Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro is an unforgettable and unforgiving journey for passionate climbers or mountain hikers. It is an extraordinary moment in time – attainment up to the highest point on the African continent.
During the climb, you may feel painfully exhausted and speechlessly delighted – an unbelievable journey of emotions upright on the magnificent snow cone. But for the successful Kilimanjaro Summit, you need an excellent guide line to overcome the obstacles.
How Difficult Is the Kilimanjaro Trek?
Kilimanjaro is a strong and compounded expedition set to a disciplined pace, rather than gentle ramble through the national park. With each day carefully paced, it’s more physically fatiguing because of a high peak distance and you have no regulator when the body decides what to make of a particular Kilimanjaro Trek.
Time For Kilimanjaro Trek
There are two spaces reasoned to be the Best Time To Climb Kilimanjaro, which relate to the driest months of the year, and with warmer temperatures:
These are the busiest times for trekking groups within those two windows are:
- January to February
- August to September
The wettest months are:
- April and May
- November- December
There is no particular ‘best month’. December faced rain every day. February, the weather will quite sunny and mildly chilly. Yet Summit was an unfaithful and icy -20 degrees at the top.
How Cold Can It Get on Kilimanjaro?
It has five different geographical vegetation, the humid tropics to minus temperatures. Anyway of what time of the year you will decide to visit.
Nights are very cold in the low minus facts, even if the day is comparatively mild. The Uhuru Point Summit has around -20 degrees. You can feel -10 degree with -10 degree cool air on the altitude.
How Dangerous Is Kilimanjaro?
Over 30,000 trekkers Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro every year. Among those reports state around 1,000 exclusions from climb and an average of ten deaths, official to Acute Mountain Sickness (AMS), commonly known as Altitude Sickness.
With the right hiking group with guides, your health and comfort will be checked every step of the way, containing being brought down to lower altitude as soon as possible if you do get sick.
Kilimanjaro Routes – Which One to Choose?
There are official 7 routes are there on Kilimanjaro, cross through tropical rainforest to moorland, alpine desert and rocky environs to ice glaciers and snow at the altitude.
There are four separate Kilimanjaro Routes you will be taking with varying levels of trouble and comforts, the means to adapt and the average success rate, alongside the need to hike in a smaller extent of time or without the troops.
Marangu – Oldest and Fastest
The Marangu Route is “Coca Cola Route” because it is the traditional and most flattened trail. It is also the only route to deals with the ‘comforts’ of wooden hut camps with lots of bunks, instead of camping. However, due to the earlier ascent to the Summit, the success rate is not as high by 5 days Kilimanjaro Climb.
Macheme – Most Popular and Challenging
The famous picturesque track is the Machame Route. A six-day hike warmly known as the “Whiskey Route” because it’s a hard challenge. While also providing a better space of time for adaptation by hiking to high altitudes and napping low.
Lemosho –Beautiful with Highest Success Rate
Choosing Lemosho Route for 3 reasons. It is measured one of the most attractive route with some of the best mountain views in the route. There are less people, with Lemosho succeeding a similar pathway to the Shira route. Taking a minor diversion to the Machame Route early on. Notably it has higher success rate of reaching the summit due to better altitude adaptation of 8 days.
Rongai – Most Remote and Gentle
The Rongai Route arises on the drier, mountain has northern slope close to the Kenyan border and origins via the 6 days Marangu Route. Reflected to be the most isolated and mild in its ascent. It’s also the only Kilimanjaro route where you get to camp alongside the lake on Kilimanjaro.
Northern Circuit – Newest and Longest
The Northern Circuit is for 9days treks and the longest one. It has higher success rate to the Summit. Not many operators deal this route yet, so there’s not as much known about it to make a large insight.
Umbwe – Most Demanding and Technical
The Umbwe Route is for only experienced climbers. So, you will hardly find it listed as an option with a lot of accountable tour operators. This route require technical and challenging of all by 6 days hike and has a lower success rate.
Mweka – Emergency and Exit Route
The Mweka Route is the departure track you take for the leave Kilimanjaro National Park on the Macheme and Lemosho trek routes. You will sleep at Mweka Camp after the long summit day and trekked a short path down to Mweka gave the next morning.
Choosing a Kilimanjaro Trek Tour
Now you have a healthier idea to choose Kilimanjaro Routes you will peak up. The next most vital decision is with tour operator to book your Kilimanjaro trek.
Ethical Treatment of Guides and Porters
There are so, many porters without proper gear or pushed physically beyond a healthy means. Many explorers end up giving some of their gear and clothing to the porters after the Kilimanjaro Climb. Ensure the tourism dollars are paying to a covered wage and fair treatment.
How Much Does It Cost to Climb Kilimanjaro?
- The charges starts from €2000-€2500 in Marangu and Macheme routes. Being the shortest routes, the operators tends to lower end of the price scale.
- The Lemosho hike will charge you around €3000 as the route is much longer. So, many guides and staffs must to be on the ground, and more basics such as food are required.
- The price of Rongai is nearly €2400 – somewhere in the mid of the trek price spectrum.
