Charity Kilimanjaro climb & community project
| country: | Tanzania |
| location: | Kilimanjaro |
| departures: | 2008: 4 Oct 2009: 3 Oct |
| price: | From £2000 (13 days) including flights from the UK and from £2000 excluding flights |
the amazing things you'll be doing
The ultimate African challenge. Climb Mt Kilimanjaro, Africa's highest peak and the world’s tallest free standing volcano, after acclimatising to the altitude by helping local children and undertaking much needed repairs and refurbishments at a local school. The area surrounding Mount Kilimanjaro is, despite the tourist dollars which pour into Tanzania, home to some of the country's poorest communities, and the schools are in dire need of assistance, which this challenge will help to provide.
Whilst acclimatising in preparation for your climb, you will spend four days helping on a range of projects at the Mbokomu School, including renovating classrooms, clearing land for sports and recreation and restoring furniture – as well as spending time with the pupils of course!
After the work at the school, you will face the challenge of a lifetime. Following the slightly longer and more scenic route to the summit of majestic Mount Kilimanjaro, you will be guaranteed the best chance of successfully reaching the summit. After taking one day more than most climbs allow, giving extra time for acclimatisation, you will eventually climb to the 5,895m Uhuru peak at dawn on the sixth day to enjoy one of the most amazing sights on earth. Whilst in Tanzania, why not extend your trip to spend two days on safari in the Ngoro Ngoro Crater, one of the world's best locations for viewing elephant, zebra, lion and warthog.
This is an opportunity to not only conquer one of the most amazing, and challenging, natural places on earth, but it is an opportunity to help communities here in the UK and in one of the poorest parts of Africa.
Whilst acclimatising in preparation for your climb, you will spend four days helping on a range of projects at the Mbokomu School, including renovating classrooms, clearing land for sports and recreation and restoring furniture – as well as spending time with the pupils of course!
After the work at the school, you will face the challenge of a lifetime. Following the slightly longer and more scenic route to the summit of majestic Mount Kilimanjaro, you will be guaranteed the best chance of successfully reaching the summit. After taking one day more than most climbs allow, giving extra time for acclimatisation, you will eventually climb to the 5,895m Uhuru peak at dawn on the sixth day to enjoy one of the most amazing sights on earth. Whilst in Tanzania, why not extend your trip to spend two days on safari in the Ngoro Ngoro Crater, one of the world's best locations for viewing elephant, zebra, lion and warthog. This is an opportunity to not only conquer one of the most amazing, and challenging, natural places on earth, but it is an opportunity to help communities here in the UK and in one of the poorest parts of Africa.
day-by-day itinerary
| Day 1: | London - Kilimanjaro. Depart London Heathrow for Kilimanjaro. |
| Day 2: | Kilimanjaro - Moshi. Arrive and transfer to the Moshi Hotel for dinner and overnight. |
| Day 3-5: | Moshi. Project work at the Mbokomu School. Overnight Moshi Hotel. |
| Day 6: | Machame Gate to Machame Huts (3000 m). A 40 minute drive from the Hotel delivers you to Machame Gate to register and meet your porters. Your start is slow and gentle and for the next 8 hours you trek slowly up the muddy track through the rain forest. It’s a long day and typically takes 7 – 8 hours but by the end you emerge into a clearing and the welcome sight of your tents, hot tea and dinner. |
| Day 7: | Mt Kilimanjaro; Machame Huts - Shira Plateau (3,840m). Following a cooked breakfast you start the climb through the remaining rain forest towards the giant moorland zone. The trek today is much shorter and the environment changes rapidly as you ascend out of the rain forest. It is a 4 – 5 hour trek, during which you gain approximately 800 metres in altitude. Lunch is taken on a stunning outcrop of rock before completing the last stretch to Shira Camp and a stunning view over the Shira Plateau. Weather permitting you should also get your first close views of Kibo - the dramatic summit of Kilimanjaro. |
