Kilimanjaro cable car: is it a good idea? That depends on its purpose

December 17, 2021 Opinion and advice africa, altitude sickness, east africa, kilimanjaro, responsible tourism, tanzania, trekking 3 Comments

Is a cable car on a mountain always a bad idea? If its purpose is to shorten the journey for trekkers aiming for the summit, then it may not help much. But if it’s for day trippers heading up for a nice view before going back down again, then it could work.

5 stepping stones on the path to high altitude

August 22, 2018 Opinion and advice aconcagua, argentina, everest base camp, hill walking, jebel toubkal, kilimanjaro, mera peak, morocco, nepal, seven summits, tanzania, trekking 8 Comments

Are you keen to branch out and develop the skills to climb higher peaks? Here is a series of mountains further afield that more experienced hikers should visit if you are interested in reaching a challenging altitude.

The climate zones of Kilimanjaro from space

March 22, 2017 Opinion and advice africa, kilimanjaro, mountain environment, mountain photography, mountains from space, nasa earth observatory, tanzania 2 Comments

I’ve talked a bit about the glaciers on Kilimanjaro, and how they are shrinking at an alarming rate, but what about the climate on the rest of the mountain? This aerial photo by the NASA Earth Observatory illustrates them as clearly as any map.

A night on Kilimanjaro’s summit: the videos

February 22, 2017 Trip reports africa, david breashears, edita, kilimanjaro, mountain films, tanzania, trekking, volcanoes 2 Comments

I know I sometimes write a lot of waffle on this blog that many of you can’t be bothered to read, so this post is for you. I’ve recently finished editing the footage of our Kilimanjaro climb, which included a night on the crater. Here are three short videos to provide a flavour of the trek.

Tilman and Shipton’s travels in Africa

February 1, 2017 History africa, bill tilman, duke of abruzzi, eric shipton, first ascents, history of mountaineering, kenya, kilimanjaro, mount kenya, mount stanley, mountain literature, rwenzori mountains, tanzania, uganda 4 Comments

The Himalayan explorer Bill Tilman spent fourteen years of his life as a coffee planter in Kenya. During that time he and Eric Shipton made a number of exploratory treks and climbs on Mount Kenya and Kilimanjaro, and in the Rwenzori Mountains of Uganda.

A brief introduction to Kilimanjaro’s volcanic crater

January 25, 2017 Opinion and advice africa, bill tilman, climate change, glacial erosion, hans meyer, kilimanjaro, tanzania, volcanoes 4 Comments

Last week I enthused about Kilimanjaro’s inner crater, and said that I considered it to be the jewel in Kilimanjaro’s crown. Yet the overwhelming majority of people who climb mountain don’t see it. This week I will talk in more detail about what they’re missing out on.

The best way to climb Kilimanjaro

January 18, 2017 Trip reports africa, edita, kilimanjaro, mount meru, seven summits, tanzania, trekking, volcanoes, zara tours 5 Comments

I’m convinced that for adventurous people who are experienced at high altitude, to camp at 5800m and look into the inner crater is the only way to experience Kilimanjaro, for the inner crater is Kilimanjaro’s secret jewel. Here’s the story of how we did it.

The Tanzanian Mount Meru

January 11, 2017 Trip reports africa, edita, kilimanjaro, mount meru, safari, tanzania, trekking, volcanoes, wildlife 11 Comments

Thanks to a hardcore climbing movie, an obscure peak in the Indian Himalaya is now the most famous Mount Meru in the world. But for many years a far more accessible and attainable peak in northern Tanzania was much more widely known.

Kilimanjaro: returning to the crown of Africa

December 21, 2016 Expedition dispatches africa, east africa, kilimanjaro, mount kenya, mount meru, seven steps from snowdon to everest, tanzania, trekking, volcanoes 5 Comments

I’ve been thinking a lot about Kilimanjaro this year. I first climbed it in 2002, and I was long overdue a return. Back then I didn’t know whether I would be strong enough. This time it should be a different story, and we hope to explore a bit of the crater while we’re up there.

Kilimanjaro: To the Roof of Africa – a film review

June 8, 2016 Reviews and tributes africa, audrey salkeld, david breashears, east africa, kilimanjaro, mountain films, tanzania, trekking, wildlife 3 Comments

While surfing YouTube the other day, feeling nostalgic for the mountains of Africa, I stumbled across David Breashears’ 2002 IMAX documentary Kilimanjaro: To the Roof of Africa. It was an enjoyable film which had me yearning to go back.

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