10-Day Kilimanjaro Lemosho Trek with Crater Camp overnight

Pick-up at the Kilimanjaro International Airport and transfer to the hotel in Moshi town; you will meet your guide, who will brief you on your upcoming trek and do an equipment check to make sure you have all the necessary mountain gear. The missing gear can be rented on this day.

Pick-up at the hotel at around 08:00 am and transfer to the Lemosho gate located on the western side of Kilimanjaro. After the registration process, we will still start the climb steadily through the forests of the Lemosho glades to reach Big Tree camp, where we will be spending the night.

Today, we will cover a lot of ground as we trek across a plateau of grassy moorland and heather scattered with volcanic rock formations. We will trek through Shira 1 Camp, often with the views of Kibo Peak floating on the clouds as we head towards Shira 2. We gain a reasonable altitude as we head towards Shira 1, and parts of the route are fairly steep. As we proceed towards Shira 2, we will get the chance to view the Northern Ice fields from the western side of the mountain with some unusual views of Kibo. Our steady climb across the moorland of the Shira Plateau will help with acclimatization, and we enjoy great panoramic views.

Our trek starts with an ascent with far-reaching panoramic views, walking into the climatic zone of the upland desert and on the lava ridges beneath the glaciers of the Western Breach. You will reach the distinct pinnacle of the Lava Tower (4640 m), our high point for the day and a great place to enjoy your lunch. In the afternoon, we make a steep descent to our camp for the night, located at the base of the Great Barranco Valley (3960 m), sheltered by towering cliffs but with extensive views of the plains below.

Our day starts by descending into the start of the Great Barranco, a huge ravine. We then exit steeply up the Great Barranco Wall, which divides us from the southeastern slopes of Kibo. It’s a climb over rock, not technical but long and tiring. We head towards the Karanga valley, passing underneath the Heim and Kersten glaciers. We have a steep climb from Karanga valley to our night’s camp at Karanga camp, set at 3963m. For those feeling strong, we will go for a mid-afternoon acclimatization trek up to around 4200m before descending to camp for the night.

After a good night’s rest and breakfast, we set off on our walk to Barafu camp at 4640m. The climb will take us across desolate scree slopes with no vegetation around us at all. It’s a tough, steep walk made more difficult by the altitude. On arriving at camp we eat and spend the afternoon resting as we prepare for a long night and day ahead. It is important to keep hydrated and warm. We have an early dinner and then try to get some sleep as we will get up between 11 pm and 12 pm to climb to the summit.

Wake before dawn to start your summit approach. You’ll reach Uhuru Peak in the early afternoon when a few groups are around. A short descent brings you to Crater Camp, set in soft sands near the famed Furtwangler Glacier. Crater camp is not a route in its own right but a challenging extension which, in principle, can be added to any route. It involves sleeping overnight in the bowl of the crater. An amazing experience enjoyed by only a few of the most adventurous climbers

In the morning, after early breakfast, we begin our descent by returning to Stella Point and descending on a scree slope, passing Barafu camp for a short break before heading down to Millennium Camp for a long, well-earned rest.

Today, we will walk down through the rainforest to Mweka Gate, where we complete park formalities and receive certificates, which you can hang up with pride! We are then met by our vehicles and return to the hotel in Moshi.