Possibly doing this trek next year ….anyone done it ?…what can I expect …

Isn’t it the highest hill in Liverpool?

Oh no, that’s Killamanforhisgiro. 😆

What route are you taking up?, i was out in Africa on walkabout for 6 months in 94 and i did the umbwe route then crossing over to the western breach scramble and the ash pit wi friends from Zim that had done it a few times, the breach route scared the shit out of me but i managed it with caution on every step, it took us 5 days for the ascent, a few days before we attempted the climb we did mount meru (sp?) nearby to help us acclimatise and to be honest i preferred this climb as there was far fewer tourists on it and it i wasn’t scared 😀 ., i would not recommend the breach route unless you are very fit and/or or very experienced, back then i was only 22 and prob as fit as i’ve ever been in my life due to stupid amounts of cycling/motocross etc and i guess i was also pretty foolish as well.

Amazing feeling when you reach the summit, ti’z a shame we only stayed on the top for 20 minuets before heading back down one of the easier routes.

I will be taking the Machame route

I sailed away
For a year and a day
Making
My way
to Kilimanjaro

Did it a few years ago.

Hard work as time is limited, so acclimatization isn’t as easy as, say, trekking in Nepal. Last day to the top is hard, early start to get to the top for sun raise, but worth it.

Tough climb, went there many many years ago and it will live with me forever. Good luck you lucky bar steward

Take a bike. Got to be worth it.

Tough climb

It’s a walk isn’t it?
I thought Kenya was the one with climbing on it.

If its uphill it’s a climb in my book 😯

Did it in 2010 & am tempted to go back in 2014. Email me if you like can send you some info & have loads of pics.

it is a walk to the base of Kilimanjaro & long, slow walk with some “scrambling” to the top. The altitude does take your breath away if you rush things but a bit of fitness & a positive attitude will get you up there.

I know the Cranes rode it in the early 90s – the descent must be absolutely epic. You have to strap a bike to your pack!

Did this last year. Enjoyed it a great deal. Average level of fitness required – determination more important. Don’t under estimate how cold the push to the summit is (wished I took down mitts). Rest of the trek is relatively simple, as long as you don’t suffer with altitude sickness.

I did it in2009, went up the rongai route and down a more common route, I forget the name of the down route. We had an armed guard the whole way up, which I didn’t know about till I met him on an midnight loo adventure ( cheers altitude) don’t know who was more shocked!
It is a walk until summit night. That was tough. Our group had a 50% success rate, if i had tried to guess who woud make it i woud have been totally wrong.
The sunrise was stunning though, I often look back at my photos and can’t believe I was there. I was so tired I’m impressed I took so many.
I may be wrong but I think my success is in part due to training for a 300 mile cycle on the back of giving blood.

Pole pole!!

Dolcered – Great pics & the same route I took.

Ditto what you say about guessing who’d get to the top, Biggest cause of failure was probably caused by bad hygiene (take loads of antibacterial hand wash – the long drops are very dark at night!!!!)

At the end of the days walk make sure you take time to talk to the guides/porters/support guys….they are fantastic

Notorious for altitude sickness as permit costs are per day so guiding outfits go for as quick an ascent as viable to minimise prices and maximise profit, hence the dreadful success rates. Look for an itinerary that takes longer than most if possible or pre-acclimatise on Meru. People die from altitude on Kili every year which is daft given that it’ basically a high altitude walk.

Quite often on long epics it’s the side-issues that get you, not the subject of the epic. On the Haute Route the lack of washing facilities in the refuges meant that as the week progressed I got worse and worse diarrhoea from eating with unwashed hands and I found that really depressing and physically debilitating. If we hadn’t been so lucky with the weather I might have bailed.

I’ve looked into the crater of Kilimanjaro when on a SAA flight from Nairobi to Joburg; the captain came on saying the weather was clear and he’d got Air Traffic Control permission to circle the mountain. He dipped a wing and we did a huge loop around it, my photos are so clear that you can even see a tiny zig zag trail up a snowfield to the crater rim.

Thanks for all the replies …very informative …

Top tip for anywhere where hygeine is not taken for granted – antibacterial hand santitising gel.

Notorious for altitude sickness as permit costs are per day so guiding outfits go for as quick an ascent as viable to minimise prices and maximise profit, hence the dreadful success rates. Look for an itinerary that takes longer than most if possible or pre-acclimatise on Meru. People die from altitude on Kili every year which is daft given that it’ basically a high altitude walk.

This is very good advice.