This Way or That Way?

One thing our group had to take into consideration was the length of our climb. Paul lives in the Rocky mountains and will have the advantage of training at altitude, but Rich and I still have about 30 years of youth on him, so we figure that evens the playing field (sorry Dad!). Also, Rich will have just returned from a 7-month deployment without much opportunity to train at increased elevations.


Due to these factors, we've decided to take a full 8 days to climb to the summit. While the route is longer, this should allow our bodies to adjust to the altitude so that each of us makes it to the top without incident. While hiking to the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro is not the most technical of climbs, it is one of the most taxing and a large portion of people who set out to make it to the top fall short due to altitude sickness. We definitely want to avoid that at all costs! 


Right now, we are looking at two routes-- Machame and Shira. 

Machame route is the second most popular route, 26 km long, and it is considered the most beautiful route up Kilimanjaro. With a gradual ascend through the forest you emerge to see wide views of the moorland on Shira plateau, Kibo and Western Breach. The different kinds of vegetation found along the route make it the most sceneric route. We are approaching the summit with an acclimatisation day by walking in the same heights (Barafu Camp to Karranga Valley Camp), and another day by stopping at Karranga Valley camp (we are one of few tour operators offering this). There are no mountain huts on this route; the accommodation is in mountain tents. The route done in six days is physically challenging for most people. The last two days (the trek from Barranco to Barafu and then the overnight trek to the summit) require mental and physical toughness, due to the high altitude and short amount of time to rest before the overnight summit attempt.


Shira/Lemosho

The Shira route path approaches Kilimanjaro from the west, and it is nearly identical to the Lemosho route. While Lemosho starts at Londorossi Gate and treks through the rain forest to Shira 1 Camp, the Shira route bypasses this walk by using a vehicle to transport climbers to Shira Gate, located near the Shira Ridge. Our group will more than likely hike through the Lemosho rainforest to avoid acclimatization sickness.

On the first day on the mountain, climbers begin their hike from 11,800 feet (3,600 m) and spend their first night at the same elevation at Simba Camp. Then, the route merges with Lemosho and follows the southern circuit route.

Although Shira is a varied and beautiful route, Lemosho is recommended over Shira due to the high altitude of Shira's starting point. It is possible that climbers will experience altitude related symptoms on the first day due to failed acclimatization. Climbers using Shira should be confident of their ability to acclimatize.

As you can see, there are a lot of things to consider when deciding which route to take. We're hoping that our research will pay-off in the long run and we will be able to pick the right route for us.