12 Days
Kilimanjaro trek combined with Lake Manyara/Serengeti/Ngorongoro
wildlife safari
Day 1: Arrival - Arusha
Travel from Nairobi to Arusha on board a Shuttle bus or pickup from
Kilimanjaro Airport – transfer to a hotel for an overnight stay
Day 2: Machame Gate (1490m) - Machame camp (2980m
Hiking time: 7 hours | Distance: About 18 km's | Habitat: Montane
forest
Your day starts early with a briefing, followed by breakfast and a
45-minute drive from Moshi (910m) to the Machame village (1490m).
The guides and porters prepare and pack the supplies and your
equipment in the village. You will receive a lunch pack and you can
also buy mineral water in the village. Depending on the condition of
the road, it is possible to drive from the village to the Machame
gate, but if not, the muddy 3 km walk will take about 1 hour to
complete. After registering at the gate office, 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.
Your porters (arriving at the camp site long before you) will have
erected your tent on your arrival. In the evening the porters will
boil drinking and washing water and the cook will prepare dinner,
before you retire to your tent for the night. Night temperatures can
already drop to freezing point at this campsite
Day 3: Machame camp (2980m) - Shira camp (3840m)
Hiking time: 6 hours | Distance: About 9 km's | Habitat: Moorland
You rise early at Machame camp and after breakfast you climb an hour
or so to the top of the forest and then for 2 hours at a gentler
gradient through the moorland zone. After a short lunch and rest,
you continue up a rocky ridge onto the Shira plateau. By now you
will be able to see in an easterly direction, the Western Breach
with its stunning glaciers. You are now due west of Kibo and after a
short hike you will reach the Shira campsite at 3 840m. The porters
will boil drinking and washing water, before serving dinner. The
night at this exposed camp will even be colder than the previous
night, with temperatures dropping to well below freezing
Day 4: Shira (3840m) - Lava Tower (4630m)-Barranco camp (3950m)
Hiking time: 7 hours | Distance: About 15 km's | Habitat: Semi
desert
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 5 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 acclimatisation
benefit of this day becomes clear. This descent to Barranco camp
takes about 2 hours and offers great opportunities to take some
beautiful photographs of the Western Breach and Breach Wall. The
camp is situated in a valley below the Breach and Great Barranco
Wall, which should provide you with a memorable sunset while you
wait for the preparation of your dinner
Day 5: Barranco camp (3950m) - Barafu camp (4550m)
Hiking time: 7 hours | Distance: About 13 km's | Habitat: Alpine
desert
After spending a night at the Great Barranco Wall (a very imposing
sight at first), you make your way up this awesome looking obstacle,
which in the end normally turns out easier than what you
anticipated. Topping out just below the Heim Glacier, you now
appreciate just how beautiful Kilimanjaro really is. The route then
heads down through the Karanga Valley over intervening ridges and
valleys, and then joins up with the Mweka route. This is the
preferred route down from the summit, so remember it. Turn left up
the ridge and after another hour or so, you reach Barafu Hut.
