Marangu Route
Mount Kilimanjaro Marangu Route
There are six established routes to climb Mount Kilimanjaro – Marangu, Machame, Lemosho, Shira, Rongai and Umbwe. The Marangu, Machame, and Umbwe routes all approach from the south of the mountain. The Lemosho and Shira routes approach from the west. The Rongai route approaches from the north near Kenya. All routes except Marangu and Rongai descend via Mweka.
Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro via The Marangu Route
Marangu Route, commonly known as the Coca Cola route is more popular because it can be done in fewer days and has permanent sleep huts at the campsites.
Summit night from Kibo Hut is steep and passes Gilman’s Point to Uhuru Peak. It is a shorter route with a steeper incline and less time for acclimatization it tends to have a lower summit success rate. This is the only route where the ascent and descent route is shared, thus creating more traffic.
Duration: 5 or 6 days
Difficulty: Medium
Scenery: Good
Traffic: High
“Zones of Kilimanjaro”
Cultivated Zone (800m – 1860m)
This is the lowest Zone, where Tanzanians have settled and survive on agriculture of such crops like coffee, banana, corn, sunflower, and more.
Tropical Rainforest (1860m – 3000m)
The second Zone is a dense natural forest, providing habitat for wildlife and endemic plants and flowers.
Moorland / Heather (3000m – 4000m)
This Zone, the third of five, the trees become smaller and sparse, providing sightings of unique flowers and excellent views. This is where climbers begin the feel the effects of altitude.
Alpine Desert (4000m – 4600m)
Here there is hardly any precipitation, and weather extremes vary throughout the day and night. There are only a few varieties of grass and flowers that can survive here.
Summit / Arctic Zone (4600m – 5895m)
The landscape turns into rock and loose gravel. The glaciers of Kilimanjaro are in this Zone, and no life is sustained.
