Considered the most scenic trail on Kilimanjaro, the Lemosho route offers panoramic views of different sides of the mountain. One of the newer routes, Lemosho is an excellent choice for your ascent. It is our preferred route due to its ideal balance of low crowds, beautiful scenery and a high summit success rate. Tanzania Horizon Safaris specializes in guiding the Lemosho Route. Most of our clients climb Kilimanjaro via this route and keep telling us how excited they were. Therefore, the Lemosho route is highly recommended.
The route approaches Kilimanjaro from the west and begins with a long drive from Moshi to Londorossi Gate. From there, spend the first two days trekking through the rainforest to Shira Ridge. The Lemosho route traverses the entire Shira Plateau from west to east in a pleasant, relatively flat hike. Crowds are light until the route joins the Machame route near Lava Tower. The route then traverses under the southern ice field of Kilimanjaro on a path known as the Southern Circuit before reaching the summit of Barafu. The descent is via the Mweka route.
Tanzania Horizon Safaris offers the Lemosho Route as an 8 day group climb or as a 7 to 8 day private climb. The seven-day variant combines days five and six and goes from Barranco Camp to Barafu Camp without staying in Karanga. A nine-day option that includes an overnight stay at Crater Camp is available on special request as a private climb.
Lemosho Gate (2385m) to Big Tree Camp (2780m)
You will be picked up at your hotel at around 09:30am and transferred to the Lemosho gate located on the western side of Kilimanjaro. After the registration process you will still start our climb steadily through the forests of the Lemosho glades to
reach Big Tree camp where you will be spending the night.
Distance covered: 7km / 4.3mi Approx. time taken: 4 hours
Big Tree Camp (2780m) to Shira 2 Camp (3900m)
Today you will cover a lot of ground as you trek across a plateau of grassy moorland and heather scattered with volcanic
rock formations. We will trek through Shira 1 Camp from where there are often views of Kibo Peak floating on the clouds as
we head towards our destination which is Shira 2.. We gain a reasonable amount of altitude as we head towards Shira 1
and parts of the route are fairly steep. As you proceed towards Shira 2 you will get the chance to view the Northern Ice
fields from the western side of the mountain with some unusual views of Kibo. Our steady climb across the moorland of the
Shira Plateau will help with acclimatization and we enjoy great panoramic views.
Distance covered: 16.5km / 10.3mi Approx. time taken: 9 – 11 hrs
Shira 2 Camp (3900m) to Barranco Camp (3960m)
Your trek starts with an ascent with far-reaching panoramic views, walking in to the climatic zone of the upland desert and on the lava ridges beneath the glaciers of the Western Breach. You will reach the distinct pinnacle of the Lava Tower (4640
m), our high point for the day and a great place to enjoy your lunch. In the afternoon we make a steep descent to our camp for the night, located in the base of the Great Barranco Valley (3960 m), sheltered by towering cliffs but with extensive views of the plains below.
Distance covered: 10km / 6.2mi Approx. time taken: 7 hrs
Barranco Camp (3960m) to Karanga Camp (3963m)
Our day starts by descending into the start of the Great Barranco, a huge ravine. We then exit steeply, up the Great
Barranco Wall, which divides us from the southeastern slopes of Kibo. It’s a climb over rock, not technical but long and
tiring. Passing underneath the Heim and Kersten glaciers, we head towards the Karanga valley. From here we have a
steep climb up from Karanga valley to our night’s camp at Karanga camp, set at 3963m. For those feeling strong we will go
for a mid-afternoon acclimatization trek up to around 4200m before descending back to camp for the night.
Distance covered: 5.5km / 3.4mi Approx. time taken: 5 hours
Karanga Camp (3963) to Barafu Camp (4640m)
After a good night’s rest and breakfast, we set off on our walk to Barafu camp at 4640m. The climb will take us across
desolate scree slopes with no vegetation around us at all. It’s a tough steep walk made more difficult by the altitude. On night and day ahead. It is important to keep hydrated and warm. We have an early dinner and then try to get some sleep as we will be getting up at between
11pm and 12pm to start the climb to the summit.
