Mount Meru Tanzania
Lesser Known
acclimatisation Peak
Lesser Known
acclimatisation Peak
Mt Meru is located in the Arusha National Park about 80km/50 miles west of Kilimanjaro. Mount Meru is one of Africa's highest and most
beautiful volcanoes, with a route which passes through a wide range of
vegetation up into a moorland. The summit of Mt Meru at 4,565m, is reached by walking along a
very narrow, barren ridge, affording one views of Ash Cone thousands of
feet below in the crater and Kilimanjaro across the vast plains in
Moshi.
This trek is great as either a stand alone trek, or as a warm up for Kilimanjaro due to its altitude acclimatization and hiking distances. This trek is
also geared towards hikers that prefer less crowds and a challenging
ascent.
Because of its location in a national park, Mount
Meru Tanzania is home to over 400 species of birds as well as large
herds of elephant, buffalo, rhino, giraffe, baboon, warthog, monkey and
monkey. Because Mount Meru is located in the National
Park, hikers must climb with an armed ranger due to
the wide range of wildlife living on the mountain. Accommodation is in
mountain huts. The climb is fully portered and one walks with a guide
and armed mountain game guide
Note that on the mountain you have the option of a 3 or 4 trek, plus one day pre and post accommodation
Being equatorial, Tanzania has two wet
seasons.
The first is the long rains from March to May, and then a short rainy season in
November. The daytime temperatures tend to range
around 32 to 38 degrees C in the forest, to anything from -2 to 6
degrees at the summit. Nights tend to range from 10 degrees down to well
below freezing. Summit temperatures can drop below -20C.
Distances trekked per day vary,
between 6km’s on day two, to close on 30km’s on the day of your summit,
dependent on which route you take.
The warmest months with the clearest trekking days on Kilimanjaro, are from mid to late December, January, February, September and
October. The rains often come in April and the start of May with the
possibility of some snow. June through to August are superb trekking
months, though evening temperatures tend to be colder. The wettest
months on Kilimanjaro are
November and early December, where snowfalls are likely. Note, that as
this is a mountain it is not impossible to get sporadic snow or rainfall
at odd times throughout the year, although the snow normally only falls
above 4800m.
As part of your Kilimanjaro Park Fee, emergency evacuation services
are included. This means that you will be carried down to the base of
the mountain as quickly as possible, on a mountain stretcher. In many
cases, a foot evacuation is quicker than waiting for insurance cover to
arrange the logistics for a helicopter.
There
are helicopter evacuation points on all of the major routes at specific
locations, namely Horombo, Barranco, Barafu, Kosovo, Stella, Millennium
and Shira. All points are within less than five hours from the crater
by stretcher and SAR emergency medical service can be deployed within 5
minutes from Kilimanjaro or Meru, regardless of the season.
Of course, nothing is free and deployment of this service is
contingent on you already have an insurance covers for evacuations to
6,000 meters above sea level.
The cost of a medical evacuation from the mountain is expensive, which is why adequate travel insurance is required on all climbs booked through us. Adequate, means you must be covered for
1) Trekking or hiking – this may sound strange, but many insurance list that as an exclusion.
2) Altitude up to 6,000 meters. Most travel insurance providers do
not include this under their standard cover and often limit it to 3500m
or less.
3) Sprains strains and physiotherapy – yes, many insurers exclude
this; though ironically, this is what you will most likely need cover
for.
4) Personal accident – this is the horrible part of insurance. Yes,
you need to be covered in the case of death. We are often told by
clients – “if anything happens to me, just leave me there.” It is not
that simple.
Day-1: Kilimanjaro International Airport arrival and transfer to hotel.
Day-2: Drive to Arusha National Park - Miriakamba
Elevation: 1,500 m to 2,500 m
Distance: 10 km
Hiking Time: 4-6 hours
Habitat: Rain Forest
We arrive after about a 2 hr drive, at the Momella Gate (1,500 m) where we meet up with our porters and game ranger, and head off through the lush forest, crossing the Ngare Nanyuki river. to reach Miriakamba Hut at 8337ft / 2541m for overnight taking 4 to 5 hours. En route up, we will get views of buffalo grazing in the lush fields below us, and in the far distance, Kilimanjaro. Over night Miriakamba Hut
Day-3: Miriakamba - Saddle Hut
Elevation: 2,500m to 3,570m
Distance: 4 km
Hiking Time: 2-3 hours
Habitat: Heath Zone
Today we ascend steeply for about 2 to 3 hours, through the lush forests full of bird song, toward Saddle Hut at 3570m. We may be fortunate to see a couple of buffalo grazing nearby as we start out. We take in an afternoon trek to Little Meru, at 3794 and return to Saddle Hut for overnight.
Day-4: Saddle Hut to Summit to Momella Gate
Elevation: 3,570m to 4,565m to 1,500m
Distance: 18 km
Hiking Time: 8-12 hours
Habitat: Alpine Desert to Forest
We start out around 02h00 to Rhino Point and then Cobra Point up very steep and slippery sections. The last hour of the trek is something of a scramble on a rocky ridge between the crater and inner cliffs of Meru to the summit of Meru, also known as Socialist Peak at 4565m, just in time to watch the to see the sun rise behind Mount Kilimanjaro. We then descend all the way back to the park Gate to be met and transferred back to our Hotel and overnight.
Day-5: Depart
After breakfast, transfer to Kilimanjaro airport for your departure flight home.
For the 4 day trek option, day 4 is as follows
Day-4: Saddle Hut to Summit to Miriakambu
Elevation: 3,570m to 4,565m to 2,541m
Distance: 8 km
Hiking Time: 4-6 hours
Habitat: Alpine Desert to Heath Zone
We start out around 02h00 to Rhino Point and then Cobra Point up very steep and slippery sections. The last hour of the trek is something of a scramble on a rocky ridge between the crater and inner cliffs of Meru to the summit of Meru, also known as Socialist Peak at 4565m, just in time to watch the to see the sun rise behind Mount Kilimanjaro. We then descend all the way back to Miriakamba Hut at 8337ft / 2541m for overnight
Day-5: Miriakambu - Momella Gate
Elevation: 2,541m to 1,500m
Distance: 10 km
Hiking Time: 4-6 hours
Habitat: Heath Zone to Forest
After breakfast, you retrace your steps down the trail past the waterfall and back down to the park gate. You are then transferred back to Moshi.
Day-6: Depart
End of services
Mt Meru is in a national wildlife park and so the chance of seeing animals like Giraffe and Buffalo as well as monkeys is high. You also have to hike with an armed ranger for your safety in light of the mountain's wildlife