Kilimanjaro and the Serengeti, Roof of Africa

Day 3: Mt. Kilimanjaro - Macheme Camp (Trekking)

Today is the start of your Kilimanjaro climb. We'll be picked up at the hotel and transferred to the base of Kilimanjaro. With any luck, it will be a clear day and the mountain will be visible on our  drive. We'll start our climb at the Macheme Gate. While our porters and guides pack up our equipment, we register with the park warden. The hike today is around 6 hours through a rainforest. We'll camp at 9,850 feet/3,000 meters with views of the Kibo peak in the distance. Total trekking time 6 hours. (B,L,D)

Day 4: Mt. Kilimanjaro - Macheme Camp - Shira Camp (Trekking)

We have an early wake up call to pack up our sleeping bags and gear before meeting for breakfast. Our porters break camp while we refuel, and then we depart for another day of trekking. Today's hike is mainly uphill as we follow the top edge of a valley. We are heading towards the Shira plateau to our campsite located at 12,630 feet/3,850 meters. The camp is located by a cold fresh water stream and surrounded by moorland meadows. You have the afternoon free to explore the grassy moorland and volcanic rock boulders littered across the plateau. Total trekking time 4-5 hours. (B,L,D)

Day 5: Mt. Kilimanjaro - Shira Camp - Barranco Camp (Trekking)

We crawl out of our tents, feast on a hearty breakfast, then set off for a 6 hour hike. We steadily climb to the foot of Lava Tower, a 165 foot/50 meter high lump of rock sticking up from the rolling ridges around the summit cone. An optional short scramble to the top will get your heart pumping, but the views are worthy. The top of the tower, at 14,750 feet/4,610 meters is our highest point of the day and from the top, Kibo seems so near. The rest of the day is generally downhill to the Barranco Hut campsite with some steep descents into the valley. We travel alongside the Western Breach wall with its huge cliffs topped with snowy glaciers. We are now on the Southern Circuit Path. As we descend we pass forests of giant groundswell and lobelia giving us the feeling we have entered into the mystical land of the giants. The huge, intimidating Barranco Wall that we scale tomorrow morning comes into view as we see our campsite for the first time far below. We kick up clouds of dust as we slip and slide down the steep slopes into the valley. Overnight at Barranco Camp, 12,672 feet/3,840 meters. Total trekking time 6 hours. (B,L,D)

Day 6: Mt. Kilimanjaro - Barranco Camp - Karanga Camp (Trekking)

We wake to a breakfast of champions, break camp, and then set off on foot towards Kibo. Today we begin zigzagging through the Great Barranco Valley. We soon come face to face with the sheer vertical wall of Barranco and we'll scramble up the stair-stepping rock face. We pass a few valleys offering great views of the Heim, Kersten, and Decken glaciers and soon the terrain becomes dusty and barren. Once we reach the top, we descend to the Karanga River, the last water point on this route. Then it's back up for another steep climb to the Karanga Camp at 13,900 feet/4,200 meters, with intoxicating views of Mount Meru floating above a sea of clouds and the snowy peak of Mt. Kilimanjaro so close in front of us. Total trekking time 4 hours. (B,L,D)

Day 7: Mt. Kilimanjaro - Karanga Camp - Barafu Camp (Trekking)

Departing from Karanga camp, we have another relatively short hiking day to the Barafu campsite at 5,500 feet/4,600 meters. We begin by scrambling over boulders and ascending the Barafu Ridge. This ridge marks the point where the South Circuit Path, which we’ve been following for a couple of days, joins the Mweka Trail. As we head up the Mweka Trail, following the boulder strewn ridge, we have our first glimpse of Mawenzi's jagged rocky spires. We reach the Barafu campsite in time for lunch. The remainder of the day is to relax, sleep and mentally prepare for our final ascent to the summit, Uhuru Peak, starting at midnight. Total trekking time 3-4 hours. (B,L,D)

Day 8: Mt. Kilimanjaro - Summit Day: Barafu Camp - Uhuru Peak - Mweka Camp (Trekking)

