Umbwe Route

• – Most challenging and strenuous route with very low summit success rate
•  – Poor acclimatization due to rapid ascent
•  – Remote and quiet for the first two days
•  – Joins up with the Machame route after day 2.

DETAILED ITINERARY:

DAY 1:UMBWE GATE TO UMBWE CAVE CAMP

Elevation (m): 1600m to 2900m,

Distance: 11km,

Time: 6hours,

Habitat: Montane Forest

Transfer from your hotel to Umbwe Park Gate for registration. Our porters prepare and pack our supplies and luggage before we starting our trek. along the small winding path that leads us up through rainforest and along the Umbwe river to Umbwe Cave Camp at 2,900m altitude.

DAY 2:UMBWE CAMP TO BARRANCO CAMP

Elevation (m): 2940m to 3970m,

Distance: 6km,

Time: 4-5 hours,

Habitat: Montane Forest.

We leave camp and make our way out of the forest tosee the sheer wall of the Western Breach appearing and disappearing as the afternoon mists roll up the mountain. Our descent to Barranco camp takes about 2 hours and offers great opportunities to take some photographs of the Western Breach and Breach Wall. The camp is situated in a valley below the Breach and Great Barranco Wall.

DAY 3: BARRANCO CAMP TO KARANGA CAMP

Elevation (m): 3950m to 3930m,

Distance: 7 km,

Time: 4 hours,

Habitat: Alpine Desert.

A short, but fun day, starting with a scramble, to the top of the Great Barranco Wall. We then traverse over scree to the Karanga Valley (3930m) beneath the icefalls of the Heim, Kersten and Decken Glaciers.We will stay overnight at Karanga campsite.

DAY 4: KARANGA CAMPTO BARAFU CAMP

Elevation (m): 3930m to 4600m,

Distance: 6kms,

Time:3 hours

Habitat: Alpine Desert

We leave Karanga campsite behind to meet the junction connecting with the Mweka descent Trail. From here we continue up to the Barafu Hut. You have now completed the Southern Circuit, which offers views of the summit from many different angles. At camp, we can rest, enjoy dinner, and prepare for the summit day. The two peaks of Mawenzi and Kibo are to be clearly seen from this position.

DAY 5:BARAFU CAMP TO SUMMIT TO MWEKA HUT

Elevation (m): 4600m to 5895m to 3100m),

Distance: 7km ascent / 23km descent,

Time:6-8 hours ascent / 7-8 hours descent,

Habitat: Stone screed and ice-capped summit.

You will be woken at 23:30 with tea and biscuits. We start our trek to the summit between the Rebman and Ratzel glaciers through heavy scree up to Stella Point on the crater rim. This is the most mentally and physically challenging partof the trek. At Stella Point (5732m), we will stop for a short rest and hopefully be in time to witness the magnificent sunrise (weather permitting). We are now only an hour away from the summit, Uhuru Peak (5895m), the highest point on Mount Kilimanjaro and the continent of Africa. From the summit, we descend down to the Mweka Hut camp site, via Barafu for lunch. Trekking poles will be needed for the loose screegoing down to Mweka Camp (3100m). Later in the evening, we will enjoy our last dinner on the mountain and a well-earned sleep.

DAY 6:MWEKA CAMP TO MWEKA GATE

Elevation (m): 3100m to 1800m,

Distance: 10 km,

Time: 3-4 hours,

Habitat: Forest

Your final day on the trek, departing after breakfast we descend a further 1300m to the Mweka Park Gate to pick up your summit certificatesfrom the Park Headquarters. Transfer to your hotel.

Although the Umbwe route is very steep and arduous, it is not a technical climb. It is does not offer the opportunity to acclimatise well as you can not “walk high, sleep low” as it is all uphill all the way to the summit. For those who have been to altitude before and know that they acclimatise well then they can benefit from the first two days being very quiet and also enjoy the spect