Climb Kilimanjaro

Climb Kilimanjaro -one of the world’s famed seven peaks, take a safari across the plains of Africa then dive the beautiful tropical waters off the spice island of Zanzibar. Find out how you could do ALL this in three weeks.

If you are going to walk to one of the world’s seven highest peaks then climbing Kilimanjaro in Tanzania is your safest bet. However you might want to climb Kilimanjaro soon – predictions show that the decreasing seasonal ice on Kibo’s summit might disappear by 2022.  Technically, Kili is not a hard climb – there are no ropes or glacier hopping but altitude and ascending too quickly might be the silent stalker which creeps on many trekkers and stops them getting to  Uhuru Peak (5895m or 19,341ft) on summit night. Around 35,000 people year round attempt to climb Kili compared to around 1000 who attempt Everest each season.

Which route? Which company?

Two questions that will kick off your adventure. Here’s some interesting statistics about the success rate of climbers and the length of their trip from the Kilimanjaro National Park .

 

All climbers, all routes 45%

All climbers, all 5 day routes 27%

All climbers, all 6 day routes 44%

All climbers, all 7 days routes 64%

All climbers, all 8 day routes 85%

 

The longer your trip to try and climb Kilimanjaro, the higher success rate. It’s a bit daunting when you first start looking into options to trek to the top of Kilimanjaro because there are so many companies offering guided tours on SEVEN of the routes to the top of the mountain. The offer a range of prices from $1000 up to $12,000 per person and on this trek you HAVE to go with a guide.

First off, find out if any family or friends  have done it recently and find out who they went with and which route they took and get a quote from that company. Next you can delve into the murky world of the internet. I did some fairly intensive research across  sites like Trip Advisor and Lonely Planet and started seeing a pattern of companies which were consistently reviewed and scored well. The reviewers were also legitimate. I also noticed patterns of companies that weren’t rated well by walkers so I noted them down too and eventually came up with a list of five companies (both international and local Tanzanian based ) I thought would be good.

Once you have your list, get a quote,  itinerary and dates plus find out how you go about sending a deposit and what’s included in the overall cost. Also check what size groups they take. The more the merrier might be good on some holidays but when you trek, it can be detrimental in terms of varying walking paces. The company will likely also try to get you to book a safari with them – see if you can negotiate a deal based on doing both. You could also just wing it and book when you land in Africa. That may not sit well with anyone travelling on a tight budget or timeframe but you will have no shortage of agencies and companies on the ground in Moshi or Arusha to tap into. If you have done your homework and narrowed down some company options,  you might find it easier to book in Africa, but on the flip side you run the risk of finding the company’s next trek doesn’t fit with your dates or is full.

Check if the company plan to take a toilet on your trek (green tent in picture above). It is money very very well spent. We saw a guy use the toilets on the mountain (basic holes in the ground) and  ran out after using it to vomit! They are nasty.

We booked with a company called Climb Kili – they were awesome – based in Utah. We usually prefer to use local companies – putting money back into the Tanzanian economy – but the one we originally chose insisted we pay our deposit into a personal bank account and this flew in the face of advice we had been given.

We paid around $US2500 for an eight-day Lemosho route trek (in a group of six) incl a toilet, great tents, fantastic crew as well as transfers and a couple of nights accommodation in Arusha.

 

This Lemosho route is considered to be more of an expensive trek as you have a longer distance to get to the start and it’s often eight days instead of seven to climb Kilimanjaro, but it also is quieter and has a higher success rate for summiting with the slow ascent (85%).

What to pack when you climb Kilimanjaro

Because you will likely have porters carrying your duffel bag then there is a strong urge to pack too much . Most groups do have a 15kg maximum weight for each trekker’s bag  carried by a porter. Depends on the time of year you are trekking but make sure you cover ALL seasons. Rain, wind, cold and hot sun – you will likely get all four at some point. Most companies provide a list of what to bring but then you will over analyse it and agonise over things that once you are on the mountain seem pretty ridiculous. Here is my advice on a few of them.

