This morning on a scheduled birding drive along the banks of the Grumeti River, within our Grumeti Luxury Tented Camp concession area, one of the first sighting of the day was a Narina Trogon (Apaloderma narina). This bird is listed as being very rare in the region, and nowhere in Africa is it particularly common.  For the last month or so I have been keeping a birding list of actual bird sightings along our bird routes and in and around the camp in order to get a sense of what is around. This is distinct from the generic bird list covering any potential sighting and numbering over 450 species. I have logged an impressive total of over 100 species in that time, and I have been looking for an opportunity to make a bit of a noise about it.  When a Trogon landed on the list I though this was probably about as good as it gets, and so the time had come to shoot out a quick blog to alert you all to our in-house birding program.

Grumeti River is prime birding habitat

The Grumeti River in probably one of the most rewarding birding destinations in Africa. It does not offer the kind of vast, mono-species numbers associated with phenomenon like the lake flamingo populations in Kenya or Botswana, or the ganets of the Western Cape, but in terms of the sheer diversity of woodland and riparian species it is quite extraordinary. In my experience as a bird watcher in Africa I can recall to mind only a handful of places that have stood out. The Chimanimani in Eastern Zimbabwe is one of these, Gorongosa in Mozambique another, Chobe River in Botswana another, and of course the Okavango Delta itself among the best. However I think the Grumeti River competes very well with all of these. It offers a classic African riverine environment, dominated by acacia and fig tree species, but also offering stretches of gallery forest and dense thickets and open wooded grassland on the edges. At the end of this blog I have included my personal list as mentioned above. This of course does not include the ubiquitous ‘little brown jobs’ among which prinia and cisticola are the usual suspects, but does list quite a few common, and even mundane species, along with some unique and quite startling encounters that all birdwatchers look forward to.

What to expect at Grumeti

On a bird-watching trip staged from Grumeti Luxury Tented Camp there are two possible options, and over the course of a few days we will usually cover both.  These are the acacia/commipora woodland habitat that makes up the bulk of the wildlife reserve and the riparian forest that comprises the banks of the Grumeti River itself.

Quite apart from the Narina Trogon, which, lets face it, is a once, twice or at the most three times in a lifetime sighting, commonly seen birds are the woodland and riverside kingfishers, the butterfly-like Grey Helmet Shrike, the rather common van der Dekken’s Hornbill, the superbly loquacious Slate Coloured Boubou, and this morning alongside the Narina Trogon I spotted a small brace of Green Pigeons. I also regularly see Brown Parrots, and once or twice an African Orange Bellied Parrot, and I had the great pleasure a few days ago of enjoying a long tete-a-tete with a most beautiful pair of Pearl Spotted Owlets.

Raptors

Raptors are also well represented. The Bateleur Eagle is an ever present regular, and is the African Fish Eagle, but such delightful encounters as with a Sooty and Eleanora’s Falcon, Grey Kestrel and Shikra are not uncommon. Among the larger raptors the Tawny Eagle is perhaps the most common, but I regularly sight Steppe Eagle, Long Crested Eagle and I believe, although it is unconfirmed, that a Martial Eagle touched down in camp recently. There are, of course, many others, but these are the day to day sightings. Cuckoos and oddities. At around about this time of the year (June/July) the cuckoos begin to arrive. The expanses of woodland are suddenly replete with the endlessly repeated and plaintive calls so easily associated with this elusive species. From their calls I have identified Jacobin, Lavaillant, Black, Emerald, African, Klaas and Diederick’s Cuckoos. Quite a haul for a single area! Other exciting little snippets have been the unusual local turacao, the Plantain Eater, an Anualts Barbet, a Spotted Creeper, both the Eastern and the Southern Black Flycatchers and a Grey Woodpecker which is common around here but a bit of a novelty for me. So this in a nutshell is birding at Grumeti Luxury Tented Camp. For anybody with any interest in local birding, or who would like any information about birding in East Africa, and Africa in general, drop me a line and I would be happy to help organise a trip out here.

This is a general and ongoing list of bird species to be found at the Grumeti Luxury Tented Camp in the Grumeti Reserve of Northern Tanzania…

Zimbabwe has been in the news for quite a while now for all the wrong reasons. prior to the political crisis of 2000 it was one of the most popular destinations in the region. The country had a reputation for offering some of the best destinations, for friendliness, accessibility and safety, and in many ways it still does.

The politics in Zimbabwe in a nutshell are internally focused. There have been a handful of incidences of tourists getting caught up in isolated bouts of internal unrest, but nothing out of the ordinary in terms of the normal risks of African travel, and although one or two destinations in the country have had to close down, and a certain amount of ecological damage has been caused by a loosening of land management principals, on the whole Zimbabwe is still open for business, and still a great place to visit.

For a relatively small country Zimbabwe has a lot to offer. Here are a few possibilities:

Eco Travel and Wildlife

The key wildlife destinations of Zimbabwe have suffered a little fraying at the edges thanks to the crisis of recent years. This has been mainly due to funding and a subsequent reduction in poaching control. However most of the main attractions are still open and functioning, and the more that tourism can be encouraged to return the more revenue will find its way back into wildlife management.

Hwange: Always the most developed and diverse of Zimbabwe’s national parks, Hwange has suffered a little in recent years, but is always worth a visit. Expect to see most of the big five on any given day, although rhino are becoming increasingly scarce.

Ghonarezhou: Place of Elephants. Always one of the most worthwhile parks in the country to visit. Perhaps the destination most impacted by recent trouble – again for reasons of land mismanagement and poaching

Mana Pools: Still of one the region’s premier eco-destinations. An International Heritage Site, Mana Pools comes in for special treatment and is still in good shape and an incredible wildlife park to visit.

Matusadona: Located on the banks of Lake Kariba, Matusadona is a very special place. It is reasonably well protected by geography and strong numbers of visitors and is still a great place to see elephants in the iconic settings of Kariba.

All of the main eco-destinations of Zimbabwe are well served by lodges and camps that are among the best in the region. It does not compare with South Africa in this regard, nor Tanzania or Kenya, but there are many who tend to think that each of those countries has attempted to elevate their luxury tourist facilities a bit far. Many are out of reach to the average traveler.

Urban and Cultural

Zimbabwe has never been blessed with beautiful cities, but at least those cities are in beautiful natural locations. Both Harare and Bulawayo, however, each boast great restaurants and nightlife with a variety of festivals and events that are ongoing. Perhaps the best known of these is HIFA, or the Harare International Festival of Arts, an annual extravaganza that attracts international and regional and local performers and events.

Besides this the music and arts scenes countrywide are very vibrant. Zimbabwe is perhaps best known for its stone sculpture, but many other craft and art styles and genres are represented.

