Kilimanjaro Volcano is one of the most famous and popular places on the planet. This place is unique for many reasons: the magnificence of the appearance of the mountain, the diversity of climatic zones, snow glaciers. Kilimanjaro is popular not only among tourists. Famous films were shot here, the events on the mountain formed the basis of the plots of legendary stories.
You can come to Kilimanjaro through Kenya or Tanzania. This is doubly exciting - the traveler will not only meet the majestic mountain, but also get acquainted with the culture and life of the indigenous population of these states. For Russians, such a voyage is good because you do not need to obtain a visa in advance (although there is a consular fee at the border). However, the formalities are nothing compared to what a person will see upon arrival.
Majestic Mount Kilimanjaro
Mount Kilimanjaro is located in East Africa. More precisely, it is a dormant volcano, capable, according to some geologists, of awakening. Kilimanjaro is the highest mountain in Africa. At the peak point - 5895 meters above sea level. The name "Kilimanjaro" from the African Swahili language can be translated as"mountain that glitters". There is a version that such a name is due to the fact that snow-white glaciers lie on the top of the volcano, while around you can see continuous tropics of characteristic color shades - typical Africa.
Mount Kilimanjaro is located in the state of Tanzania, but is located close to the border of Kenya. An interesting fact is that there are no other mountains around it, it is not part of any geological system. And because the mountain is especially attractive to tourists who come here in many ways to admire the majesty of Kilimanjaro, rising against the backdrop of a tropical plain. Writer Ernest Hemingway called the mountain wide as the world, huge, high and incredibly white in the sun.
How the mountain was formed
Kilimanjaro, the highest mountain in Africa, is about two million years old. It was formed during volcanic processes: lava flows came out of the earth, it hardened, then new layers appeared from the next eruption. In different periods of activity of the earth's interior, the peaks that make up Kilimanjaro were formed: Kibo (central, the youngest in age), Mawenzi (eastern) and Shira (western, the oldest). Kibo has a volcanic crater with a diameter of 2.5 km. In addition, this peak is the only one that is located above the snow-covered section of the mountain. Kibo looks like a smooth beautiful cone. This is the highest peak of Kilimanjaro, the height of the mountain at this peak reaches the level indicated above at 5895 m. The slopes of the volcano contain a large numbersmall volcanic cones (their diameter is within a kilometer). Volcanic gases continue to be emitted in the Kibo crater.
Flora and fauna
Kilimanjaro, the highest mountain in Africa, is interesting for its local climate. When air masses come here from the Indian Ocean, the mountain directs them upwards. Clouds form, from which rain or snow falls (the type of precipitation depends on the height of the clouds). Kilimanjaro has several climatic zones, which are inhabited by a wide variety of flora and fauna.
Crops grow on the lower slopes of the volcano. At an altitude of about 2 km, they are replaced by tropical forests. After another one and a half kilometers up, thickets of heather, lichens, grasses, characteristic of the alpine zones, begin to predominate. Where the snow begins, large animals live - buffaloes, leopards.
Mastering Kilimanjaro by man
People began to settle down on the legendary volcano only in the 19th century. The fact that there is such a volcano in Africa, about the place where Mount Kilimanjaro is located, was told to the world in 1848 by the German pastor Johannes Rebman. In 1881, Count Telki climbed to a height of 2500 meters, a year later - to 4200 meters, and in 1883 - to 5270 meters. In 1889, two explorers from Europe, the German Hans Mayer and the Austrian Ludwig Purtscheler, were the first to reach the peak of Kilimanjaro. The summit of Mawenzi, however, was unconquered for a long time. Only in 1912 did European climbers manage to set foot on it.
Popular climbing routes
Tourists frompeople all over the world dream of visiting Kilimanjaro. The highest mountain in Africa is incredibly attractive for both professional climbers and mountain climbing enthusiasts. There are several popular climbing routes that you can follow to climb Kilimanjaro. Each of them is called the same as the settlement located at the very beginning of the path. One of the most popular trails starts in the village of Marangu. According to some climbers and tourists, it is easy to master even for beginners. True, according to travelers, there is also an opposite effect here - a very large number of people can be on the route at the same time. The route starting in Masham village is considered by many to be the most beautiful. But it is not suitable for everyone, but only for those who have no problems with acclimatization to the mountain climate.
The most difficult route starts in the village of Umbwe. It is only suitable for professional climbers. If a tourist is fond of mountain biking, then he can try the route starting in the village of Shira. For lovers of admiring the beauties of nature, a path with a start in the village of Rongai is suitable. The route, which passes through an area where there are very few people, where nature reveals itself in its full splendor, starts in the village of Loytokitok.
