September 23, 2025

The team at the Mweka Gate (Max Bond)

After a good night sleep in the thick air of Mweka Camp, Max Bond reports that our stalwart team got an early start for the hike down through the forest to the Mweka Gate.  At the Gate, they had a final get together with their Chagga team, with a well-deserved distribution of tips.  Then, it was time to load up the minibus for the ride down the lower slopes of Kilimanjaro, back to the hotel in Moshi.  After showers, some beers, and repacking, they’ll have a celebration dinner tonight.

Its Kilimanjaro time (Max Bond)

Tomorrow morning the team will split up, with some heading home while others will be departing for the Serengeti and three days of safari.  Either way, there will be lots of good memories from their trip to Kilimanjaro.  Well done, team!

September 22, 2025

Happy climbers on Uhuru Peak (Max Bond)

IMG lead guide Max Bond reports that the team tagged the summit of Africa and have now safely descended to the Mweka Camp.  They departed Barafu Camp at midnight and hit Stella Point on the Crater rim at dawn.

From there it was another half an hour of hiking around the crater to the tippy top, Uhuru Peak.  Max reports that it was cold and clear, and they were glad to have their warm parkas.

The trail on the crater rim linking Stella Point and Uhuru Peak (Max Bond)

The descent to Mweka Camp took the rest of the day as the team made their way down 9000 feet of scree, rocks, and rugged trail to the treeline at about 10000 ft..  Tomorrow the plan is to get an early start and finish off the last few hours of hiking down to the Mweka Gate for celebrations and tipping out their Chagga Staff.  Then, they will descend in the minibus back to the hotel in Moshi for showers, beers, and a BBQ dinner.  Well done, team!

September 21, 2025

Team at the top of the Barranco Wall (Max Bond)

The last two days have provided our Kili team the chance to accomplish more great hiking and more valuable acclimatization.  IMG guide Max Bond and Chagga guide Kassim and his crew have been doing a great job getting everyone in position at the high camp.  Yesterday the team departed the Barranco Camp (13000 ft) and ascended the famous Barranco Wall, a very steep trail requiring “using your hands” in a couple places.  The top of the wall is an amazing viewpoint, tucked right underneath the Southern Glaciers (or what’s left of them, as they are melting fast).

From there the team continued their up and down traverse to the east, to the Karanga Camp (also about 13000 ft.).

Team shot at Karanga Camp (Max Bond)

This morning the team departed Karanga Camp (the last water source) and with their porters and guides, ascended to the Barafu Camp, arriving in time for lunch.  Then, the team had all afternoon to rest, hydrate, and get packed, before an early dinner and early bedtime.

They are planning a 11pm wake up and a midnight departure, with the goal to reach the summit shortly after dawn.  The weather looks good, so its all about legs, lungs, and keeping a nice steady pace for the summit day.  After reaching to top, the team will descend down to the thick air at the Mweka Camp, near tree line.  All is well on Kilimanjaro!

September 19, 2025

The guides and climbers at Lava Tower (Max Bond)

Max Bond reports that the team are now ensconced at the Barranco Camp after two days of great hiking and acclimatization since they departed the 9500 ft Machame Camp.  Yesterday they ascended to the 12,500 ft Shira Camp for the night, with all the strange heather, lobelia and groundsel plants along the way that only grow at high altitude on the Equator.

Shira Camp (Ang Jangbu)

Then, today they traversed around the south side of the mountain to the Barranco Camp. Along the way they had their lunch break at Lava Tower at 15,000 ft, before dropping down into the Barranco Camp at 13,000 ft.

Tomorrow, they tackle the steep trail up the Barranco Wall, and continue traversing, ascending and descending along the way, to the Karanga Camp which is also about 13000 ft.

Barranco Camp with the Breach Wall and Icicle above (Eric Simonson)

This is a perfect acclimatization profile, following the old adage of “climb high, sleep low”.  All’s well on Kilimanjaro!

September 17, 2025

Kili team at the Machame Camp (Max Bond)

Max Bond reports the team had a great first day on the trail.  They left the hotel on schedule in the minibus to Machame Gate, winding up through the coffee, tea and banana farms on the slopes of the mountain for about an hour.  Then, at the Gate, they got checked in with the National Park and met their porters and camp crew.

Kili climbers and monkeys in the forest (Max Bond)

Finally, after all that travel and duffel shuffling, it was time to start the climb!  The day was spent predominantly in the forest, with some peekaboo views along the way (including monkeys in the trees!) as the team moved steadily higher.  Machame Camp is at about 9300 feet, right at the treeline between the forest and the moorland zone. After a comfortable night at the camp they will enter the moorlands tomorrow, on their way to the Shira Plateau camp. All’s well on Kilimanjaro!

September 16, 2025

The September Kili team at the hotel (Max Bond)

IMG lead guide Max Bond reports from Moshi, Tanzania that all’s well with the Kilimanjaro team:  “We’re looking all set for another excellent adventure up on Kilimanjaro. The team all arrived on time yesterday evening and we had a relaxed morning today chatting about the climb, tips for success, and what to expect. We did our standard gear checks and had a nice lunch, then went to town to fill-in any gaps and get a taste of the local Moshi scene. We visited the market and enjoyed great coffee at Union Coffee, where we also got some souvenir shopping in!

Afterwards we visited a local pharmacy, and then a shopping mall to grab some snacks and other needs. We had a couple hours to rest, relax, and pack before dinner, where we chatted in more detail about what lies ahead for tomorrow. We also got to meet Kassim, our Lead Chagga Guide, and Peter, our Head Chef, this evening! Tomorrow we will eat breakfast at 7am, and depart for Machame Gate shortly after”. 

The summit of Kilimanjaro rises above Moshi (Max Bond)

All is well!  We look forward to more dispatches from Max soon!