Great Zimbabwe Ruins: This is perhaps the defining cultural feature of Zimbabwe. Much of the national symbolism of the country is drawn from here. The site has deep historical interest and significance and is an absolute must-see on any visit to Zimbabwe

Highlands and Mountains in Zimbabwe

 Chimanimani National Park: The flagship hiking destination in Zimbabwe is the Chimanimani National Park. This is without doubt one of the most unique natural areas remaining intact in the region, representing a convergence of local eco-zones in a unique and stunningly beautiful African landscape. It is highly accessible, easy to enjoy and a region of mixed interest. As with most highland quarters of Zimbabwe, or indeed Africa, it is densely populated with a concentration of African village life available to view and become involved with without any canned aspects.

Vumba: This is a highland region located just outside the small border town on Mutare. It has traditionally been an an area of genteel lifestyles with wide mountain vistas, sweeping moorland and tropical forest. Early European settlers gravitated here for its mild climate and supreme natural beauty. There is much to do, from hiking to birding,  golf to casinos. The area is well served by hotels and lodges, with a variety of styles to choose from. This is easy-going Zimbabwe and is always worth a visit.

Nyanga: Similarly this national park is located close to Mutare, but is a little more rugged and isolated than Vumba. It is a landscape of moorland, trout streams and rugged peaks, with a number of accommodation options ranging from casinos to country lodges and guest houses. On offer is excellent birding, walking and hiking, climbing and fly fishing. An unusual destination in the African context, but one very much worth a visit.

Adventure and Adrenalin in Zimbabwe

Look no further than Victoria Falls for all the thrill seeker options you could wish for. From the most hard core white water rafting to extreme bungi, it is all here. Victoria Falls is a central destination and a travel hub serving the travel industry of the entire region. There is so much to do here that a dedicate post will follow.

From this thumbnail sketch of Zimbabwe we hope you are inspired to get in touch and learn a little more. Feel free to contact us for more information on travel destination in Zimbabwe

by Bob Holdsworth

Lemosho Route

Lemosho is the longest of the routes up Kilimanjaro and is best for anyone with an appetite for a quieter trail and a more remote atmosphere. The rolling Shira Plateau is one of the principal features of the trail as it allows for a more moderate process of acclimatization. This route is a good one to consider because the longer climbing time makes for a greater chance of reaching the summit with fewer problems. The Lemosho trailhead is situated west of the other routes. At day 4, it merges with Machame and follows the same course to the summit and descent on the Mweka Route. It takes about 3 hours to drive from Moshi to the official trailhead.

Londorossi Gate to Big Tree

We start at 9:15 from the hotel in Moshi. Kilimanjaro is visible from the outside deck from the hotel. Hard to believe we will be at the top in 7 days. It takes a little time to collect gear and organize what stays at the hotel and what goes up the mountain. After a 3 hour ride, we arrive at the Londorossi Gate and sign in. Very interesting drive as we pass through dry, arid plains, then black soil, rich farming areas, and finally arrive at the edge of the forest. As we wait to sign in, I watch the porters divvy up the gear. Each pack is weighed to make sure the porters don‚ carry more than allowed. It is tightly regulated due to issues of porters being taken advantage of by unscrupulous outfitters. Our tour company has a great reputation

We drive to the Lemosho Trailhead after checking in at the gate. The road is a one lane track and deeply rutted. Because it rained yesterday, there are a lot of puddles. The driver throws it in 4-wheel and we make it through easily. The road is so narrow that the vegetation brushes both sides for the Land Rover. As we drive, you see more clear cut of the forest for farming. Parts have been re-forested but the majority is being used as farmland. The soil is rich, so I understand why. But the forest maintains the micro-climate around the mountain. By cutting the forest, the climate is changed – less rainfall and therefore shrinking glaciers.

We arrive at the trailhead, have a quick lunch while the porters load up and head off Рat last. The hike is relatively easy starting at 6,900 feet goimg to 8,695 feet in 6km (3.6± miles). The forest is incredibly thick and lush. Wildflowers, shrubs, and vines line the trail.

As we walk, an amazing story unfolds – the trail has been used by elephants in the last 24 hours. There was a rain yesterday and you can see the footprints. On one slope, you can see where the elephant slid downhill on the mud for about 20 feet. That is amazing! Then we see elephant poop (scared the you know what out) and beaten down bushes off the trail and into the forest. We walk on and 20 minutes later another area where the elephant slid 25 feet before he (or she) stopped. I guess after the second slide, this one had enough. But thanks for leaving a pile to mark it!

We start hiking at 1:15 and arrive at 3:45 PM. It is a beautiful camp set in a grove of trees with you guessed it – a Big Tree in the center of the camping area. The porters have the tents ready by the time we arrive and we get to relax before dinner. Tea is served at 5:00 – how civilized! It’s getting cooler. In Moshi, it was t-shirts in the evening. At 8,700 feet, it’s a couple of layers and a jacket. You can see your breath. A couple of bowls of soup and some carbs make it warmer – early to bed as I’m sure I’ll be up at 6:00 AM with the sun plus it’s a big day tomorrow.

Big Tree to Shira One

After a great nights sleep, I get out of the tent and one of the porters has hot tea ready. A quick breakfast and we are on the trail at 8:30. Our lead guide is Joshua. He is very slight of stature but has led hundreds of trips up the mountain. He seems very kind and soft spoken but with a great sense of humor. That will be an advantage to keep motivation going as we get higher. He teaches us a little chagga, the local dialect. My favorite is “Poa comchesi com ndizi” (not correct spelling). It means “cool like a crazy banana”. The normal greeting while on the trail is “jambo”. However, I try my new phrase with each passing group of porters and get a hearty laugh. I should check the meaning when I get back as I may be playing a joke on myself!

The porters are incredibly hard working. They wake up before us, they get everything ready – all the meals, camp tear down and setup, carry the packs, the food, cooking supplies plus their gear, food, and tents. All of that for $15-25 per day depending on their seniority. The cook and the Assistant Guides are on the high end while the guys who lug it up are on the lower end. The amazing thing is they tear down after we finish breakfast, pass us on the trail, and camp is setup when we arrive.

The hike is much more strenuous than the first day. The elevation gain is 2700+ feet as we climb and descend two large ridges. What is amazing is the change in the climate zones. We camped last night in the trees and continued in the morning in dense forest. Technically, it is a cloud forest. There is rainfall, but most of the moisture is the mist from the clouds. The trees and moss are thick. This goes for a few miles and transitions quickly into what looks like the high desert – low scrub trees, but lots of flower from the recent rains. We are walking very slowly or as the porters say poley, poley – slowly, slowly. Joshua sets a very slow pace almost step by step. It’s a great pace to help acclimatize as we are headed to 11,900. Finally, we crest to a campsite on the plateau. The Shira Plateau is a vast caldera from an earlier eruption. And you now get a view of Kilimanjaro. When we arrive, it’s cloudy. We take a short hike to explore lava tubes near camp and then crash for a nap.