1. Trekking poles.  If you use them when you normally trek or have knee issues (remember there’s a steep descent on the last two days) then take them. I have poles, I used them a couple of times but they weren’t necessary – on summit night they were just a pain because I needed to keep my hands in my pockets. And in the end, as the porters treat your duffel bags pretty roughly, I found the top had sheered off one of my poles when I got to Arusha.

 

2. Gaiters. You don’t need them. You are just walking on dirt and rock so they serve no purpose. The only time you might need them is the scree/dirt run down from the summit, but I would not bother and didn’t see many wearing them.

3. Solar charger. Will come in very handy, especially if you are using devices during the trek and to charge camera batteries.

4. Mittens instead of gloves. Summit night is brutally cold. My hands and feet were so cold and I had these terrible  gels that were utterly useless in those extremes. We trekked mid-winter and with the wind it was around -30 degrees C on the summit. Hands keep warmer in mittens and then if you add HotHands and shove your hands in your pockets then you should be fine.

5. Plenty of warm clothes and a warm sleeping bag (Season 4). You will be surprised how cold it gets even lower down the mountain on the first couple of nights.

6. Fragrance baby wipes. Emphasis on the fragrance as you will get dirty and there are NO showers on Kili. They also are good for emergency loo visits.

7. Rainproof jacket, pants and small pack cover. We got a bad afternoon of rain and some of our group were unprepared and got pretty wet and cold. The worse thing is, if you are in these conditions and have wet clothes, there isn’t anywhere to dry them – other than your tent and it’s not like there is a tonne of room. Make sure you pack these in your day bag EVERY day as the weather can change on a dime.

8. A good book. Whether it’s on a device or hard copy. There’s plenty of downtime in tents.

9. Diamox. If you have had been at altitude before and have not problems,  I would not bother. Of course, you should ask your doctor first before you go . It helps to have  a good trekking company with guides who insist you take it slow (pole pole as they say in Africa) and we also had our oxygen levels measured each night.

 

10. A sleeping or camp mat. Most companies put a mattress in the tents for you but you are sleeping on hard rock and any extra layer helps. I took a Exped mat which nearly killed me blowing up each night in the thin air but with the down and extra layer it was worth it.

How much do you tip?

My view on tipping is simple: Pay them what they are worth because they have helped make this a trip of a lifetime and the head guide right down to the porters live a lot worse off than you, so pay it forward. And if you can squeeze in any, and I mean any, items you want to gift to your trekking crew then do it. The local economy relies hugely on your money and porters – who do all the heavy lifting – are only paid around $US2-$3 per day. Their job is dangerous, some die on the mountain.

1. Firstly, how much? When I was asking work colleagues about Kili, one woman had trekked the mountain did not summit because the guides did not wake them and were hung over (their trip was on the cheaper end of the spectrum). We saw a guide lead a group the wrong way up the mountain and our head guide had to help them. So tipping should reflect the service you got from your crew. There are all sorts of numbers that float around but this a general rule of thumb is below: ( this is for your trekking group not per person).

• Per main guide – US$20-25 per day
• Per assistant guide – US$15-20 per day
• Per cook – US$15 per day
• Per porter – US$10 per day

2. When and how to tip? Our group got some intel from the previous trekking party from our company as they returned to the hotel. So we paid around $US250 -$300 each. We gave it to our head guide to distribute among the crew in one large amount. We arrived at the last camp Mweka exhausted after summit night, so it was up to me to gather up the cash in the morningwe left on our last day and hand it over.

   

3. Crew gifts. Our trekking party of six had a discussion the night before we finished up and we pooled all our leftover snacks and clothing we wanted to giveaway. After our final breakfast and before we left to finish the trek our guides laid out little piles for each porter. They did not want us to give things to our crew directly. We had around 30 staff including guides, chef, cooks, toilet guy and porters. They took anything we gave them – one of them I saw was even pretty happy with a large zip lock bag. If you have any boots or warm gear that might have seen better days (You see porters wearing women’s stuff too) then please gift it. Don’t worry if its dirty and smelly – it’s gladly accepted.

