Kilimanjaro is the highest mountain in Africa at 5895 m and the highest free-standing mountain in the world, rising about 4900 m from the surrounding plain. It is a dormant stratovolcano with three cones: Kibo, which holds the summit, Mawenzi and Shira. No technical climbing is required on any of the standard routes, which is why around 35,000 people attempt it every year.
The routes
Machame, six or seven days, is the most popular and has good acclimatisation profile with a climb-high sleep-low pattern. Lemosho, seven or eight days, approaches from the west, is quieter for the first days and has the highest success rate. Marangu, five or six days, is the only route with huts and the only one where you descend the way you came; its five-day version has the worst success rate on the mountain. Rongai approaches from the north and is drier. The Northern Circuit, nine days, is the longest and the best for acclimatisation. Umbwe is steep and for experienced walkers.
Success and days
The single strongest predictor of reaching Uhuru Peak is duration. Five-day attempts succeed perhaps 50 percent of the time; eight-day routes are above 85 percent. Fitness matters far less than acclimatisation. Take the extra days.
The climate zones
The walk passes through five zones in under a week: cultivated foothills, rainforest with colobus monkeys, heather and giant lobelia moorland, alpine desert and finally the arctic zone of the summit. The glaciers on Kibo have lost more than 80 percent of their area since 1912 and current projections have them gone within decades.
Summit night
Most routes leave Barafu or Kibo hut around midnight to reach Stella Point at dawn and Uhuru Peak shortly after. It is minus 10 to minus 20 degrees with wind, and the last 1200 m of ascent take five to seven hours. The descent to camp the same day is 2000 m and is harder on the knees than anything before it.
Costs and ethics
A legitimate climb costs 2000 to 4000 US dollars including park fees of roughly 1000. Anything under 1800 is being paid for by the porters. Kilimanjaro Porters Assistance Project publishes standards on load limits, pay and equipment; use an operator that is a partner. Each climber is supported by three or four crew, and how they are treated is a choice the client makes.