After dinner, the clouds lift and we get our first glimpse of Kilimanjaro (below). It is imposing. It is colder tonight. The porters sing to us after dinner so the night ends on a high note (bad pun, sorry).

Shira One Camp to Shira Two Camp

I wake up in the middle of the night and head outside. The clouds have cleared and every star in the sky is visible. You can see the Milky Way stretch across the sky. After the obligatory bathroom break, I search for the Southern Cross. It is not visible in the Northern Hemisphere so I have a goal to find it. I made a drawing and supposedly to find the Southern Cross – Look in the Milky Way – face South – there are two bright stars on the horizon (Centauri and Alpha Centauri) – they point up to Southern Cross, lying on left side. Not tonight as it is cold.

I wake up at 6:30 and the tent is covered with frost along with frost on the ground. The view of Kilimanjaro is astounding – we are on the western slope. I see the glaciers and the Western Breech route. Damn it’s cold – finally the sun breaks through and with a cup hot tea, warmth returns.

After breakfast, we head out for a leisurely walk to Shira Two or Huts as it is sometimes called via the Cathedral Route. Pretty easy walk (flat) across a desert like landscape. The ascent through the “heather” is interesting as the growth from the roots reaches out 12 feet from the base of the plant. Along the way, we find plenty of animal scat. Peter points out leopard shit as he picks it apart and shows us the bones from a small animal. Reminds me of the opening line from the Hemingway story.

The ascent to the cathedral is steep which makes this a good training day. Quick break at the top and then walk down to Shira Huts. There are several huts to rent with bunks, but our porters have it all setup for us. It’s great – we arrive in camp and the tents are set and your heavy pack sitting next to it. From here on out, it will be steep. We are at 12,600 but next stop is Barranco at 13,071 feet via the Lava Tower at 15,230. I like the plan as we climb high and sleep low. I have been sleeping great and my breathing is not labored at all. I recall feeling it during previous trips to this altitude so maybe the conditioning plus poley poley are working. We will be met at our next camp by new porters with more food for the remaining four days. As you see from the route, we are taking a long walk across the mountain from West to East

Shira Two Camp to Barranco Hut

Another great night’s sleep – no headaches at all or shortness of breath. I believe the combination of poley poley, our acclimatization program, and my training, have all come together to get me to this point. Today is a big day as we climb to 15,000+ feet. While today’s hike is only a gain of 2,600 feet, it is steep and the highest elevation I have hiked. Our route begins with a slow steady climb. Joshua does a great job with the pacing. The views are fantastic as you can see the whole Shira Crater, Mt Mero, and the African plains. On the other side, Kilimanjaro looms larger. You can now pick out cliffs, glaciers, and scree fields. I can see why the summit day is hard as the last three thousand feet seem to rise straight up.

The picture is Mt Mero (15,000 feet). After a clear start, we are in a white out for most of the morning. Finally, we see the Lava Tower. Geologically, it is of the core of the volcano. The exterior has eroded leaving a 300-400 ft large tower. The hike to the Lava Tower is strenuous. However we make it by 1:15 PM and take a well deserved lunch break. This is the spot where the trail heads up to the Western Breach. The hike down from Lava Tower is spectacular as we head through a canyon. There are glacier streams cutting through the top soil. Alpine meadows dot the landscape until we break through the clouds and we are in the Moorland climate zone. It is filled with 15- 20 foot lobelias and the unique Giant Senecios (pronounced Senecas). It easy descent and Barranco Camp comes into view. At the same time, I see the Great Barranco Wall – the first part of tomorrow’s
hike. It rises 800 feet in 6/10 of a mile – pretty much a steep, switch back climb. That’s tomorrow, so I am going to enjoy having hiked to 15,000+ feet and still feel great.

Arriving at camp, it is comforting as the porters have set tea, cookies and popcorn – our regular afternoon refreshment. I seriously need a bath as I smell and am dirty – but not for four more days. I get my gear ready for tomorrow. Surprisingly, the clouds lift at 5 and we get a close up of the western side. The pictures will tell this story, but it is impressive. Someone has built a Zen statue that frames perfectly in the setting sun against Mt Meru. A peaceful scene in a harsh landscape.

Barranco Hut to Karanga Valley

Beautiful morning as we start up the Barranco Wall. It’s not a technical climb but you need your hands to balance. It takes about 90 minutes of steady walking and finally the crest. The extra day to acclimatize has been helpful as has the slow and steady pace. After a short break, it is a leisurely stroll across the plateau. The walk across the desert slope is very interesting. It looks like the American Southwest except for no cactus. I decide to walk by myself and enjoy the quiet and peacefulness. There is steep section down into a valley and then a tough scramble to the top. Karanga is right at the base of the mountain and gives a great view. The weather clears in the afternoon and I have someone snap a few pictures (the one on the cover and Day 6).

The picture above is the easy section after ascending the Barranco Wall. The following picture shows the last section down and then up to Karanga. For us, this is a “rest” day as it is a short day. Same for tomorrow. However, the porters continue to work after setting up camp as water for Barufu must be brought from the Karanga Valley – 2 miles up! You can really see the peak up close now. The anticipation is building and I am so ready.

Karanga Valley to Barufu Hut

Wake up feeling refreshed as I sleep from 9:00 PM to 6:00 AM. I don’t get that at home! We head off for our short hike to Barufu. It is a steady, steep hike to 15k feet. Very slow pace –
it takes us three hours to go 2+ miles. I know I mention this a lot but that is much slower than my normal pace at home. But this is at 13,000+ ft and there is less oxygen. The landscape is barren except for broken shale (or slate) rocks and evidence of glaciation. We get in and get settled. The last 30 minutes of the hike, it was snowing, then it cleared and now 30 minutes later you hear thunder. The good news is it has cleared every night and stayed clear in the morning until at least 9:30 AM. If all goes well, we will be back at Barufu by that time tomorrow. I feel good and will summit tonight!

Barufu Camp to Summit to Mweka Camp

After an early dinner (carbo loading), I get about 3 hours sleep. The porters come to wake you at 11:30 to come to the mess tent. I grab a hot tea and a snack as 12:00 AM arrives and we head out in groups of 3 based on our anticipated pace. You can see the line of head lamps ascend out of the camp. The going is slow because of the number of people heading to the summit. With just your headlamp on, it’s hard to see anything except the three feet in front of you. We continue for about 2 hours and stop for a bathroom and snack break. We continue up a set of switchbacks that go on forever! The great news is I finally see the Southern Cross and Alpha Centauri to get a bearing on which way is South.