Distance covered: 3km / 1.9mi Approx. time taken: 3 hours
arriving at camp we eat and spend the afternoon resting as we prepare for a long
Barafu Camp (4640m) to UHURU PEAK (5895m) & down to Millennium Camp (3790m)
We start off at around midnight, and walk steeply upwards to the summit glaciers. We will be climbing scree for 4 to 5 hours
but gain incredible height over a short distance. The views are spectacular. We should be on the crater rim at Stella Point (5739m) as the first rays of the sun hit us. Spectacular ice cliffs within the crater surround us and the views to jagged Mawenzi peak and beyond are breathtaking. Another hour’s walking takes us to the summit, Uhuru Peak (5895m). We
begin our descent by returning to Stella Point and then descending on scree slope and track back to Barafu Camp for
breakfast, before finally heading down to Millennium Camp for a long well-earned rest.
Distance covered: 13.4km / 8.3mi Approx. time taken: 12 – 15 hours
You will be picked up at your hotel at around 09:30am and transferred to the Lemosho gate located on the western side of Kilimanjaro. After the registration process you will still start our climb steadily through the forests of the Lemosho glades to reach Big Tree camp where you will be spending the night.
Distance covered: 7km / 4.3mi Approx. time taken: 4 hours
Today you will cover a lot of ground as you trek across a plateau of grassy moorland and heather scattered with volcanic
rock formations. We will trek through Shira 1 Camp from where there are often views of Kibo Peak floating on the clouds as
we head towards our destination which is Shira 2.. We gain a reasonable amount of altitude as we head towards Shira 1
and parts of the route are fairly steep. As you proceed towards Shira 2 you will get the chance to view the Northern Ice
fields from the western side of the mountain with some unusual views of Kibo. Our steady climb across the moorland of the
Shira Plateau will help with acclimatization and we enjoy great panoramic views.
Distance covered: 16.5km / 10.3mi Approx. time taken: 9 – 11 hrs
Your trek starts with an ascent with far-reaching panoramic views, walking in to the climatic zone of the upland desert and on the lava ridges beneath the glaciers of the Western Breach. You will reach the distinct pinnacle of the Lava Tower (4640m), our high point for the day and a great place to enjoy your lunch. In the afternoon we make a steep descent to our camp for the night, located in the base of the Great Barranco Valley (3960 m), sheltered by towering cliffs but with extensive views of the plains below.
Distance covered: 10km / 6.2mi Approx. time taken: 7 hrs
Our day starts by descending into the start of the Great Barranco, a huge ravine. We then exit steeply, up the Great
Barranco Wall, which divides us from the southeastern slopes of Kibo. It’s a climb over rock, not technical but long and tiring. Passing underneath the Heim and Kersten glaciers, we head towards the Karanga valley. From here we have a steep climb up from Karanga valley to our night’s camp at Karanga camp, set at 3963m. For those feeling strong we will go for a mid-afternoon acclimatization trek up to around 4200m before descending back to camp for the night.
Distance covered: 5.5km / 3.4mi Approx. time taken: 5 hours
After a good night’s rest and breakfast, we set off on our walk to Barafu camp at 4640m. The climb will take us across desolate scree slopes with no vegetation around us at all. It’s a tough steep walk made more difficult by the altitude. On night and day ahead. It is important to keep hydrated and warm. We have an early dinner and then try to get some sleep as we will be getting up at between 11pm and 12pm to start the climb to the summit.
Distance covered: 3km / 1.9mi Approx. time taken: 3 hours
arriving at camp we eat and spend the afternoon resting as we prepare for a long
We start off at around midnight, and walk steeply upwards to the summit glaciers. We will be climbing scree for 4 to 5 hours but gain incredible height over a short distance. The views are spectacular. We should be on the crater rim at Stella Point (5739m) as the first rays of the sun hit us. Spectacular ice cliffs within the crater surround us and the views to jagged Mawenzi peak and beyond are breathtaking. Another hour’s walking takes us to the summit, Uhuru Peak (5895m). We begin our descent by returning to Stella Point and then descending on scree slope and track back to Barafu Camp for breakfast, before finally heading down to Millennium Camp for a long well-earned rest.
Distance covered: 13.4km / 8.3mi Approx. time taken: 12 – 15 hours
A gentle trek takes us down through the rainforest to Mweka Gate, where we complete park formalities and receive certificates, which you can hang up with pride! We are then met by our vehicles and return to the hotel in Moshi, where you can treat yourself to a hot welcome shower. Distance covered: 12.1km / 7.5mi
Approx. time taken: 6 hours
You will be picked up at your hotel at around 09:30am and transferred to the Lemosho gate located on the western side of Kilimanjaro. After the registration process you will still start our climb steadily through the forests of the Lemosho glades to reach Big Tree camp where you will be spending the night.