Kilimanjaro at the movies
Kilimanjaro Volcano, where there is an incredible range of flora and fauna, which is filled with stunning beauties of nature, could not go unnoticed by filmmakers. Formany filmmakers, especially Hollywood ones, Mount Kilimanjaro, whose photo is recognizable even without captions and explanations, is a place that is almost more popular than, for example, the Statue of Liberty in New York or the Eiffel Tower in Paris.
You can remember the films created by overseas producers, in which alien spaceships fly over the mountain. You can remember how Lara Croft was looking for Pandora's box in the mountain. A fact known to many is that a pride lived near Kilimanjaro, led by the Lion King himself.
Kilimanjaro in Literature
The greatness of Kilimanjaro captivated the minds of the most famous writers. The most famous literary work related to the volcano is the short story "The Snows of Kilimanjaro", written by Ernest Hemingway. It was first published in Esquire magazine in 1936. The plot of the story is based on the journey of the writer Harry Smith in Africa. The writer went on a safari. There, Harry failed - he was wounded in the leg and contracted gangrene. He and his wife Ellen live in a tent at the foot of Kilimanjaro. Harry often reminisces about his life, about the war. He is trying to find answers to philosophical questions - why did he live, what good did he do. Infection with gangrene is incurable, and Harry Smith passes away. Based on the story, a movie of the same name was made.
Climbing Features
Despite the fact that the highest mountain Kilimanjaro for a long time could not be conquered by people in the XIX-XX centuries, today, perhaps, anyone can climb ita person who does not experience problems with breathing in the mountains and the pressure difference of the atmosphere. Climbing Kilimanjaro, as noted by some tourists, on some routes can take only a few hours. For example, the athlete Kilian Jornet Burgada from Catalonia conquered the summit of the volcano in 5 hours and 23 minutes.
Of course, it is impossible for an unprepared person to chase such results, but it is quite possible to meet the deadline. Climbers and amateur tourists, regardless of the chosen route, will see a unique picture: a successive change of the order of seven dissimilar climatic zones - equatorial, then subequatorial, followed by tropical and subtropical, after - moderate and, finally, subpolar, and even polar.
Kilimanjaro glaciers
Mount Kilimanjaro is interesting because it is one of the few places in Africa where there is snow even in summer. On the tops of the volcano there are huge snow-white massifs. Basically, it's not even snow, but glaciers. Geologists have a version that the ice cover of the volcano may soon disappear. The researchers recorded that at the beginning of the twentieth century, the area of glaciers began to decline. In one of the scientific papers, it is estimated that from 1912 to 2007, the scale of reduction was 85% - from 12 square kilometers to 2. According to the study, not only the area, but also the thickness of glaciers has decreased. One of the reasons for this state of affairs is called environmental pollution and, as a result, global warming. Ecologists fear that as soon as the glaciers melt,several mountain rivers will cease to receive natural food at once, which may endanger the ecosystem in the mountain area. There is another version, which says that the glaciers are still stable. It is based on the words of local residents who do not observe visible changes in the snow-white covers of the volcano. At the same time, according to some researchers, early planting of trees near Kilimanjaro could contribute to the stability of glaciers. Thanks to this, the impact of global warming has decreased. In addition, the planted trees absorb water from the clouds that surround the mountain and thus feed the biosphere below.
Interesting facts
- The highest point of Kilimanjaro (the height of the mountain, as already noted, is 5895 meters) is Ukhtu Peak. This figure is a record for the mountains of Africa and the fourth in the world.
- The last eruption of Mount Kilimanjaro was 100 thousand years ago.
- The mountain is located right on the border of two states - Kenya and Tanzania. But those tourists who want to climb Kilimanjaro must drive up to the mountain from Tanzania - according to the agreement between the countries.
- The first historical references to Kilimanjaro date back to the 2nd century AD. e.
- Money from the organization of tours for foreign tourists to Kilimanjaro is one of the conditions for the stability of the Tanzanian economy. There is evidence that about 40 thousand people visit Kilimanjaro a year. On average, each tourist leaves more than $1,000 in the country.
Kenya or Tanzania?
The first question a tourist asks isplanning a trip to Kilimanjaro: where is this mountain located? Answer: territorially - in Tanzania. But there is an option in which you can get to this wonderful place through Kenya. What is the difference, advantages and disadvantages of traveling through a specific country? According to some experts in the tourism industry and the tourists themselves, Kenya has more developed hotel infrastructure and services.
There is a version that this is due to the fact that Kenyans are much more inclined to learn English than their neighbors. And therefore, communication with foreigners is easier for them. In 1977, Tanzania made an attempt to take the main flow of tourists to Kilimanjaro to itself by closing the border with Kenya. But nothing happened, the profit was insufficient. The border was opened. According to some tourists, the Tanzanians are more friendly and inclined towards informal communication. Kenyans are businesslike and rational.