We come across a number of people who have collapsed off the trail. Whether it is because of too high too fast or lack of training to get ready, it is a tough way to end your trip. Dawn is coming as red bands appear on the horizon. Lo and behold Stella Point is in view. This is big accomplishment as we are at 18,871 feet – only 460 feet more in elevation. It has taken us not quite 6 hours to get here. My legs are throbbing but sighting the top provides encouragement. We break for a couple of minutes and then strike off to the summit. It’s a 45 minutes walk, but I catch a second wind. I want to be on the top of Africa by 7:00 AM when it’s 12:00 AM on the East Coast. A lot of people gave me good wishes and moral support as they descend
from the summit. Finally, the sign is in sight – I did it in 30 minutes. I am there. I can’t describe the sense of satisfaction, relief and pride I feel. I worked hard and did it!

The others make it by 7:00 AM and we get in line for pictures by the sign. The peak is now called Uhuru Peak which means freedom in Swahili. It was renamed when Tanzania gained its independence from Britain. You can see a number of glaciers and a landscape that looks like it could double for the moon. After 25 minutes, we head down as the wind chill puts it somewhere around 0O – 10OF. The initial walk back to Stella Point is easy. After that, we head down a scree field, which is unbelievably hard. Your quads take a beating while your toes get jammed into the front of your shoes. It is torturous. If the uphill beat your hamstrings and glutes, the downhill makes your quads and knees scream. I’m not sure what is harder. After 2 1/2 hours, we finally make it back to camp and collapse.

The porters who stayed in camp are incredibly encouraging and supportive at our success. Without them, this would be impossible. We get a much needed break and rest. It’s hard to sleep because of the excitement. Plus our day is not done as we have another 7.5 km or about 5 miles down to Mweka Hut to a cozy elevation of 10,138 ft. We leave at 1:00 PM and spend 3 1/2 hours on a very slow descent. Some people are faster and bless them for it. I crawl into the tent a little after 5PM after a cold Kilimanjaro and shut it down for the day.

Mweka Hut to Mweka Gate

I wake up at 6:00 feeling refreshed. The campsite sits on the edge of the forest layer so we are packed in with most of the previous day’s climbers. I catch another morning sunrise to watch
Kilimanjaro. I’m ready for a shower and real food. I haven’t mentioned much on meals. Overall, pretty good considering everything had to be carried. Breakfast is usually a fried egg, pancakes, toast and fruit. The local pineapples and mangos are delicious and in season. Lunch varies – sometimes it was a trail lunch – a sandwich, fried chicken, banana and a fruit juice. Other day’s when we get into camp in the early afternoon there is soup – usually vegetable with plenty of spices. Dinner is always soup, a starch and a casserole with meat. I ate hearty because of the workload. But, I may have gained weight. After breakfast, I repack everything and watch as camp starts the breakdown. The porters are just as anxious as we are to be out.
For them, it means payday and for me a return to the US. My knees and quads are still very sore – this would clearly be a rest day from the gym, however we have 6.2 miles and 4,700 feet in elevation to lose. The trail is fairly easy. We are descending through the lush cloud forest again and notice the variety of plants and trees. There is heavy moss on the trees, orchids growing out of the moss, lots of ferns, and monkeys sitting in the trees. It’s incredibly beautiful and peaceful in the morning sun. The journey ends as we hit the gate at just about 12:00 PM sharp.

A total distance traveled of 70 km or 42 miles. There is a huge crowd of people – porters sorting gear, vans loading, hikers signing in a grabbing a warm beer (I’ll wait). Plus an assortment of kids wanting to clean your boots for a dollar, others selling t-shirts and others hawking other souvenirs. I let a kid buff my boots to get the dust of for $1.50. We sit in the courtyard and get our certificates from our guides. At this point, it is time to hand out tips and to give any spare gear you don’t want. Each person has to decide for themselves but a general rule is 7-10% of the cost of your trip. Our group decided to create a group tip pool of $50 per person because of the great service and care we received from beginning to end. In addition to a group tip, you may give extra to specific porters.

That night after two showers, under a flowering Jacaranda tree with mango trees on the edge of the lawn, we drink and eat great Indian food and re-live our adventure. It’s a beautiful night to sit out under the stars with people who you have shared an amazing journey. Easy to fall asleep, especially after 3 Tuskers.

General Observations – the day after

I wake up early the next morning and head out to the balcony to watch sunrise on Kilimanjaro. The mountain looks so different now after getting to the top. Ridge lines and other noticeable terrain features are clearer. Instead of seeing this mysterious and foreboding mountain, I see it for its beauty and its power. This comes with a very healthy respect of what it takes to have the opportunity to stand on top. That instant of gratification and feeling of accomplishment is fleeting, yet oh so real. It almost seems surreal that I was standing UP THERE. I am proud of the achievement symbolized by getting to the top, yet the struggle and effort is the real reward. I overcame fears and pain. Fear of failure, fear of dying, and fear of not living up to expectations all played in my mind. Taking the risk, choosing the level I would challenge myself physically and mentally, and accepting the pain in my limbs and lungs are the real rewards. I chose to risk and not limit my actions because of those fears. A valuable lesson to learn (again).

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Kili is a big mountain

It soars at its highest point to 19340ft. It is among the seven continental giants, and sits high on the global mountaineering must do list for anyone claiming the status of a mountain enthusiast. It is, however, one of the easiest of the Big Seven. That is not to say it is a walkover, far from it, but it is less a mountaineering experience that an extended trek, and as a consequence it is one of the few big mountains of the world that almost anyone of moderate fitness has a fighting chance of summiting.

Kili is not a cheap mountain to climb

Tanzania is home to some of the world’s premier wildlife parks and nature conservancies, and as a poor country it relies more on tourism dollars than government grants to sustain this heritage. Added to this the use of local guides and porters is mandatory. This is part of a general effort by the Tanzanian authorities to insure that local people are not insulated from the benefits accrued by tourism. So as you part with your dollars to make this climb, take comfort from the knowledge that your are contributing directly to the maintenance of the local ecology, and the support of local communities.

First Aid on Kilimanjaro

Guides are as a rule trained up to first aid level. This allows them to dress wounds, administer CPR and to dispense non-prescription painkillers while they await the arrival or paramedics. Any pain medication beyond over-the-counter strength analgesics that you feel you might require, and any specific medications you need, are your own responsibility.

It is advisable to carry a small personal medical kit for your own day to day use. In attending to random aches and pains, blisters, stings bites and rashes it always makes sense to be self sufficient, no matter what might be offered by your operator.

