Day 1 of my 6 day trek on the Kilimanjaro Machame route with Zara Tours commenced at Machame Gate – situated about 30KM from Moshi. The 11KM trek today gained about 1200m of elevation – from Machame gate which sits at 1640m to Machame camp which sits at 2840m. The slow-as-molasses “pole-pole” pace set by our guide Victor took getting use to, but I trusted in his experience that moving this slowly was going to benefit our summit efforts later on.
This post includes affiliate links. If you make a purchase via one of these links, I may receive a small percentage at no extra cost to you.
The alarm sounded at 6:30am on trek day 1. I finished the final details of my packing and brought my bag out to the scale at the hotel to weigh it, then headed off to breakfast – which featured a made-to-order omelet and egg station, as well as a delicious selection of pastries, sausage, and fruits. I was seated next to a father-daughter duo who – as chance would have it were also from Vancouver! The were doing the 7 day Lemosho route.
By 8am, I was checking out of my room, settling my bill for the gear rentals with the hotel, and meeting up with Victor, my Kilimanjaro lead guide, to make sure all my bags and gear were in order. There was only one other trekker in our party, an Italian man named Alberto – who was in his late 20s. He had booked this trek before the COVID pandemic and keep having to postpone it due to the crisis; but was finally here to complete the trek. Alberto was a much more experienced mountaineer than I was – having climbed the high alps and also did extensive trekking in Nepal in the 5500 meter range. He was humble about what his achievements meant for his chances of success on Kilimanjaro – stating that nothing is ever guaranteed in the mountains. His humble attitude made me feel more at ease hiking with someone so much more experienced than I was in the mountains.
We set off from Moshi in a comfortable transport van towards Machame Gate around 8:30am, and with a brief stop at grocery store for anyone to pick up any last minute snacks, water or essentials we arrived at Machame Gate around 10am.
I was struck by the sheer number of vendors still trying to sell anything from sleeping bags to hiking clothing all the way up the street leading to Machame Gate. You could literally arrive with nothing and find everything you need (likely at extortionate prices) even at the gates to the trek. Even the coffee shop inside the gate was selling used hiking gear.
I was also surprised by the large number of people at Machame gate. There were only 4 other groups setting out today, but as it takes roughly 10 people to support a party of two; porters, cooks, guides, assistant guides and other staff greatly outnumber the number of actual hikers on the trail.
After signing in, we used the washrooms, took photos by the Machame gate sign and after a 20-30 minute wait, it was our turn to get our luggage scanned by security before we could proceed on the trail. Note that you and your baggage will first go through airport style metal detectors and all your bags – your hiking backpack and the bag you give to the porters will be thoroughly searched by hand. The screeners are looking sharply for any disposable plastic water bottles – these are strictly forbidden – so be sure to only bring reusable water containers and water bladders on the trail – it’s fine if the reusable container is made of plastic, but it simply cannot be a disposable plastic water bottle.
We are given lunch boxes which consist of a piece of roast chicken, a hard-boiled egg, a bread roll with jam, a piece of toast, several pieces of fruit and cake – all individually wrapped along with a juice box. The food is enough to feed two people, and I have a hard time stuffing all of it into my already full-to the brim 20L backpack.
Once we passed security we were finally on our way! The first day of the hike passes a rain forest section. Trees laden with lichen hanging off branches like beards lined the trail, and you can feel the moisture in the air. The gradient was easy, and our pace even easier. “Pole-Pole” or “slow-slow” Victor, would instruct as soon as one of us pulled ahead. I followed Victor’s pace – even though it was slow as molasses as I trusted that he knew what he was doing better than I did.
As you reach Machame camp, you’ll see some fairly well-built concrete buildings that almost look like offices. These are actually washrooms – use them – they are the cleanest toilets at Machame camp. The toilets close to the centre of camp are horrifying. The one close to our tents was wooden, and it looked like the wooden structure that you were to stand on over the pit was about to collapse into the pit! I semi-joked with Alberto that if someone were to fall into that pit, they would either die or wish for death. There are pit toilets all over the camp, but I would avoid the ones closet to the centre as they are the most disgusting/potentially dangerous!
Our tents are already set up for us when we arrive at camp, and I was delighted to see that I have a super-comfy sleeping mat even wrapped in clean flannel sheets inside the tent with my bag that I gave to the porter already waiting for me inside the tent. I have plenty of space.
As I go about getting out of my dirty hiking clothes I hear an “excuse me” outside the tent. “Here’s water for washing”, and a small basin of hot water is handed to me, along with some soap. Hot water on the mountain…and they even thought to bring soap! What 5 star service! There are no showers on Kilimanjaro, but the small basin of hot water is amazing for washing off the day’s grime. I use my sweat wristband as a makeshift washcloth and dry off with my towel.
When I finish washing up, I’m informed that tea is ready, and head out of the tent to see a tent with a small dining table and two comfortable chairs are set-up with an assortment of tea, hot chocolate, instant coffee and milk along with popped corn and biscuits. Alberto and I sit down and chat over hot drinks and snacks while the dinner is prepared for us.
Around 6:30pm we’re served a delicious dinner of soup, fried fish and potatoes and salad. The amount of food is far more than either of us needed.
Victor came around with a health check list and checked off on whether we were experiencing any dizziness, vomiting, diarrhea, difficulty breathing or any other health issues, as well as checked our blood oxygen saturation and pulse with an oxigenometer. Everything checked out well. My pulse was 78, and oxygen saturation was 97 – which Victor told me was great.
After briefing us on the schedule and hike for the next day, Victor left us to the rest of the evening. Alberto retired to bed early, but I stayed up to star gaze and take photos of the stars and milky way that was visible to the naked eye from camp. I too retired to bed around 9:45pm and slept well.
