A guide and support crew will arrive at the hotel in the morning in order to meet you and hold another briefing. Then you will travel by vehicle for 3-4 hours to the western entrance of Kilimanjaro National Park, known as Londorossi Gate (2,200 m). After another few hours of formalities with the park rangers at the gate and you will be on the trail. Then you will drive for another hour to the Lemosho Gate. The group will stop for a light snack then start the 3-4 hour hike towards the Mti Mkubwa Camp (2,780 m). Raincoats are necessary on this day in particular, as you will be walking through the rainforest. The trail goes through the lowland forests where you’re likely to spot the large Colobus monkeys which are fairly common .By the time you reach the camp, our professional mountain crew will prepare everything necessary, put tents up and cook lunch for you. After lunch the group will depart on an acclimatization hike towards Shira 1 Camp that features a 300 meter gain in altitude, after which you will hike back down to Mti Mkubwa Camp, where a hot dinner will be waiting.
Note: The acclimatization hike is an easy trek with a slight gain in altitude done in order to speed up the acclimatization process. You should take the acclimatization hikes very seriously.
At night you may experience discomfort associated with acclimatization to the high altitude: because of a reduction in your waking breathing pattern, your body gets less oxygen than during the day. Taking altitude into account, you may therefore start feeling sick and have a headache. Pay attention to your own body and tell your guide if you start feeling any symptoms of altitude sickness.
Trekking from Londorossi Gate to Mti Mkubwa Camp:
Change in Elevation: Londorossi Gate (2,200 m) — Mti Mkubwa Camp (2,780 m)
Hiking distance: 6 km
Hiking time: 3-4 hour
Acclimatization hike:
Change in Elevation: Mti Mkubwa Camp (2,780 m) Destination point en route to Shira 1 Camp (3,095 m)
Hiking distance: 2 km
Hiking time: 1 hour