Search and rescue on Kilimanjaro

Emergency rescue procedures on the mountain are the shared responsibility of the Tanzanian National Parks Authority and the individual operators conducting any particular trip. Each climber pays a US$20 rescue levy that covers the eventuality of evacuation. Trained rescue personnel are posted at all the camps above 3000m. Rescue is usually a bumpy ride down on a single wheeled gurney. This is an incentive to avoid injury.

Air search and rescue is dependent on the availability of private helicopters or fixed wing aircraft that on a volunteer basis will participate in any aerial support. Thanks to the fact that Kilimanjaro is situated along the Serengeti/Ngorongoro axis, many private aircraft are stationed in the area at any given time for tourist use, allowing for almost guaranteed availability in the instance of a serious situation.

Certain operators make use of Global Rescue services which is an international rescue facility offering medical evacuation and emergency response to members under more or less any circumstances, with the potential for hot extraction from the mountainside, usually in combination with a local aircraft supplier.

Water on Kilimanjaro

The water in the steams and rivers along the way is clean and usually palatable, but as a precaution a portable water filter is an excellent item of personal baggage, along with water purification tablets. If you do drink the water directly from the streams, try and make a point of selecting small, peripheral watercourses that feed into the main rivers, the smaller the better. This is not only the best tasting water, but is likely to be the most recently filtered through the soil, and the cleanest. Make sure that the water provided for drinking by your support crew has been boiled.

Day Pack

Even if the bulk of your kit is portaged on your behalf by your support crew, always carry a day pack, and always pack in your day pack survival kit that will sustain you in the event that you are separated or injured and/or are forced to spend one or more nights out alone. This should include your personal first aid kit, including an emergency blanket, a flashlight, a source of flame, a jacket and warm fleece, water and a small selection of high energy trail snacks.

Food on Kilimanjaro

Usually your operator is responsible for all food on the trail, and it will often be stated that you need bring no supplements. However almost always this does not include snacks, chocolate bars, trail mixes etc that you might require en-route, and certainly not electrolytes, dietary supplement or vitamins. It also rarely includes alcohol. Vegetarianism is an understood concept in rural Africa, and so a specific vegetarian menu preference is easy to accommodate. Veganism, on the other hand, is less well understood, and might require careful monitoring. Food on the whole is basic.

Kilimanjaro Altitude

The ascent up Kilimanjaro is gradual, which helps considerably in becoming accustomed to increases in altitude. Kilimanjaro rises above the 18000ft level which exposes climbers to the risk of cerebral (brain swelling) or pulmonary (fluid build up in the lungs) edema. Symptoms of the former are a persistent dry cough and shortness of breath while symptoms of the latter are severe headache, loss of equilibrium and eventual loss of consciousness. These are dangerous symptoms and can cause death.

The solution is to at all times listen to the advice of your guide, to not fixate on summiting against the advice of your body and your support crew, and to spend as much time as is necessary adjusting to the altitude.

Kit

Despite being one of the world’s major mountains, Kilimanjaro is a relatively easy climb, and for the most part a benign environment. You do not require alpine level kit, high altitude trekking gear will be sufficient. A good gore-tex system, an intermediate sleeping bag and a good sleeping mat will make all the difference.

Tipping Kilimanjaro Porters and Crew

This can be a very difficult part of your climb. The guides and porters you have with you will by the time they conduct your trip have had plenty of experience in squeezing the maximum gratuity out of weary, and sometimes over-emotional climbers. Tactics from long faces to tears will be employed to stimulate your generosity, and no amount offered will ever be enough. 10% is an oft quoted rule of thumb, but any more than US$100 divided amongst your individual crew might be excessive. Usually the whole group clubs together about US$100 each, or less, which makes for a reasonably tidy whip around. Never hand over the whole lot to your guide to dole out to the porters. The odds are very high that they will get pennies, if anything, and he will keep the lot.

Added to this your crew will often try and secure bits of your kit as an added bonus. This is your call, but bear in mind it is a lucrative side business and is not always related to desperate need.

Tipping must reflect the degree to which you are satisfied, and if you are not satisfied, it is perfectly fair to make that point by being selective about who you tip.

There tend to be few unsatisfied customers at the end of a Kili climb though.

TANZANIA NATIONAL PARKS

OBLIGATIONS AND ACTIONS REGARDING THE RE-OPENING OF WESTERN BREACH ROUTE (ARROW GLACIER)

1. TOUR OPERATORS OBLIGATIONS / ACTION

IMMEDIATE

1. All climbing parties should wear mountain helmets right from leaving Arrow Glacier camp until they reach the crater rim to provide head protection
2. All the climbing parties should depart Arrow Glacier camp no later than 5:00 am to be able to cross the area of most exposure within the first hour of sunrise (7:00am).
3. Guides leading groups on this route must be trained on rock fall protocol and be able to brief client and porters before they embark on the craters summit.
4. All pre-trip information to potential clients booking for Western Breach route (including website) must contain rock fall risk factor in order to seek informed consent from the clients.
All clients should be informed by their agents on the danger of rock fall on Western Breach route; thus, this will enable them to climb with the knowledge of the danger of the route.
5. Tour Companies should consider reducing the number of support staff to accompany clients during the hike from Arrow Glacier to crater rim to reduce the number of porters subjected to high risks and reduce the level of dislodging rocks in this area.
6. Every group must have at least two ice axes possibly carried by a guide to help cut steps on icy snow conditions to aid balance and stable foothold by climbers.
7. Every group must have life saving equipments, (gammov bag, oxygen cylinder, 1st aid kits) during crater summit attempt.
8. Each Tour Company should develop and implement a written emergency response plan. This is a document which will be elaborating procedures to be done in case of emergencies by both people in the field and those down in the offices in regard to responsibilities of patient care and transport so as to manage transition period from point of incidence on the mountain to the road head.
9. Porters should carry the luggage on their back using rucksacks so as to make their hands free. This will assist climbing and help them respond positively during rock fall incidences.
10. All Tour Operators must posses/carry mobile toilets during the climb to be used only in the crater. One toilet for crews and another for Clients. The human faeces or waste in crater must be conveniently deposited in pit toilets at Barafu hut. No one is allowed to leave (burry, hide, etc) human excreta inside the crater areas.

MID-TERM

1. Following provision of radio channel by TANAPA, Tour Companies should procure and issue their staff with UHF radio handsets with rechargeable batteries in order for the guides to communicate with KINAPA rescue teams in case of emergence on the Western Breach route.
2. Tour Companies should develop and implement an effective Post Traumatic Stress Redress Programme for their staff as part of emergency response plan to help with healing support of those exposed to extreme trauma (this should include option to seek medical attention if necessary).

