Day 3: Early Departure for Machame Gate

Today begin with an 8:30 AM departure from the Mount Meru Hotel. From there, the crew took about a three hour drive to the Mount Kilimanjaro base where we had lunch consisting of chicken, soup, and vegetables, took pictures, and then began our journey at about 1:30 PM. It was a beautiful day out on the trails with some amazing views and some very beautiful greenery. There was light rain a couple times throughout the day, but other than that, it was mostly dry. Our trek started at about 7,000 feet of elevation and ended at about 11,000 feet elevation. Once we finished our hike, which lasted around five hours, we arrived at the camp, where the porters had our tents set up and dinner prepared for us. We enjoyed tilapia, rice, vegetables, African tea, and hot chocolate. It was delicious. We spent time in fellowship discussing tomorrow’s plan and then began to wind down and prepare for tomorrow’s hike.

-Seth Cook

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The Climb Begins!

Early Departure for Machame Village at base of the Mountain, Begin the Trek after a hot lunch at Machame Gate @ 6,000 ft., Overnight Machame Camp @ 10,000 ft.

MOUNTAIN ROUTE OVERVIEW

Our group will start climbing after registering in the National Park’s Climber Log and eating lunch. They’ll start hiking on a forest road through the rain forest – which is why it’s wet and humid climate where they start climbing. To the right and left of the road are Mount Kilimanjaro’s giant red germs and impatiens. The path will get narrower and steeper as it winds through the rainforest. After another hour of hiking, the landscape will start changing as they enter the moorland zone and approach their first camp. Upon arriving at camp, porters will welcome them with a tent that’s already pitched and hot tea with biscuits. After resting, they’ll debrief about the following day’s climb and eat dinner. If the weather is good, they’ll see a beautiful sunset and catch a glimpse of the first snow-capped peak of Kibo!!

MOUNTAIN ROUTE STATS

Starting elevation 6,000 feet

Ending elevation 9,900 feet

Elevation gain 3,900 feet

Distance hiked 6 miles

Average hiking time 6 to 7 hours