THERE ARE SOME TREKS whose fame precedes them, even in nonhillwalking circles. Name-drop Everest Base Camp or the Inca Trail on social media, and your post will instantly sprout a forest of likes. It’s easy to dismiss these A-list adventures as crowd-pleasers – but there’s a reason they top so many bucket lists. These treks are some of the most beautiful you’ll find anywhere on Earth. They also present enough of a challenge to satisfy all but the most masochistic walker. Here’s how to get your trekking fix on these world-famous routes whilst avoiding the pitfalls of their popularity…
KILIMANJARO
(via the Machame Route)
START: Machame Gate
FINISH: Mweka Gate
Length: 62km / 37 miles
Ascent: 4157m
Season: May to September
Difficulty: medium / high
Kilimanjaro is often flagged as the easiest of the Seven Summits (the highest peaks on each continent). When it comes to the world’s tallest mountains, though, ‘easy’ is a relative term. Kili might be diminutive in comparison with Everest, but at 5895m it’s head and shoulders above three other peaks in the Seven Summits group – and it is a test of both altitude resilience and endurance. Indeed, only 45-60% of trekkers make it to the summit. In other words: don’t underestimate the challenge.
From afar, Africa’s highest is one of the most recognisable peaks in the world. It hovers into view across the flat, game-roamed wilds of Tanzania’s Kilimanjaro National Park, its snow-streaked volcanic cone often rising above a skirt of thin cloud. At certain times of year, the full moon appears to balance on the mountain’s summit. Perhaps that’s why second-century sailors described it to Egyptian astronomer Ptolemy as Africa’s ‘moon mountain’.
As well as all this visual splendour, Kilimanjaro has several significant claims to a place on any amateur mountaineer’s bucket list. It’s