2. TANAPA’S OBLIGATIONS/ACTIONS

IMMEDIATE

1. TANAPA/KINAPA will erect signboards from entry gates all over the Arrow Glacier Camp warning visitors that Western Breach Route is a danger Route that has active rock fall, and all climbing teams should observe rock fall protocols as briefed by their guides.
2. TANAPA/KINAPA will put in place a rock fall protocol and ensure that all their rescue staffs are trained on how to effectively use it to minimize exposure and how to manage rock fall during rescue activities in active rock fall areas.
3. TANAPA/KINAPA has rated this route as a wilderness trail and then fore makes it clear that their ability to respond to call of distress will be a couple of hours a way.
1. TANAPA/KINAPA will introduce a high altitude rescue station at Lava Tower to reduce turn around time of response during emergency at Western Breach.

MID-TERM

1. TANAPA will equip all high altitude rescue stations (Kibo, Lover Tower, Millennium) with necessary rescue equipment including life supporting, (1st Aid kits, gammov bags oxygen cylinders), climbing equipment, radio and telephone communications as well as stretchers.
2. TANAPA will develop an Emergency Response Management Plan for Kilimanjaro on what to do in event of emergency, what to expect from both their rescue staff in the field and at the base as well as what to expect of tour of tour companies in regard to responsibility of patient care and transport so as to manage transition periods especially to road heads.
3. TANAPA will develop a Post Traumatic Stress Redress Protocol for their staff as part of emergency response plan to help with healing support of those rescue staff exposed to extreme trauma and to ensure full recovery before their next field.
4. TANAPA will from time to time visit Western Breach route and review on observed changes along the route. Then, feedback will be provided to all stakeholders from time to time, advises them on what measures to be taken to reduce the risks and to enable them carry out proper decision based on proper information.
5. TANAPA will provide a separate radio call channel to Tour Operators that can be used by both guides and rescue rangers during any emergency.
6. TANAPA will improve the capacity for rescue services in the park through staff recruitment, training and provision of proper and adequate rescue facilities and equipment to cater for the increasing number of tourists that are increasing every year.

LONG-TERM

1. TANAPA will develop and implement a continuous geological surveillance and monitoring program.

]]> http://eco-travelafrica.com/tanapa-western-breach-protocol/feed/ 0 http://eco-travelafrica.com/kilimanjaro-western-breach-summit-a-viable-option-for-older-climbers/ http://eco-travelafrica.com/kilimanjaro-western-breach-summit-a-viable-option-for-older-climbers/#comments Thu, 19 Apr 2012 14:59:04 +0000 chimanimani http://eco-travelafrica.com/?p=474

>> Tanapa Western Breach protocol

Separating the Fact from the Fiction

There has long been an aura of risk about climbing Kilimanjaro via the famed Western Breach. The matter came to a head in early 2005 with the death of three American climbers as a consequence of a rockfall. The route was briefly closed and assessed, perhaps more an act of protocol than safety, and opened again soon afterwards. It must be remembered throughout that these types of endeavors carry with them an inherent risk, and although every effort is made by climbing outfitters to both sanitize the risk and talk up the adventure, accidents happen, and the random nature of a tumbling scree of boulders hitting a tent, or knocking down a moving climber, is no more statistically likely than being knocked off a bike while riding on a busy highway: this bearing in mind the numbers of people that summit the mountain on an annual basis.

Having said that the percentage of climbers using the Western Breach is quite small comparatively, but only comparatively – check out the condition of Crater Camp as evidence of this – and the record of deaths is very limited. Bob and I climbed summited via the Western Breach in late 2009, and both of us by then being older climbers, we were each surprised to find the physical outlay and demands somewhat less than the awful midnight summit advocated on the Stella Point Route – awful because of the cold, the scree and the crowds. The night spent at Crater Camp was not uncomfortable, neither on this or other occasions I have found, while arriving at the summit in late afternoon was a more personal and certainly a more comfortable experience.

Don’t be put off by the hype

So while I am not advocating the Western Breach route of Mount Kilimanjaro as a preferred option for older climbers, I am saying that one should take the hype with a pinch of salt, bearing in mind that a handful of companies that specialize in the Western Breach route have much to gain by over mythologizing it, and touting it as something out of the ordinary.It is true that rock falls do occur, but they are not inevitable, and probably no more likely than similar climbs in the Alps. The recent warming of the permafrost conditions have tended to loosen already loose rock formations, and it is true that the mid-morning thaw is probably the most risky period. But the risk is quantified, and acceptable by any climbing standards.

In fact climbing the Western Breach is a slow and steady trudge, made easier by the fact that the ground is relatively firm underfoot, with places where the terrain resembles a steep and rather length flight of steps. From Arrow Glacier Camp the climb up to Crater Camp occupies about five or six hours, more if you take your time, after which a very nasty but thankfully short summit push gets you to Uhuru Peak by mid-afternoon. The temperatures at that time are moderate, there is usually no-one around, after which the return to Crater Camp is dusty but not unpleasant. Sleeping at some 19000ft is uncomfortable, but not excessively so, since if you have made it that far the chances are you have adjusted well to altitude.

Get in touch with us today

My advice to anyone contemplating the Western Breach is to do it, making sure to use a reputable guiding company, pay what the trip is worth to avoid absolute novice guides, and attend to your own well being as you would on any mountain anywhere in the world. Get in touch with us at Eco Travel Africa if you would like to arrange an oldies climb of Kilimanjaro, in the company of either Bob or I, which will take a lot of the guesswork out of the trip. Or fill in the form below and we will bring you up top speed on what trips are being arranged.

Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro is one of those bucket list achievements that anyone with an outdoor bent should consider. Kili is a great mountain for older climbers because, taken slowly, there are no significantly difficult features to overcome and no technical climbing required. The topography of Mount Kilimanjaro is relatively simple. It is a volcanic cone the rises out of the surrounding Masai Steppe at an extremely modest elevation. The first phase is forested, which makes for a very pleasant introduction, followed by the heather belt, which is a little more uniform, but with the advantage of more generous views. As the climb continues the landscape becomes more barren, but no less interesting, and of course the higher the mountain you climb the more impressive the views.

Route Options for Kilimanjaro

There are several route options – Lemosho Route, Marangu Route, Rongai Route and Machame Route, each with its own characteristics. Our recommended route for older climbers of Mount Kilimanjaro is Lemosho Route, it is the longest and most scenically diverse which suits older climber for two reasons – there is more of ecological interest to see, and the the period allowed for acclimatisation is greater. The last point, of course, is the most important. For us of the baby boomer generation, the key to a successful summit is to allow as much time as possible for adaption to high altitude.

Altitude Consideration on Kili

At 19300ft Kilimanjaro is a high mountain by any standards, and no matter how experienced a climber you are, you will feel it. Drugs like diamox help a lot, and are essential unless you have a point to prove, but nothing beats a slow, measured pace. The key to a slow measured pace, of course, is to not be hurried, and this is why we are aiming our trips at older climbers. There will be no young adventurers in the group to unreasonably drive the pace, and no younger guides to do the same. We offer an eight-day minimum which means six days on the ascent and two – three if necessary, on the decent.

