LONDROSSI GATE – MTI MKUBWA CAMP: 4.8km /3mi | 3-4 hrs | Rainforest Elevation: 2389m/7838ft to 2785m/9137ft. Altitude
2-3 hours Moshi to Londrossi Gate
Begin your Lemosho Route from Londrossi Gate (2,389m) on the remote northwestern flank of Kilimanjaro, the least-trafficked and most scenic approach. The forest here is exceptionally pristine and home to buffalo, elephant, and extraordinary birdlife. Register with rangers, meet your guide and porter team, and begin the trail through dense Podocarpus and Olea woodland. Monkeys crash through the canopy and hornbills call overhead in the misty forest air.
After 3-4 hours covering 4.8km, arrive at Mti Mkubwa Camp (2,785m), Big Tree Camp, named for the ancient forest giants surrounding the campsite. Set up in the forest clearing, eat a hot lunch, and spend the afternoon resting. The forest at this altitude is enchanting with moss, wild orchids, and tree ferns lit by shafts of filtered sunlight.
An early night in the forest. The sounds are extraordinary after dark: tree hyrax screaming, the distant grunt of buffalo, and a chorus of nocturnal insects. Tomorrow you climb above the treeline onto the open Shira Plateau.
