Umbwe
KILIMANJARO CLIMBING UMBWE ROUTE
I love the Umbwe Route. I think it’s just beautiful, and so, so peaceful. That makes it really special. But there’s a reason why it’s quiet. The first couple of days are steep, and thus not ideal for acclimatising (the best way to acclimatise and thus avoid altitude sickness is to gain height slowly, whereas on Umbwe, you can gain around a thousand metres in altitude every day all the way to the top).
But Umbwe is, like all the other trails, just a walking route – there’s no actual climbing involved. So how can you enjoy the beauty and serenity of Umbwe without ending up with altitude sickness?
Well there are several solutions.
1) Climb Mount Meru beforehand, so you are already acclimatised before you even reach Kilimanjaro;
2) take an acclimatisation day at Barranco (which you reach at the end of the second day), so you spend two nights there, and spend that rest day climbing to Lava Tower and back. By doing this, you’ll be mimicking very closely the altitude profile of the Machame Route, the most popular route on the mountain.
3) If you have the time and money, take our Full Circuit Umbwe Route which allows you to enjoy Umbwe before moving to the almost-as-tranquil northern side of Kibo. Not only does this give you a much better chance of acclimatizing, but you get to see more of Mt Kilimanjaro than you do on any other route – perfect!
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