FACTS ABOUT MT. KILIMANJARO
Location
Mount Kilimanjaro is completely within Tanzania, although it’s near the border of Kenya.
The Mountain is 3 degrees, or about 340 km, south of the Equator.
Kilimanjaro is made up of three volcanic cones:
1. Kibo 19,340 feet (5,895 meters)
2. Mawenzi 16,896 feet (5,149 meters)
3. Shira 13,000 feet (3,962 meters)
Most of Kilimanjaro is located within the Kilimanjaro National Park, which is a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage site.
History
There are many disputed theories on the origin of the name, so it remains a mystery.
Shira, the highest volcanic cone, was first cone to become extinct, then Mawenzi, and now Kibo is the only active one. Kibo is a dormant active volcano; you can smell the strong sulphur that comes from the inner ash pit.
In 1889, German geographer Hans Meyer and Austrian mountain climber Ludwig Purtscheller were the first to climb Kilimanjaro.
Trivia
Kilimanjaro is the tallest mountain in Africa, and while it does not have the highest elevation of any mountain in the world, it rises15, 100 feet (4,600 meters) from its base making it the tallest freestanding mountain in the world.
Climbing Kilimanjaro
Around 25,000 people per year attempt to summit the top of Kilimanjaro.
Uhuru peak is the highest summit on Kilimanjaro. The highest peak on Mawenzi is Hans Meyer Point, which can only be reached by mountaineers.
Kilimanjaro’s ecological makeup consists of virtually every type of ecosystem on earth including: glacier, snowfields, deserts, alpine moorland, savannah, and tropical jungle.
The city of Moshi is just over 30 km from the summit, and is the most common pre and post-trip base for climbers.
There are five common routes used to climb Kilimanjaro:
1. Marangu Route
2. Machame Route
3. Rongai Route
4. Lemosho Route
5. Mweka Route (usually used only to descend)
This information is from the Mt. Kilimanjaro Travel Guide online at
http://www.mtkilimanjarologue.com/mt-kilimanjaro-facts
Also, check out Wikipedia.com and see all the amazing information on Mt. Kilimanjaro
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mt._Kilimanjaro