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Day1 - 2
Hiking time: 7 hours.
Distance: About 18 km's.
Habitat: Montane forest.
Elevation change: + 1490 m
Early in the morning the guide of climbing Mount Kilimanjaro will be with you for briefing after breakfast around 9:00 am drive to Machame gate which takes about 40 to 45 minutes. With your picnic lunch climbers will do registering at the gate office, thereafter you start your ascent and enter the rain forest almost immediately. There is a strong possibility of rain in the forest, which will transform the trail into a very soggy, muddy and slippery experience. You will have a welcome lunch stop about half way and will reach the Machame camping area in the late afternoon. Tents and other belonging will be take care by porters and climbing Mount Kilimanjaro guide. Most of the time porters and cook happens to reach to the camping site before you for preparation of meals as well as erection of tents for your accommodation.
No accommodation
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Day2 - 3
Hiking time: 6 hours
Distance: About 9 km's.
Habitat: Moorland.
Elevation change: + 860 m
Early in the morning after breakfast, the day is spent to reach Shira campsite (3840 m) with our picnic lunch. The night at this bare camp will even be colder than the previous night, with temperatures dropping to well below freezing. The trail take us for an hour or so to the top of the forest and then for about two hours at a gentler gradient through the moorland zone. After a picnic lunch and rest, you continue up a rocky ridge onto the Shira plateau. Hiking to this point you will be able to see in an easterly direction, the Western Breach with its spectacular glaciers. You are now due west of Kibo and after a short hike you will reach the Shira campsite.
No accommodation
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Day3 - 4
Hiking time: 6 hours
Distance: About 15 km's
Habitat: Semi desert.
Elevation change: + 790 m, - 680 m
Final Elevation: 3950 m
The route now turns east into a semi desert and rocky landscape surrounding Lava Tower, where you reach an altitude of 4630m after about a four hours walk. Lunch is served in a designated area before ascending the rocky scree path to Lava Tower (4630m). Definitely, the toughest day so far. It is normally around this point, where for the first time, some climbers will start to feel symptoms of breathlessness, irritability and headaches. After lunch you descent again by almost 680m to the Barranco camping area and after reaching the high altitude of 4600m at Lava Tower, the true acclimatization benefit of this day becomes clear. This descent to Barranco camp takes about two hours and offers great opportunities to take some beautiful photographs of the Western Breach and Breach Wall.
No accommodation
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Day4 - 5
Hiking time: 3 hours
Distance: About 7 km's
Habitat: Alpine desert
Elevation change: + 250 m
The morning starts with a scramble up the almost vertical Barranco Wall to an altitude of about 4,200m. After lunch the climbers are advised to take a rest at this point. Dinner and overnight at Karanga Valley camp.
No accommodation
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Day5 - 6
Hiking time: 3 hours
Distance: About 6 km's
Habitat: Stone scree and ice-capped.
Elevation change: + 400 m
From here there is no water, so take care to stock them for there is no water at Barafu Hut. It is recommended that the climbers must familiarize with the camp before dark because of this camp is situated on an exposed and dangerous ridge. Dinner and overnight at Barafu camp.
No accommodation
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Day6 - 7
Hiking time: 6 hours to reach Uhuru Peak.
5 - 7 hours to descend to Mweka.
Distance: About 7 km's ascent - 23 km's descent.
Habitat: Stone scree and ice-capped summit.
Elevation change: + 1345 m, - 2795 m
Final Elevation: 3100 m
You will wake up around 2330hrs, and after some tea and biscuits you start climbing to Uhuru peak into the night. You will head in a northwesterly direction and ascend through heavy scree towards Stella Point on the crater rim. This 6-hour walks to Stella point is for many climbers, mentally and physically the most challenging on the route. At Stella Point (5685m) you will stop for a short rest and will be rewarded with the most magnificent sunrise you are ever likely to see (weather permitting). From Stella Point you will normally encounter snow all the way on your 2-hour ascent to Uhuru Peak.
No accommodation
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Day7 - 8
Hiking time: 4 hours.
Distance: About 15 km's
Habitat: Forest
Elevation change: - 1120 m
After an early and well-deserved breakfast, it is a short 3-hour and scenic hike back to the Park gate. At Mweka gate you sign your name and details in a register. This is also where successful climbers receive their summit certificates. Those climbers who reached Stella Point (5685m) are issued with green certificates and those who reached Uhuru Peak (5895m) receive gold certificates. From the Mweka Gate you will continue down into the Mweka village, normally a muddy 3 km (1 hour) hike. At the Mweka Gate, meet Mount Kilimanjaro National Park Officials gives you the Certificate of Achievement. After sign out to the park gate you will be transferred to a hotel in Moshi for hot shower probably dinner and overnight at Keys Hotel.
No accommodation
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Day8 - 9
Our tour guides will meet you at keys hotel and briefing you about the tour. You will travel up to Lake Manyara where you will be able to see tree climbing lions which are the park’s main attraction. Why these lions habitually climb trees is still up for debate but viewing a pride relaxing in an acacia tree is an incredible site. The park is also famous for its elephant, huge number of baboons and due to its varied landscape has an impressive range of other game including wildebeest, buffalo, hippo, flamingo, zebra, warthog, waterbuck, dik-dik, and impala. This small park is also home to over 400 species of birds, including flamingos, pelicans, storks and cormorants.
You will be able to view the surroundings as the safari vehicle’s roof can open up to allow you the best angle for photography. After an extensive game drive in the park you will leave the park in the afternoon. Tonight you will spend the night under the stars as you camp at a campsite in the Lake Manyara National Park.
Twiga Lodge & Campsite |
Budget lodge located just outside Lake Manyara NP
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Day9 - 10
After getting a delicious breakfast you will depart for Ngorongoro crater which is UNESCO world heritage.
The Ngorongoro Crater and surrounding highlands together form one of Africa's most beautiful regions. Volcanic craters form stunning backdrops to some of the most fertile and richest grazing grounds in Africa. The most famous such crater is without question the Ngorongoro Crater, the world’s largest intact volcanic caldera and home to the highest density of big game in Africa, including all the big five and plenty of predators. The Ngorongoro is the best place in Tanzania to see the big five. A healthy population of black rhino and some of the largest tusker elephants left in Africa today are the prize spots, but the Crater is also home to strong populations of lion, leopard and hyena along with good herds of wildebeest, buffalo and zebra. Other game in the Ngorongoro includes serval cat, cheetah, jackal, Grant's and Thompson's gazelle, flamingo and bat eared foxes.
Twiga Lodge & Campsite |
Budget lodge located just outside Lake Manyara NP
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Day10
You will travel up to Tarangire which is the surprise package on the Northern circuit. Often overshadowed by the Serengeti and the Ngorongoro Crater, Tarangire has immense concentrations of game in the peak months and a fraction of the visitors that go to any of the other Northern parks. The game viewing here from July through to October is superb and the atmosphere and habitat is completely different from the other parks. The real prizes in the park are dwarf mongoose, Oryx and generuk but viewings are very rare. Tarangire is one of Tanzania's finest birding destinations.
If you visit the park during the dry season, you will witness an unforgettable natural wonder as you can observe wonderful creatures such as lions, Leopard, cheetah, giraffes, buffaloes, wildebeests and zebras as well as various types of antelopes and gazelles and with a little luck, you can also spot a python.
No accommodation