a detailed climb orientation and gear check.
     
JANUARY 12: MTI MKUBWA
9,170-ft/2,800-m • 2.1 miles/3.4 km • 3-4 hours

We enter Kilimanjaro National Park and check in at the Londorossi Gate located on the western side of Kilimanjaro. Our trek today will be along a little used track through the montane forest. In places the vegetation is so untouched that it grows right across the trail. The flora and fauna are richer here than on the other more popular routes through the rain forest. Our first camp is in the rain forest at Mti Mkubwa (Big Tree).
            
     
JANUARY 13: SHIRA PLATEAU
11,500-ft/3,505-m • 4.5 miles/7.3 km • 7-8 hours

After breakfast we leave the glades, and start the climb towards the heath and moorland zone. A couple hours after lunch we cross into the Shira Caldera, a high altitude desert plateau, very different from the rain forest. Shira is the third of Kilimanjaro's volcanic cones, and is filled with lava flow from Kibo Peak. Weather and volcanic action have decimated the crater rim. Today you'll get your first close views of Kibo - the summit of Kilimanjaro.
    
JANUARY 14: MOIR
13,650-ft/4,160-m • 5.7 miles/9.2 km • 7-8 hours

After breakfast we hike east across the Shira Plateau past the Shira Cathedral towards Moir camp, tucked away at the end of a huge gorge, at the foot of a giant lava flow. We enjoy a hot lunch at Fisher Camp, which is only a couple hours from our destination.
     
JANUARY 15: BARRANCO
12,950-ft/3,950-m • 4.6 miles/7.4 km • 6-7 hours

After breakfast, we start climbing toward Lava Tower lower camp, at 14,950-ft/4,556-m, where we stop for lunch, allowing our bodies to acclimatize. We descend down through the Giant Senecio forest to Barranco Camp, which is beautifully set up on a ridge at the foot of the Barranco Wall. This is where the Machame and Lemosho routes converge, so we meet other climbers ascending the Machame Route.
    
JANUARY 16-17: KARANGA
13,200-ft/4,023-m • 2.4 miles/3.9 km • 4-5 hours

After breakfast, our big challenge is to hike up the Barranco Wall, a 500 -ft lava flow. It's not a technical wall, but challenging nonetheless. Once on top of the "wall", the climb becomes easier and extremely beautiful with fantastic views of the crags and crevasses of the jagged peaks of Kibo on your left. Lastly we descend into the Karanga Valley and up the other side, for our overnight camp. The sunsets here are truly spectacular.

Our second day at Karanga is key to our acclimatization, as we go on an acclimatization hike to 14,500-ft/4,420-m, after lunch returning to camp for dinner.
     
JANUARY 18: BARAFU
14,950-ft/4,557-m • 2.2 miles/3.5 km • 3-4 hours

It's all uphill to the rocky, craggy slopes at Barafu camp. Barafu means "ice" in Swahili, and it is extremely windy and cold at this altitude. There is a buzz of excitement in the air, as climbers anticipate our toughest day just ahead. The clouds move in an out, revealing the eroded peak of Mawenzi, painted with colors of the African sun.
    
JANUARY 19: SUMMIT/ CRATER CAMP
Summit: 19,340-ft/5,895-m • 2.8 miles/4.5 km • 6-9 hours
Crater Camp: 18,700-ft/5,600-m • .5 miles/.7 km • 1 hour

We repack our gear, taking only what we'll need for the summit push. Today's the toughest day, with the most stunning views of Mawenzi, the Kibo Saddle and the plains below. We slowly wind our way up over the rocky outcrops and through the scree until we reach the rim of the crater. After lunch on the rim, we make our push to the summit. The view from the summit is dramatic. The weather and effects of altitude will determine how long we stay here. After our summit celebration we descend to our crater camp for overnight facing the amazing Furtwangler Glacier. We spend the remainder of the day taking it easy, and enjoying camp at the highest sleeping altitude.
     
JANUARY 20: MWEKA
10,400-ft/3,170-m • 10.2 miles/14.5 km • 7-9 hours

After breakfast, you can take a short hike up to the Ashpit, where fumaroles are evidence of Kilimanjaro's dormant volcanic state. We then head downhill to Mweka Camp, where we enjoy our last night on Mount Kilimanjaro.
     
JANUARY 21: MWEKA GATE/ MOSHI
Mweka Gate: 5,500-ft/1,676-m • 3.7 miles/5.9 km • 3-4 hours
Moshi: 3,000-ft/914-m • 30 minute drive

In the morning we have a 3-4 hour walk down to the gate, where the Tusker vehicles meet us and take us back to the hotel and a well-earned shower.
             
     
JANUARY 22: DEPART TANZANIA

Fly home, or head out on an exciting Wildlife Safari!

The 6-day safari takes you through some of the most spectacular wildlife reserves on the planet. You stay in some of the finest lodges of East Africa in the SERENGETI, at the NGORONGORO CRATER and LAKE MANYARA NATIONAL PARK. January is a fine time of the year to visit the SERENGETI, as most of the migratory wildlife is concentrated in the south, around our lodge. This is a spectacle not to be missed.

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