Routes to Mount Kilimanjaro : Mount Kilimanjaro is found in Northern Tanzania near the Kenyan border 300 kilometres south of Equator ,it also lies in the Kilimanjaro region of Tanzania and near the Town of Moshi. It is found in Mount Kilimanjaro National Park which covers an area of 1688 kilometres square and administered by Tanzania National park which was established in 1973. It is approximately 44 kilometres by road distance from the town of Moshi.
Trekking up the highest mountain in Africa is not a walk in the park, the main challenge being the altitude sickness and lack of enough oxygen. It is even worse for those who have cough and flu, this journey will test your limits, mentally and physically.
More than 30,000 tourist and mountain climbers ,and 80,000 porters and guides climb up Mount Kilimanjaro every year. This makes it a total of approximately 110,000 people who climb Mount Kilimanjaro making it one of the most visited tourist destinations in Tanzania.
There are seven routes to the Mountain summit
Machame route
This is one of the most successful route, its trekking distance is approximately 62 kilometres or 32 miles from Mweka gate up the mountain and back to gate. More than half of all climbers, most seasonal climbers choose Machame route . It is one of the cheaper routes and easily accessible .
The Machame route is also known as the whiskey route, it is a seven day camping safari which allows for excellent acclimatisation with wonderful diverse scenery. This route is considered difficult because it doesn’t offer the same climbing height, it takes about 7 days and has a success rate of 80% .The number of days is directly relate to altitude acclimatisation. This is the minimum number of days recommended by international climbing and mountaineering federation.
The route is mostly strenuous when trekking up and down through the valleys ,Plateau, scree. The crater part is quite steep but there is not technical and you are not required to use ropes ,when climbing.
The summit night usually is very cold, windy and icy as you zigzag the rocky slopes, which is often covered by snow and ice. This part of the journey requires mental strength and good physical health and fitness. Machame route is favourite because of its different variety of habitat flora and fauna which are endemic to the Mountain. The route offer breath taking scenery and acclimatisation in with three nights spending on the same altitude. The paths are well maintained, the campsite have showers and toilet facilities.
Most climbers about 50% of them use this route and sometimes can be very busy depending on the time of the year, especially on a full moon night. The road distance between the Machame gate to the Town of Moshi is one hour 30 minutes, which means a short time back to town.
Lemosho route
On the west side of Mount Kilimanjaro is the Lemosho route, which is normally a eight or seven days trip. This route merges with Machame route in the Shira Plateau . It is popular route because of the initial ascent from the forest is easier and adds an extra day for altitude acclimatisation for the eight days trip.
Lemosho a new route which was designed to absorb traffic of the Machame and Marangu routes . The first two days is a journey through the rainforest which encircles the mountain which has an altitude of 2400 to 3500 metres ,It is here where you’ll see colobus monkeys, giant trees and plenty birds including birds of prey. It is one of the beautiful trekking trails of Mount Kilimanjaro as it passes through the Shira Plateau crossing it from west to east, Routes to Mount Kilimanjaro
Starting at the western flank of the mountain at Londorossi gate, the Lemosho route wanders its way up the remote parts of the mountain. There are two campsites at Barranco and Karanga Valley both in the same altitude which assist in acclimatisation. The trail leads to the Barafu camp (which is a swahili word which means” Ice”) which is around 4600 metres before you begin the 8 hours final push to the summit through the night.
This route mostly takes eight days but you shouldn’t take anything less than 7 day or six night to acclimatise safely. It is also appropriate recommended time by guide association as safe for a mountain of this magnitude.
Lemosho route is similar to Machame route, it is difficult with climbing up and down, though the valleys and ridges to the unrelenting scree slopes to the rim of the crater. Camping in the high altitude is always tiring and evident by your panting and tired muscles.
The route is almost similar to Machame route in terms of scenery with the first camp at Mti Kubwa ,Shira and Moir Hut being in a quiet place, giving it the impression of remoteness.
Shira route
This route approaches Mount Kilimanjaro from the west, shira route is more similar with the Lemosho route.
Unlike Lemosho route which starts at Londorossi gate, the Shira gate starts at 3600 metres and is accessed from the higher point by car, making your starting point at Shira ridge. This makes it difficult for people coming direct from planes ,this is usually not a recommended route unless for those who had previously acclimatised.
The recommended number of days are seven with the first two nights spending at Simba camp. The other camps being at Shira Plateau, Barranco camp and Karanga camp. The route is similar with Lemosho route starting at the rainforest, the route then merges with Machame route with the camp at the base of the summit massif and then followed by the final push to the rim of the crater, Routes to Mount Kilimanjaro
The gate has fewer lesser crowds than Machame and Marangu routes, the high starting altitude of the gate means that the climbers are likely to experience altitude sickness such as dizziness, vomiting, nausea, headache, fatigue, shortness of breath and loss of appetite. The extra cause of transport to the gate means the route is more expensive.
Rongai route
This is the only route that approaches the mountain from the North. The trek starts near the border of Kenya and joins Marangu routes at Kibo camp.
This is the best route to exploit mouth Kilimanjaro during the rainy season because the North regions receives little precipitation. It is one of the easier routes to Kilimanjaro as one ascends gradually up to summit massif.
The recommended time is seven days as the optimum time for a good success summit rate. The routes leads to a summit day at Gilman’s point unlike the other routes.
Northern circuit route
The Northern circuit is one of the newest trails, it is one of the longest and the one with the most spectacular views because it showcases what the mountain has to offer. The route is long and therefore offers climbers more time to acclimatise gradually, Routes to Mount Kilimanjaro
The routes has the same starting point as Lemosho route but it deviate North circumnavigating the lava tower before submitting the Uhuru peak through the Gilman’s point just like Marangu and Rongai route
This trail can be completed in nine days but more days can be the best as you acclimatisation and enable the lungs to cope with little oxygen. The most successful route with a 360 degrees overview of the great landscape, with the journey taking approximately 96 kilometres and takes nine days to hike it.
Marangu route
This route is also known as Coca-Cola route., it the oldest and the well maintained. It is one of the easiest routes in terms of gradient and terrain. It is the only route on the mountain that has huts to sleep in.
It is very convenient during the rainy season, the ascending and descending is one path and that means it can sometimes get too busy. The early days covers huge Plateau up until the final hut at the summit massif ,with the summit day being difficult elevation up until the rim of crater at Gilman’s point and to the Uhuru peak.
This is one of the easiest routes because of its gradual slopes, taking approximately seven day but some people can take less days although it is not always recommended for proper acclimatisation. It is also very suitable route for first time mountain climbers and for group or family safari because of the dormitory style in the huts, Routes to Mount Kilimanjaro
The Marangu route is 72 kilometres or 45 miles by distance and it starts from Southeast of the Mount Kilimanjaro at Marangu gate to Uhuru peak 5895 metres .
Western Breach
This route is sometimes very dangerous and at some point ,the melting of the ice led to the death of two Americans in January 2006.
The park nowadays only allow experienced alpinist on this route and after signing the disclaimer forms, no local guides ascends on this route. The route follows Machame route until it diverts at lava tower and ascends higher to Arrow Glacier.
There are numerous rocks to climb and in fact there is no single path or route to follow, this makes the route the most difficult to ascend.
