Our Itinerary for the challenge

Recently a few people have asked me what date we reach the summit so I thought it may be worthwhile to document our itinerary.  For those of you who may well be thinking about taking ont he Kilimanjaro challenge I hope this helps.

3^rd February

Evening flight from Heathrow to Nairobi Airport via a 9 hour flight

4^th February

Arrive at Nairobi Airport at 6.30 a.m. and then a 7 hour bus transfer to Marangu in Tanzania.  When we get to the hotel we’re briefed on the challenge ahead!  Last night in a decent bed for a while!

5^th February

Day 1 of the trek starts with a 3 to 4 hour drive to Naremoru Gate (1950m).  We then trek for 3 to 4 hours through farm land and the forest zone for our overnight stay at Simba Camp (2650m).

6^th February

We leave early to head for Kikelewa Camp at 3678m.  This takes us about 9 hours of trekking and the vegetation goes from moorland to a sparse landscape.  It’s going to be a long day!!!

7^th February

This is our acclimatisation day and time to recharge for the hard days yet to come.  We trek for 5 hours to Mawenzi Tarn and then go on an acclimatisation walk to a higher altitude before returning to the camp at Mawenzi Tarn.

8^th February

Early start at 7 a.m. for a 5 to 6 hour trek to Kibo Hut at 4700m.  We pass over the Saddle which is an alpine desert between the volcanic peaks of Mawenzi and Kibo.  When we get to the camp we rest and prepare for the big night/day!

9^th February

It’s finally arrived! We walk for a total of 16 hours starting soon after midnight.  Our goal is to reach Gilman’s Point (5680m) after 6 hours of walking and then a further 2 hours trekking to Uhuru Peak (5895m).  The remaining 8 hours is spent descending to Horombo Huts (2200m).

If the timings work out we should reach Gilman’s Point at approx. 3 a.m. UK time and Uhuru at approx 5 a.m. UK time (Zanzania is 3 hours ahead of UK time).  The times are dependent on how we feel and the speed we’re capable of walking at.

10^th February

Final descent from Horombo to Marangu Gate (1900m) were we are transferred by bus to our hotel.

11^th February

Time to go home! A 7 hour bus ride from Marangu to Nairobi for our 9 hours night flight back to London.

12^th February

Early morning arrival at Heathrow and then a minibus journey back to lovely Exeter.

• Bluegrass_IT says:

  January 14, 2011 at 12:30 pm

  (Corrected URL, sorry) Latest blog on our #kili challenge –> What we’re doing on each day of the trek http://www.davidthomas.uk.com/diary/our-...

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  • WkendDad says:

    January 14, 2011 at 12:42 pm

    RT @Bluegrass_IT: (Corrected URL, sorry) Latest blog on our #kili challenge –> What we’re doing on each day of the trek http://7sum. …

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