Kilimanjaro Summit Approaches

The summit of Mount Kilimanjaro can be approached in two ways. Via the Western Breach, which, despite what many say, and the mythology of climbing Kilimanjaro, is not the most difficult climb. There are one or two inherent dangers, falling rocks principal among these, but the risk is slight. It is a daytime climb, temperatures are higher, and the strp structure of the rock makes the one foot in front of the other principal easier. The downside is that a night needs to be spent at high altitude which is never easy.

The more orthodox route is via Barafu Camp and a midnight ascent. This is usually undertaken over a soft scree at freezing temperatures with a view to reaching the summit at dawn. Thereafter it is a fast decent to lower altitude which is always a relief.

Which is easier is always a matter of opinion, but either way the last push is the hardest, and it is as much as anything the mental conditioning that you have generate din the days and hours prior to this that will get you over the hump.

Once again the key to a successful summit of Mount Kilimanjaro for older climbers is pace. A slow pace among like minded climbers is the optimum way to both enjoy and succeed. If you would like to know more about Eco-Travel Africa Over Fifty Kilimanjaro Climbs, contact us today or fill in the contact form below and we will be in touch immediately with more details.

Tanzania is at the vortex of the African tourist industry, positioned equidistant from everywhere, and packed with just about everything that anyone needs to see of Africa in a compact fortnight’s worth of travel.

The integrity and standards of preservation of Tanzania’s national parks are almost unique in Africa, and with iconic names like Serengeti and Ngorongoro to pull in the crowds, the crowds come. The petit Kilimanjaro International Airport daily disgorges hundreds of visitors, each processed and divided up among the dozens of tour busses and safari Landcruisers lining up in the parking lot under the spreading red flamboyant trees. It is an industry that handles nearly 400 000 visitors a year, a major contributor to the Tanzania economy, and a significant employer in a conspicuously challenged corner of the world.

Ebony And Ivory

The Tanzania tourist industry however has a soft underbelly. Visitors may take heart from the high standards of resource management in all the national parks, but still, at such places as Oldonyo Orok Curio Market situated just outside Arusha, scores of otherwise wise and salient folk from the liberated west linger among row upon row of carved artifacts made from the iconic local ebony wood. Colossal quantities of this precious resource are purchased and shipped abroad daily, with apparently not the slightest inkling of how this impacts the environment that each person has paid so much to visit.

The fate of African Blackwood (Dalbergia melanoxylon), known locally as Mpingo, is just a tiny symptom of a vast global disease of resource abuse, but it is bitterly ironic that it is from the heartland of enviro-consciousness that the main culprits in this crime are drawn. With powerful education applied in all aspects of the rational west towards the conservation of the environment, it is astonishing how easily these lessons are forgotten when they come to be applied. Oldonyo Orok sells a wide selection of items of cultural and curio interest, and yet two thirds of the shop floor is dominated by blackwood, with prominent signs offering worldwide shipping, suggesting that this is fate of most of it.

Speak to any shop assistant or a curio seller on the side of the road and all will either claim to have ‘license’ to harvest Blackwood, or that what is harvested is ‘replanted’. Rarely are these claims true, but they are nonetheless all it usually takes to make those few tourists who care hand over their money. In fact very few licenses are issued to harvest and utilize African Blackwood (Dalbergia melanoxylon), known locally as Mpingo, and certainly no program motivated by the artists themselves exists to institute the replanting of a tree that can take more than a generation to reach a stage of any sort of commercial viability.

African Blackwood

Mpingo is one of the most recognizable of all wood species to the layman, categorized usually under the name ebony, an umbrella term it shares with other woods of a similarly dense, black and highly ornamental form. It appears most commonly on the flutes of bagpipes, and other woodwind instruments, as well as on the black keys of some pianos, and in many other decorative and functional applications. Its value lies mainly in its qualities of dense composition and beautiful black patina, both of which allow it to be easily carved or turned, and then polished to an immaculate finish.

The tradition of carving Mpingo for implements, fetish and decoration dates back to antiquity, and traditionally was the preserve of the Makonde people of the border region between Tanzania and Mozambique. With the concentration of tourist markets in northern and coastal Tanzania, many Makonde woodcarvers have migrated north with the result that their sculptural style has tended to become more closely associated with Tanzania than Mozambique, and with their main subject matter evolving into popular themes of wildlife and Masai cultural iconography.

The Future of Mpingo

While obviously if each tourist that visits Tanzania removes an average of a kilo of this wood each year, then it will not be long before it disappears altogether; but it is also true that each kilo that is sold adds about US$20 of tax fee revenue into the informal economy. Take this away and large number of people in and around the northern circuit will be without an income. Creative conservation measures are required here, but creativity in this regard is not a common feature in Africa.

Surprising therefore it is that in a quiet house along the congested road to Machame lives an unassuming man who stands at the forefront of the hardwoods conservation movement in this vulnerable region, and although modestly supported by a few outside organizations, he has almost single handedly taken on the responsibility of ensuring the viability of the beautiful African Blackwood reserves into the future.

Sebastian Chuwa

Sebastian Chuwa began the serious advocacy of woodland and forest conservation in the district of Kilimanjaro in 1991, after his return form study abroad, during which time he worked, taught and studied at the Kew Botanical Gardens in London, and prior to that he worked for many years in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area in the field of conservation. Sebastian still lives in the house built by his father, a prominent local herbalist who inspired his son with a basic sense of how the forest lives and functions, and how its integrity impacts the lives and livelihoods of many who exploit it directly, and many, many more who live downstream.

Sebastian is the driving force behind two local projects, the first is perhaps the flagship outreach, the African Blackwood Conservation Project, and the second a more personal crusade to halt the decline of the Kilimanjaro Forest itself.

The African Blackwood Conservation Project

The two project are linked broadly under the umbrella of forest conservation, but the Blackwoods Conservation Project has a more international flavor, being partly the brainchild of Texan decorative wood turner James Harris, who in partnership with Sebastian started the project in 1996. The technical know-how and local energy, however, is wholly local, and is not focused on the good work of Sebastian Chuwa alone.

Sebastian began his work in the protection of Mpingo during a period of work in Tanga, a coastal region of Tanzania close to the border with Kenya, but on his return to Moshi in 1997 he was welcomed by local community leaders who gave him a plot of land in exchange for the promise of Mpingo saplings to replant in the neighborhood. Now, less than a decade later, the Blackwood Conservation Project nursery, situated about 7km south of Moshi, at the end of a rough bush track in a zone of irrigated market gardening, is a thriving tree nursery. Here rows of the inconspicuous but iconic trees are planted out under shade where they wait for a patch of African soil somewhere in the lowland bush to contribute to the regeneration.