Today is the biggest, but most invigorating day! Around midnight we set off into the night destined for the summit, Uhuru Peak, the highest point in Africa at 19,340 feet/5,896 meters. The world becomes condensed into the beams of our headlamps as we pick a path between the larger rocks on the loose scree. The walk to Stella Point is approximately six hours and the final stretch one hour beyond. We may start to encounter snow and ice all the way to Uhuru Peak. We'll already have spectacular vistas of the Rebmann, Decken, Kersten and Heim glaciers. From Uhuru you can see Furtwangler Glaciers to the north and the Eastern Ice Field. The view as the sun rises, both across the crater and of the surrounding glaciers, are superb. Mawenzi also looks fantastic silhouetted against the sea of clouds below. After a short stay at the summit we start the descent, running down slopes of scree, taking about three hours to Barafu campsite. We'll break here for a light lunch and short snooze, then continue descending to Mweka campsite at 10,000 feet/3,000 meters, our home for the night. Total trekking time 14-18 hours. (B,L,D)

Day 9: Mt. Kilimanjaro - Descent Day: Mweka Camp - Mweka Gate (Trekking)

Our final morning on Mt. Kilimanjaro begins in the normal fashion, our porters bring warm water in wash basins to our tents, then we head to the dining tent for a freshly prepared full breakfast of porridge, omelets, sausages, home fries, toast and coffee. Afterwards we pack our gear for the final time, then descend to the park gate at Mweka (10,200 feet to 5,900 feet/3,100 meters to 1,800 meters) through the rainforest. Here is where we'll be awarded our summit certificates. Our drivers and safari jeeps will be awaiting us here to transport us to Ilboru Safari Lodge in Arusha for a well-deserved shower and rest. The remainder of the day is at leisure to kick back, swim in the pool and celebrate our success with refreshing pints of Tanzanian beer. (B,L,D)

Day 10: Arusha - Serengeti National Park (Game Drive)

There's time to relax and enjoy the scenery today as we have a long drive to Serengeti National Park, the best-known wildlife sanctuary in the world, unparalleled for its natural beauty and scientific value. From Arusha we drive into the Great Rift Valley, up over an escarpment with wonderful views of Lake Manyara. We'll arrive at the Ngorongoro Crater Gate, then drive through the forest, before our first sighting of the spectacular crater. We'll stop to stretch our legs and take some photos then continue driving to the crater highlands and down the northern side onto the Serengeti plains. The countryside is beautiful with golden savannah as far as the eye can see, herds of big game animals grazing on the short grass or lazing under flat top acacia trees. Once through the Serengeti gate, we have another one and a half hour drive to The Serengeti Wildlife Lodge, our home for the night. Our drive is leisurely, allowing plenty of time to enjoy the wildlife. (B,L,D)

Day 11: Serengeti National Park (Game Drive & Optional Hot Air Balloon)

For those who want the full Serengeti experience, there is an option for a sunrise launch in a Hot Air Balloon over the Serengeti Plains. The departure is at 5 am, starting with a game drive and then a one-hour flight over the plains. The trip concludes with a champagne breakfast on the golden plains. For those who don’t ride in the balloons, we’ll start with an early morning game drive (this is one of the best times to spot wildlife, before the heat of the day) and meet the rest of the group at approximately 10 am to continue game driving. The rest of the day we’ll be out circumnavigating The Serengeti by safari jeep. Chances are strong you’ll see the predators (lion, leopard and cheetah) the scavengers (hyena and jackals) as well as herds of elephant, buffalo, giraffe, wildebeest, zebra, water buffalo, warthog and many other large and small species. With more than two million wildebeest, half a million Thompson Gazelles, and a quarter of a million zebra, the Serengeti has the greatest concentration of game in Africa. We'll take a packed lunch with us, so expect a full day out in the vehicle, although taken at our own pace! We return to The Serengeti Wildlife Lodge in time for a sundowner. (B,L,D)

Day 12: Ngorongoro (Game Drive)

We start with an early morning breakfast and then we leave the "endless plains" and climb back into the highlands to Ngorongoro Crater, once a gigantic volcano. When the volcano collapsed, a vast bowl known as a caldera was formed. Measuring about 18 km/11 miles across and 250 km/160 miles deep, Ngorongoro is now ringed by an amphitheater of steep 1,640 feet/500 meter walls and has an impressive assemblage of wildlife within. On the drive there are strong possibilities we’ll spot families of baboons, a few hyenas and lots of grazing Thompson Gazelles. This time we’ll descend into the crater and have most of the day to explore the grounds and view the wildlife. If we’ve not yet seen the big five, the chances are high we’ll see them today (rhino, cape buffalo, elephant, lion and leopard). Around 4:30 pm we’ll leave Ngorongoro and head back to Arusha for our last night in Tanzania. (B,L,D)

Day 13:  Arusha -  Departure

Today you will be transferred to the Arusha International Airport to connect with your flight back home. You can spend the morning exploring Arusha for some last minute souvenirs. (B)

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