Kilimanjaro — Lemosho Route

Day 01 — Arrival & briefing

Moshi · approx. 900 m

We meet you at Kilimanjaro International Airport and drive you to your hotel in Moshi. The rest of the day is for the trek briefing, an equipment check, meeting your mountain guide and resting before the climb.

Day 02 — Lemosho Gate → Mti Mkubwa

approx. 2,400 m3–4 hours

After breakfast you drive round to the western side of the mountain and the Lemosho trailhead. Once the park registration is done you walk into montane rainforest — tall trees, ferns and moss, with colobus and blue monkeys overhead.

Day 03 — Mti Mkubwa → Shira 1

approx. 3,500 m5–7 hours

The forest thins into heath and moorland and the trail opens out as you climb onto the Shira Plateau, one of the mountain’s great high-altitude landscapes. Weather permitting, the views back across the western slopes and up to Kibo are extraordinary.

Day 04 — Shira → Lava Tower → Barranco

Camp approx. 3,960 m · high point 4,600 m7–8 hours

The most important day of the trek. You cross the plateau to Lava Tower at roughly 4,600 m, then drop back down to Barranco Camp — climbing high and sleeping low, which is what makes the acclimatisation work. The landscape turns to alpine desert along the way.

Day 05 — Barranco → Karanga

approx. 4,000 m4–5 hours

The day starts with the Barranco Wall, which looks far worse from camp than it is — a scramble rather than a climb, and your guide will help you through the awkward sections. A short afternoon on purpose, so you arrive at Karanga with energy in reserve.

Day 06 — Karanga → Barafu

approx. 4,673 m4–5 hours

A steady walk up into bare alpine desert to Barafu, the high camp. Your guide gives the summit briefing, you eat an early dinner, lay out warm clothes and a headlamp, and rest as much as the altitude allows.

Day 07 — Barafu → Uhuru Peak → Mweka

Summit 5,895 m11–14+ hours in total

You wake around midnight and climb slowly through the dark to Stella Point and on to Uhuru Peak, the highest point in Africa at 5,895 m. Weather permitting, sunrise arrives over the plains while you are up there. Then the long descent — first back to Barafu, then down to Mweka Camp and thicker air.

Day 08 — Mweka Gate → Moshi

3–5 hours

A last walk down through the rainforest to Mweka Gate, where you sign out of the park. Your vehicle takes you back to Moshi for a celebratory meal and a shower that will feel like the best of your life.

Departure Day