The Kilimanjaro Forest

This is the public work that Sebastian does. Somewhat more behind the scenes is his community work on behalf of the Kilimanjaro forest, that green cloak of verdant cover that gives the great mountain so much of its mystique. The forests of Kilimanjaro have been under threat for a long time. Early travelers through the region wrote of the difficulties and irritation of moving through a blanket of canopied forest stretching mile upon mile in every direction. Pockets of community life existed here and there, pockets that were expanded with the development of a colonial economy, and the introduction of cash crops like coffee and bananas. Nowadays all the usual maladies of over-exploitation affect the Kilimanjaro forest, which has now diminished to an almost remnant fringe of old growth pressed upwards by the crush of humanity, and downwards by the drying of the environment and the spread of the high desert.

It might be the preservation of the Mpingo that gets the funding, but it is easy to get the sense in conversation with Sebastian that it is the preservation of the forest that is the work of his passion. The ghost of his father, a man of spiritual substance for whom the diversity of this living, forming structure was both his livelihood and his art form, is fundamental to the journey that Sebastian takes today. The highland forests of Africa are places of contest and emotion, and of differing and at times contradictory objectives. Sebastian’s acts a bridge in this regard, speaking on behalf of the community to conservation agencies that would like to limit non-fee paying human access into the forest altogether, and behalf of conservation agencies to the communities for whom the forest has been a resource and source of spiritual and temporal support for hundreds, perhaps thousands of years.

The threat to the forest was recently deemed sufficiently serious for the boundaries of the National Park to be extended over all of what had previously been under local government management. This, as Sebastian observes, does not stop people using the resources of the forest, it simply means that now they do it illegally. It has also driven a wedge between the interests of one group and the interests of another.

Sebastian is the first to recognize the right of the community to utilize its environment. His answer to the prevailing conundrum of community verses ecology is education. Such innocently misnamed initiatives as the Mile High Club, a government sponsored outreach designed to advocate responsibility towards nature has been a vehicle that Sebastian has used to preach his message of sustainability. It is too much to expect that the community can be barred entirely from the use of the forest, but if they are to be allowed access to the resources of this vital natural zone, then equally it is incumbent on them to exercise responsibility.

The Disease And The Cure

And this certainly seems to be happening. Near his home in the lush back country of the Kilimanjaro small holdings Sebastian has a nursery developing a stock of local hardwood seedlings that has resulted in the 2004 celebration of 1 million trees replanted. These have mainly found their way along the stream banks and water catchments of the upper forest, and indeed sometimes as deep into privately owned land as 15km from the forest edge. The people who work and sustain this effort do so voluntarily, and unlike the Blackwood Project, which is support by agencies as divers as the Cottonwood Foundation, the Lindberg Foundation and British Petroleum Tanzania, the work in Kilimanjaro enjoys very limited financial support from the United Nations through its COMPACT program, and massive moral but almost no financial support from the Tanzanian Government.

And yet still the challenges are enormous. Sebastian revealed a touch of the humorous African fatalism that is the only way to survive the moral ambiguity of the tropics. A drive through any one of the towns and villages in the district, and particular conurbations like Moshi and Arusha, will reveal not only mountains of charcoal manufactured illegally, and timber yards stocked to the rafters with illegally harvested camphor wood. This, when one considers that the national parks administration only confiscates timer and fines offenders with a view to individual profit within the department, has an unstoppable momentum.

But Sebastian maintains that the his efforts are making a difference. It is in education that the future lies. When children are nudged towards a more sympathetic understanding of conservation, coupled with the potential for a life liberated from poverty and the primary exploitation of the environment, there is a chance that what remain will be protected, and perhaps, with aggressive reclamation of the forest, the river backs and gullies, that it might even be expanded.

Most of all though it is necessary for us, the tourists who bring our dollars into the community, to make sure that we do does not further the destruction of what we come so far to see and enjoy. Responsible tourism cannot just be the preserve of the operators, it is our responsibility too.

The current buzz in Kilimanjaro is the imminent closure of Crater Camp. I discovered this on my most recent trip when a few mates and I summited via the Western Breach and spent a long and ugly night at Crater Camp.

Crater Camp is touted as the last word in isolation on the slightly over-trammeled Kilimanjaro circuit. There is no doubt that getting up there, particularly via the famous Western Breach, is a large undertaking, and spending the night at over 5500m is not for lightweights, but isolated Crater Camp is not!

We made the trip up from Arrow Glacier Camp in about 7-hours of fairly solid slogging up the middle of the Western Breach. Scrambling over the edge of the crater the first sight that greets one is the rather diminutive – not much more than a huge ice-cube – Furtwangler Glacier. After the obligatory photograph against the ice mass – ‘say Fartwanker!’ – we trudged over the ash colored sand that lines the crater floor towards camp situated about 500 meters distant. As usual the porters had arrived before us and were setting up camp, and besides them we were alone on this beautiful and desolate spot.

 Litter and worse…

However it was difficult to ignore a carpet of detritus littering the extremities of the camp, a collection of oddments including discarded tampons, teabags, hand-warmers and the usual debris associated with the human condition. I took my camera and set off to photograph the hidden piles of kitchen waste and portable toilet dumps that were the most obvious signs, but pretty soon I was reeling at the sheer volume of crap – literally – that littered the camp surrounds.

Behind every rock, and even some way up the trail towards the summit, hundred and hundreds of human turds lay un-decomposed as might be expected under these conditions of temperature and altitude. It was the most revolting sight imaginable in an otherwise pristinely beautiful natural space.

High altitude lethargy…

Basically the problem is this: It is ecologically unsound to dig pit latrines at this altitude thanks to the fact that no degeneration will take place and what is deposited will remain effectively forever. The use of portable toilets is the alternative, but few porters care to portage filled units down so they simply dump the contents onto the sand. Moreover the porters themselves have no facilities so have no choice but to defecate out in the open and it is this that accounts for the colossal amount of human waste in evidence everywhere.

The end of Crater Camp

As soon as I was back in Moshi I was on the phone to the local head of KINAPA who told me that the situation at Crater Camp had been of concern to the parks authority for some time, and that in fact the decision had recently been taken to shut the facility down altogether. This effectively means that any Western Breach Summit will end at Barafu Camp and that only by special license can anyone in future make use of the crater floor.

As far as current obligations are concerned, pre-existing bookings will be honored, but within a year the facility will be cleaned up and left to nature. It is a very sad fact that the state of human commerce on the mountain is so reckless and indifferent, but the fact remains. Although very sad it is probably for the best. So for those of you booked to climb via Crater Camp, hold your nose, watch your step and make the most of being the last of any of us to make the journey.

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