Mt Kilimanjaro Day 8

28 Mar 15. Mweka Hut Camp (3100m) to Mweka Park Gate (1640 m). 10 km. 0700-0850 (1 hour 50 minutes). Descent 1640 m.

Breakfast was different today – pancakes and an omelette with orange and watermelon. Nechi and I left at 0700.



Stunning Sunrise

 The track was an improvement over yesterday with very few steps or rocky bits. It was a little slippery with the rain during the night but I was able to make good speed on it. We quickly dropped down into the rain forest and after 1 hour 20 minutes came out onto a dirt road which we followed for another 30 minutes to the Park Gate where we registered and then waited for the driver and the rest of the crew.



Bit of a difference from yesterdays track

Beautiful easy and fast track

Final view back to Mt Kilimanjaro

Almost looks like NZ

Apart from the Safari Ants

Safari Ants

Onto a road for the final few km

The End!

Colobus Monkeys at Park HQ

Quite an audience came to see me finish

We all jumped into a Landrover for the trip back and I was a little surprised that the vehicle had no seatbelts. I know it is Africa but normally vehicles carrying tourists have seatbelts. I was a little nervous being in a vehicle without seatbelts given the roads and crazy drivers but we made it safely back to Springlands Hotel.

Leaving the National Park

Coffee Plants

There are some very strong people here. Those baskets are weighing close to 20 kg

After checking in I brought the crew a drink and we sat talking about the trip. Nechi presented me with two certificates for the climb and I thanked them all and gave the tip and they headed to their homes. I spoke to the facilitator and gave him some feedback on the trip and suggestions for improvements.

I had a long hot shower and did some hand washing of my clothes before just relaxing watching movies on my computer. Lunch was pizza, ice cream and fruit salad with a fresh squeezed mango and pineapple juice. It was strange that you had to pay for a coke but the fresh squeezed juice was free. I talked with people about to go up and they were full of questions which I was happy to answer. On my advice they talked to their guide about leaving early every morning to avoid the rain and that night they told me their guide had agreed to this.

The afternoon was more movies and sorting through my photos. Dinner was a buffet and I enjoyed the variety of food. After dinner I repacked and had an early night ready for my flight in the morning back to Democratic Republic of Congo, via Nairobi and Entebbe Uganda.