Distance covered: 7km / 4.3mi Approx. time taken: 4 hours
Today you will trek across a plateau of grassy moorland and heather scattered with volcanic rock formations. Our
destination for today is the Shira 1 Camp from where there are often views of Kibo Peak floating on the clouds. We gain a reasonable amount of altitude today and parts of the route are fairly steep.
Distance covered: 8.5km / 5.3mi Approx. time taken: 7 hrs
Today you will get the chance to view the Northern Ice fields from the western side of the mountain with some unusual views of Kibo. Our steady climb across the moorland of the Shira Plateau will help with acclimatization and we enjoy great panoramic views. Our destination today is the Shira 2 Camp. In the afternoon you will take an acclimatization walk then head back to camp for dinner and overnight.
Your trek starts with an ascent with far-reaching panoramic views, walking in to the climatic zone of the upland desert and
on the lava ridges beneath the glaciers of the Western Breach. You will reach the distinct pinnacle of the Lava Tower (4640
m), our high point for the day and a great place to enjoy your lunch. In the afternoon we make a steep descent to our camp
for the night, located in the base of the Great Barranco Valley (3960 m), sheltered by towering cliffs but with extensive
views of the plains below.
Distance covered: 10km / 6.2mi Approx. time taken: 7 hrs
Our day starts by descending into the start of the Great Barranco, a huge ravine. We then exit steeply, up the Great
Barranco Wall, which divides us from the southeastern slopes of Kibo. It’s a climb over rock, not technical but long and
tiring. Passing underneath the Heim and Kersten glaciers, we head towards the Karanga valley. From here we have a steep climb up from Karanga valley to our night’s camp at Karanga camp, set at 3963m. For those feeling strong we will go for a mid-afternoon acclimatization trek up to around 4200m before descending back to camp for the night.
After a good night’s rest and breakfast, we set off on our walk to Barafu camp at 4640m. The climb will take us across
desolate scree slopes with no vegetation around us at all. It’s a tough steep walk made more difficult by the altitude. On
arriving at camp we eat and spend the afternoon resting as we prepare for a long night and day ahead. It is important to
keep hydrated and warm. We have an early dinner and then try to get some sleep as we will be getting up at between
11pm and 12pm to start the climb to the summit.
Distance covered: 3km / 1.9mi Approx. time taken: 3 hours
We start off at around midnight, and walk steeply upwards to the summit glaciers. We will be climbing scree for 4 to 5 hours
but gain incredible height over a short distance. The views are spectacular. We should be on the crater rim at Stella Point (5739m) as the first rays of the sun hit us. Spectacular ice cliffs within the crater surround us and the views to jagged Mawenzi peak and beyond are breathtaking. Another hour’s walking takes us to the summit, Uhuru Peak (5895m). We begin our descent by returning to Stella Point and then descending on scree slope and track back to Barafu Camp for breakfast, before finally heading down to Millennium Camp for a long well-earned rest.
A gentle trek takes us down through the rainforest to Mweka Gate, where we complete park formalities and receive certificates, which you can hang up with pride! We are then met by our vehicles and return to the hotel in Moshi, where you can treat yourself to a hot welcome shower.
Distance covered: 12.1km / 7.5mi Approx. time taken: 6 hours
• Transport to and from Kilimanjaro International Airport to your accommodation in Moshi.
• 2 nights in Moshi
• Transportation to and from Kilimanjaro Gate • Park entry fees,
• Camping fees
• Team Kilimanjaro Rescue fees
• Mountain tents
• Sleeping mats
• Professional mountain guides, cook and porters
• Constant health checks during the climb
• 3 hot meals daily on the mountain
• Sufficient purified and filtered drinking water during of the entire trek
• Hot water for washing
• Fair wages for mountain crew
• Government taxes
• Emergency first aid kit
• 18% VAT on tour fees and services
– Lunch, dinner and drinks at your hotel before and after the climb. – Travel Insurance – A portable flush toilet with toilet tent is available at an additional cost of $80 for the entire trek. – Flights – Laundry (available at the hotel) – Personal items and toiletries – Tips for guides, porters and cook
For the whole group (not per person)
• Guides: $20/day/guide
• Chef: $15/day
• Porters: $10/day/porter
We create unforgettable memories with safety, quality and local community support in mind.
