This morning, an email from Henry with a little surprise:
After 18 months, several other agencies, having noted the path our route takes - and the high success rate - and have started to adopt it as well. While we were the only ones using the route, it was not a problem. But now KINAPA (the Kiimanjaro National Park Authority) have decreed that too many people were cimbing via the Barafu Route to the summit, and have decided to stop anybody from using the Unique Rongai Route.
Uh oh.
Long and short is we will be taking a slightly different path at times, as a result. Henry asks if I mind. Of course, I don't. Further down in the email, I note the following sentence:
This 'new' path running up from XX is harder – and this is perhaps the biggest drawback with this new route.
Harder? Hmm. But again I don't know what was hard to can't compare. Just relieved we are all still able to take the Rongai Route and not have to switch to one of the more crowded ones.
Previously on day 5 – the day before the long nighttime trek up Kibo – you would arrive at camp at around 4pm because the total trek was 9km in length that day. This meant you had little time to relax, rest, and prepare yourself for the night-time climb to come. On this new route, however, the distance is only 4.9km on day 5, meaning that you should arrive at least an hour or two earlier – allowing you time to prepare yourself properly for the rigours ahead.
Yeah to that!