| Day 8: | Mt Kilimanjaro; Shira Plateau rest & acclimatisation day. We use today as a rest day and spend additional time acclimatizing at altitude. The secret is to ‘work high and sleep low’ so you will normally complete a short 2-hour walk after breakfast to gain a little extra altitude before returning to camp for lunch. The rest of the day is spent sleeping and relaxing and you have plenty of time to take photographs, listen to music, chat or just enjoy looking down on the clouds and Africa. |
| Day 9: | Mt Kilimanjaro; Shira Plateau - Barranco camp (3,950m). After breakfast you set off early as today is a long trek. You will climb gradually through alpine desert to an altitude of 4,500 metres before dropping back down towards Barranco Camp. Whilst long, the environment is extraordinary and few would argue that Barranco, nestled at the foot of Kibo, is a wonderful campsite. Your sleeping altitude is not much higher than the previous night at Shira but this is a great day for acclimatisation having spent time at 4,500 metres. |
| Day 10: | Mt Kilimanjaro; Barranco Hut - Barafu camp (4700m). After breakfast, your first obstacle is to breach the Barranco Wall, a 600-foot rock face. No technical climbing experience is required and whilst steep, it is still classed as a trek. Once over the wall, the climb becomes easier and extremely beautiful with fantastic views of the crags and crevasses of the jagged peaks on your left and then descends into the Karanga Valley. The air is starting to get quite thin at this stage and you will be running short of breath as you climb out of the Karanga Valley. It is a slow, tough hike up to Barafu, which means "ice" in Swahili. It can be extremely cold at this altitude and with an early start ahead, an early night is required. At midnight you start the final ascent to Uhuru Peak – the Summit. |
| Day 11: | Mt Kilimanjaro; Barafu - Uhuru Peak (5,895m) to Mweka Hut. Start climbing around midnight on the steepest and most demanding part of the mountain. Light is provided by your head torches, the moon on a clear night and at dawn, as you reach Stellar Point, the sun climbs into view. At dawn, from the Crater rim, rugged Mawenzi is a thrilling sight, with the Kibo saddle still in darkness beneath you and the crater's ice-walls looming ahead. If you feel strong enough, you will continue to Uhuru Peak, the highest point in Africa, and the world's highest solitary peak (19,340ft). This is the toughest day that most trekkers have ever experienced. You will have ascended 3,600 feet and descended 7,200 feet in a period of 12-15 hours. Although tiring, you will have just achieved something extraordinary and for most, this is a chance to talk and share the experience with their climbing team. |
| Day 12: | Mt Kilimanjaro - Moshi. In the morning you will walk down to Mweka Gate through the rain forest. After a welcome lunch it's time to say "kwaheri" to the porters before returning to the hotel. This all takes around 6 to 7 hours. Enjoy a gala dinner tonight in celebration of your climb. Overnight at the Moshi Hotel. |
| Day 13: | Moshi to London. Return to the UK or extend your trip with an optional 2- day safari. |
how this holiday makes a difference
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This tour offers you opportunities which few other charity fundraising events do. Instead of just ‘visiting’ Tanzania as a mere tourist and climber, a spectator of sceneries and events, this tour will provide you with the chance of helping refurbish an impoverished school, which will benefit the community in which you are staying.
We work to very rigorous environmental sustainability standards, such as ensuring the accommodation is are vetted to ensure rigorous environmental sustainability standards, water conservation and recycling policies, and that they source as many products as possible locally, that the hotel workers and support staff benefit from ‘staff friendly’ employment practices, such as the right to belong to trades union, and earn a fair wage for a fair days work. Therefore we can guarantee that the money you spend directly benefits local people. As well as the physical challenge of Climbing Africa’s highest peak, you will spend three days helping out at school near Moshi, in the foothills of Mt Kili.  Whether you choose to pick up a paintbrush, construct some shelving or spend time with the children helping them with some simple English lessons – you can be assured that you and they alike will have a fantastic time and make lasting friendships! By raising a minimum sponsorship for your chosen UK charity, you can ensure this trip helps communities both at home and abroad. |
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