Basically the Kilimanjaro Tour Packages includes entry permit fees, camping permit fees, the permit fees for porters, cooks and guides and the accommodation stay either side.
Can You Climb Kilimanjaro without a Guide?
No, not at all.
The rules are deeply compulsory and checked. At every camp, you will sign in and list your details, which contains the name of your guide and tour operators. Every trekkers also has to sign in and out of the National Park with his or her trekking guides present.
How Fit you should to Climb Kilimanjaro?
Kilimanjaro trekking clutches as first-time hikers but get ahead because they are in good physic and have done the training. A lot of success hang on on your physical condition, how your body reacts and adapt to altitude. And not based on how many previous Kilimanjaro Trek you have done.
How Much Training Do You Need for Kilimanjaro?
There’s no definitive response, but many people train for 2-6 months before trekking Kilimanjaro.
Practice treks
Exercise yourself for two months. Go for different trekking ground, with steep hills and hours-long circuits with varying elevation.
Other workouts
Regular workouts a week at home to build core power and endurances. Beside the Yoga with Adrienne ’30 Days of Yoga’ task which help out with the control overall with breathing with the altitudes of Kilimanjaro.
Tanzania Visa, Travel Insurance and insurance policy that covers
You need single entry ‘Ordinary Visa’ which must be valid for three months upon entry for Tanzania for your Kilimanjaro trip. You can rapidly get this online at the Official Tanzania Migration Services Website. You need a passport with six months validation, with one free page for visa stamps on entry and extra.
How to Get to Kilimanjaro
To get to Kilimanjaro, you can touch the Kilimanjaro International Airport (JRO), situated right in the mid of the two towns of Moshi and Arusha through your tour operator.
How Do You Prevent Altitude Sickness on Kilimanjaro?
A hatred to altitude. In the worst case, it can be simple and result in death, but in the common of cases, it just makes you feel sick, tired and can cause hammering headaches, drowsiness and many more.
Go slow – Pole! Pole!
Taking slow, measured steps through the Climb Mount Kilimanjaro are as important as staying hydrated. It prevents altitude sickness. You’ll frequently hear the guide and porters “Pole! Pole!” meaning slowly-slowly. And while it senses strange at first, that pace needs to become second nature.
Drink plenty of water
It’s vital to drink plenty of water every day – nearby 2-3 litres. Each day we were owed an ideal extent of water to drink tolerating to how many kilometres and hours we would be hiking.
Always Rest
You will leave the camp each morning around 7 am. Arrive at each camp in the early afternoon and there is a goal for it. You need sufficiently have hours to rest, lie down and not exceed yourself at higher altitude. What strength feel like a long time to basically “do nothing” is supreme for your overall Kilimanjaro Summit.
Daily health check-in
At dinner, you will go to the table, how you will feel and check our heart rate and oxygen levels with a finger pulse oximeter. Record the vitals a part of our daily health monitoring in terms of progress or worsening.
Try to eat clean and more
Detecting when altitude is upsetting you is with appetite. Your hunger will respectively decline as altitude increases. Though, it’s vital to try to eat what you can, even if the only way that you can stomach is chocolate for a little energy booster.
Prepare Mentally for Mount Kilimanjaro
A trek of this amount isn’t just developed your physical fitness. Rough day-to-day features of it can rapidly outshine the flushed. The mental health and the moral support is one of hidden treasure of your success.
- Approach each climb thinking of the spectacular endpoint. Know that every severe last step is worth it. Recall why you are doing this.
- Be patient and don’t expect instant gratification. At beginning it may be unstable, but you can form a routine, know what to expect, where your strengths lie and where to ask for anything.
What is the food like on Kilimanjaro?
- Breakfast consisted of a bowl of porridge, pancakes (with jams and peanut butter), and an omelette with added filler such as sausages.
- Lunches and dinner were a course of vegetable soup, and then the main dish made up of rice or pasta, vegetables and potatoes. Sometimes it will be chicken and chips. Snacks are very much important on your Kilimanjaro Trek which includes popcorn and biscuits, a steady supply of tea, coffee, hot chocolate etc.
Gear list includes
- Shoes and Bags
- Layers of Clothing
- Electrical and Accessories
- Gadgets like Camera and relevant accessories.
- Money
- Porters and Tipping
- Prints of Documents (passport, vaccination certificates, travel insurance policy, trip vouchers and hotels booking and copies of your passport)
Conclusion
Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro is distinctly worthy, particularly for passionate hikers looking to up. The Lemosho Route that gets you a little flattened route. And it is the most preferable route ever.
Kilimanjaro Climb isn’t an easy task, and it never will be. Not everything reachable is easy and it’s OK to say Kilimanjaro is quite the exploit to tolerate and overcome. You can say it is a strong basis for trekking that the pain brings reward. And with Kilimanjaro Hike, you will positively rewarded with one of the most picturesque and highest mountain summits in the world. For more Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro Guide connect us with @Jerry Tanzania Tours (https://jerrytanzaniatours.com/ ).