The last water stop on the route is the Karranga Valley, as there is
no water at Barafu camp. Barafu is the Swahili word for "ice" and it
is a bleak and inhospitable camping area to spend the night. Totally
exposed to the ever-present gales the tents are pitched on a narrow,
stony, and dangerous ridge. Make sure that you familiarise yourself
with the terrain before dark to avoid any accidents. The summit is
now a further 1345m up and you will make the final ascent the same
night. Prepare your equipment, ski stick and thermal clothing for
your summit attempt. This should include the replacement of your
headlamp and camera batteries and make sure you have a spare set
available as well. To prevent freezing it will be wise to carry your
water in a thermal flask. Go to bed at round about 19h00 and try to
get some precious rest and sleep
Day 6: SUMMIT ATTEMPT, Barafu camp (4550m) - Uhuru Peak
(5895m)-Mweka (3100m)
Hiking time: 8 hours to reach Uhuru Peak | 7/8 hours to descend to
Mweka | Distance: About 7 km's ascent - 23 km's descent | Habitat:
Stone scree and ice-capped summit
You will rise around 23h30, and after some tea and biscuits you
shuffle off 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 walk 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. The time you
will spend on the summit will depend on the weather conditions. Do
not stop here for too long, as it will be extremely difficult to
start again due to cold and fatigue. Enjoy your accomplishment and a
day to remember for the rest of your life. The walk back to Barafu
from the summit, takes about 3 hours. Here you will have a well
earned but short rest and collect the rest of your gear, before
heading down to Mweka hut (3100m). The route is not difficult and
will take you down the rock and scree path into the moorland and
eventually into the forest. The camp is situated in the upper forest
and mist or rain can be expected in the late afternoon. Dinner and
washing water will be prepared
Day 7: Mweka camp (3100m) - Mweka Gate (1980m)
Hiking time: 3 hours | Distance: About 15 km's | Habitat: Forest
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. In the Mweka village you will be served a
delicious hot lunch!! You now drive back to Arusha for a long over
due hot shower, dinner and celebrations!! Overnight at a hotel
Day 8 : Arusha – Lake Manyara National park
Depart Arusha in the morning for Lake Manyara. Afternoon game drive
, dinner and overnight at Lake Manyara Serena Lodge /campsite
Located beneath the cliffs of the Manyara Escarpment, on the edge of
the Rift Valley, Lake Manyara National Park offers varied
ecosystems, incredible bird life, and breathtaking views. Lake
Manyara’s famous tree-climbing lions are another reason to pay this
park a visit. The only kind of their species in the world, they make
the ancient mahogany and elegant acacias their home during the rainy
season, and are a well-known but rather rare feature of the northern
park. In addition to the lions, the national park is also home to
the largest concentration of baboons anywhere in the world -- a fact
that makes for interesting game viewing of large families of the
primates..
Day 9 : Serengeti National Park
After breakfast depart for Serengeti passing through Olduvai Gorge,
the site of Leakey’s family discovery of fossils of human and animal
ancestors dating back to almost two million years. Meals and
overnight at Serengeti Sopa Lodge /campsite
Day 10 : Serengeti
Full day in Serengeti plains in search for wild game you might have
missed the previous game drive. Morning and afternoon game drives.
Meals and overnight at Serengeti Sopa Lodge /campsite
Serengeti is easily Tanzania’s most famous national park, and it’s
also the largest, at 14,763 square kilometres of protected area that
borders Kenya’s Masai Mara Game ParkIt is the Migration for which
Serengeti is perhaps most famous. Over a million wildebeest and
about 200,000 zebras flow south from the northern hills to the
southern plains for the short rains every October and November, and
then swirl west and north after the long rains in April, May and
June. So strong is the ancient instinct to move that no drought,
gorge or crocodile infested river can hold them back. The Wildebeest
travel through a variety of parks, reserves and protected areas and
through a variety of habitat. Join us to explore the different forms
of vegetation and landscapes of the Serengeti ecosystem and meet
some of their most fascinating inhabitants.
Day 11: Ngorongoro Crater
After breakfast a 4wheel drive vehicle will take you 2000ft down to
the crater, enjoy picnic lunch at the crater, ascend back to
Ngorongoro Sopa Lodge /campsite for dinner and overnight.
The Ngorongoro Crater is often called ‘Africa’s Eden’ and the ‘8th
Natural Wonder of the World,’ a visit to the crater is a main
drawcard for tourists coming to Tanzania and a definite world-class
attraction. The Ngorongoro Conservation Area (NCA) is home of
Ngorongoro Crater. It was formed some 2.5 million years ago from a
volcanic mountain sinking due to inactivity, and was initially
thought to be higher than Tanzania’s famous Kilimanjaro. The crater
has evolved into a unique and integral part of Tanzania’s
eco-system. The crater is actually a caldera, measures 22.5 km’s
across and the rim walls stand 600m high. Views from within and from
the rim are breathtaking (as can be seen from the picture). The
crater houses 30,000 animals, and a large variety of birds, which
rarely move from the area due to the availability of water through
wet and dry seasons
Day 12 : Arusha - Nairobi
Breakfast then drive to Arusha town – Board an afternoon shuttle bus
to Nairobi – Drop off at the airport to board your home bound
flight.
Tour cost per person
Kili trek /lodge accommodation US$ 3450
Kili trek /budget camping safari US$ 2640 |