We were in Moshi after our walk and saw two porters from our group merrily walking past  in beanies and t-shirts that we had worn on the trek. It made me smile as one of them was wearing a New Zealand Cycle Trails cap and I know their marketing team would be happy. Someone even took my broken poles.

 Summit night

This is by far the hardest part of the trek and you know it’s coming but  nerves, excitement, altitude weariness all catch up on you when you reach your last camp before final ascent to climb Kilimanjaro. Our Lemosho route took us to Barafu Camp. We were there just before lunch time and it’s a hot mess of trekkers coming down off the summit, trekkers coming up to climb Kilimanjaro, porters and crews trying to pack down to leave and porters and crews trying to set up for their trekkers arrival. The check- in station is busy.

You see trekkers coming down off the mountain looking pretty weary knowing that will be you tomorrow. We made sure we congratulated everyone going down the mountain.

1. Barafu Camp. It’s rocky and uncomfortable and it’s high. (15,287ft) After the last of the previous night’s crews leave you eat and try and rest. It’s hard to sleep up that high and by this stage you are not very hungry either. It was windy and cold when we arrived so everyone hunkered down in their tents.
2. Most groups generally before summit like to have an early meal then let you try and sleep/rest before they wake you around 10pm. This depends on your group size and abilities. Some groups left early that evening, some after midnight.
3. Packing your day bag for summit night. Don’t take up too much stuff. This is a tough push to the top. What killed me was my water bladder.Literally five minutes after we set off and I had drunk from the bladder and ‘blown-back’ to ensure no water was in the tube,  it froze and did not unfreeze until around 8am then next day. So I was carrying 2 litres of frozen water, awesome! Hand warmers, yes please! Gels are terrible – they don’t last and end up freezing into little ice blocks adding to your bag weight. HotHands, once cracked, last around 8 hours. Put these in your mittens before you leave.
4. A couple of pairs of warm wool socks are good for summit night. I wish I had taken a balaclava to keep my face warm.
5. Take a couple of water bottles, turn them upside down and put a sock on them to prevent them freezing from the top.
6. Cameras. Keep phones, cameras close to your body inside jackets etc to they don’t freeze and not work at the summit because you need the quintessential picture at the summit sign and the glacier views are stunning. My phone worked but my hands didn’t so I relied on my husband to brave the cold.

   

7. You might go to some low places personally on this walk up in the cold as you see a stream of headlight torches above. Stay positive and try to ignore other groups you pass or that pass you. You will see people being hurriedly rushed down off the mountain or others having collapsed being given oxygen and it can be a little distressing.
8. It’s emotional when you DO get to the top. All the days, weeks, months of pre-planning to get here sorta just grabs you as you make that slow walk up from Stella Point to the summit and realise you made it. Embrace the moment – it’s cold and you aren’t there for long.
9. Depending on your arrival time – we got there just when the sun was rising – you might find a few people queuing to get a shot of their trekking team by the sign. People are tired, cold and can get a little tetchy when your group of 12 ALL want individual pictures. Just take a couple and share them later in consideration for everyone waiting for the same shot behind you.
10. When you do leave the summit and start downhill it is a weird feeling. Downhill suddenly engages different muscle groups and your knees feel like jelly. You are also still trying to warm up and you are tired from being up for the best part of 24 hours already with little sleep the day before. It will be a BIG day. It takes several hours to get back to Barafu Camp. Here you will eat and rest a little before the tents are packed down and the porters race off downhill to Mkewa.

    

    We did not leave till after midday, waiting on a stray trekker from our party, but were happy for the rest. However, we were all pretty tired and grumpy when we set off for around five hours more of stumbling down the mountain. I have NEVER been so happy to crawl into my tent and sleep as I have that night.

PART 2 – African Safari