Mount Kilimanjaro. Africa, Mount Kilimanjaro. The Highest Mountain in Africa

The Kilimanjaro volcano is one of the most famous and popular places on the planet. This place is unique for a variety of reasons: the magnificence of the appearance of the mountain, the diversity of climatic zones, snow glaciers. Kilimanjaro is not only popular with tourists. Here the shooting of the most famous films took place, the events on the mountain formed the basis of the stories of the legendary stories.

You can come to Kilimanjaro via Kenya or Tanzania. It is doubly fascinating - the traveler will not only meet with the majestic mountain, but will 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 get a visa in advance (though there is a consular fee at the border). However, formalities are nothing compared to what a person will see upon arrival.

The majestic Kilimanjaro volcano

Mount Kilimanjaro is located in the East of Africa. To be more precise, it is a sleeping volcano, which, according to some geologists, is capable of awakening. Kilimanjaro is the highest mountain in Africa. At the peak point - 5895 meters above sea level. The name "Kilimanjaro" from the African language Swahili can be translated as "a mountain that glitters". There is a version that such a name is due to the fact that on the top of the volcano there are snow-white glaciers, while around it there are continuous tropics of characteristic color shades - typical Africa.

Mount Kilimanjaro is in the state of Tanzania, but is located close to the border of Kenya. Interesting is the fact that there are no other mountains around it, it is not part of any geological system. And because the mountain is especially attractive for tourists who come here in many ways to admire the majesty of Kilimanjaro, towering against the background of the tropical plain. The writer Ernest Hemingway called the mountain as wide as the world, huge, high and implausibly white under the rays of 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 emerged from the earth, it solidified, then new layers appeared from the next eruption. In different periods of activity of the earthly subsoil formed the peaks that make up Kilimanjaro: Kibo (central, the youngest in age), Mavenzi (eastern) and Shira (western, the oldest). On Kibo there is a volcanic crater 2.5 km in diameter. In addition, this peak is the only one that is located above the snow-covered section of the mountain. Kibo looks like an even beautiful cone. This is the highest peak of Kilimanjaro, the height of the mountain on this summit reaches the level indicated above at 5895 m. The slopes of the volcano contain a large number of small volcanic cones (their diameter is within a kilometer). Volcanic gases continue to be released in the Kibo Crater.

Flora and fauna

Kilimanjaro, the highest mountain in Africa, is interesting for its local climate. When the air masses come here from the Indian Ocean, the mountain sends them up. Formed clouds 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 variety of species of flora and fauna.

On the lower slopes of the volcano grow crops. At an altitude of about 2 km they are replaced by tropical forests. After another one and a half kilometers up, heather thickets, lichens, grasses characteristic of the Alpine zones begin to predominate. Wherever snow begins, large animals live - buffaloes, leopards.

The mastery of Kilimanjaro by man

People began to settle on the legendary volcano only in the XIX century. The fact that in Africa there is a volcano, the place where Mount Kilimanjaro is located, the world told in 1848 the German pastor Johannes Rebman. In 1881, the Count of Telki rose to a height of 2,500 meters, a year later - to 4,200 meters, and in 1883 to 5,270 meters. In 1889, two researchers from Europe, the German Hans Mayer and Austrian Ludwig Purscheler, first reached the peak of Kilimanjaro. The peak of Mavenzi, however, was unconquered for a long time. Only in 1912 European climbers managed to step on it.

Popular climbing routes

Tourists from all over the world dream of visiting Kilimanjaro. The highest mountain in Africa is incredibly attractive for both mountaineers-professionals and enthusiasts who like mountain climbing. There are several popular climbing routes, following which one can climb Kilimanjaro. Each of them is called the same as the locality located at the very beginning of the journey. One of the most popular routes begins in the village of Marangu. According to some climbers and tourists, it is easy to learn, even for beginners. However, according to travelers, there is a reverse effect - on the route there can be a very large number of people at the same time. The route starting in the village of Masham is considered by many to be the most beautiful. But it is not suitable for everyone, but only for those who do not have problems with acclimatization to the mountain climate.

The most difficult route begins in the village of Umbve. It is suitable only for professional conquerors of mountain peaks. 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 beauty of nature, the path approaches with the beginning in the village of Rongai. The route that passes through the countryside, where there are very few people, where nature reveals itself in its full splendor, begins in the village of Loytokitok.

Kilimanjaro in the movie

The volcano Kilimanjaro, where there is an incredible area of flora, fauna, which is filled with stunning beauty of nature, could not go unnoticed by filmmakers. For many filmmakers, especially Hollywood, Mount Kilimanjaro, whose photo is recognized even without signatures and explanations, is a place that enjoys almost greater popularity than, for example, the Statue of Liberty in New York or the Eiffel Tower in Paris.

You can recall the films created by overseas producers, in which over the mountain fly spaceships of aliens. One can recall the way Lara Croft sought the box of Pandora in the mountain. Known to very many fact - near Kilimanjaro lived pride, led by the King of Lions.

Kilimanjaro in the literature

The greatness of Kilimanjaro was captivated by the minds of famous writers. The most famous literary work related to the volcano is the story of "Snow of Kilimanjaro", written by Ernest Hemingway. It was first published in the Esquire magazine in 1936. The plot is based on the journey of writer Harry Smith in Africa. The writer went on a safari. There Harry suffered a failure - he was injured in the leg and got a gangrene. He and his wife Ellen live in a tent at the foot of Kilimanjaro. Harry often remembers his life, about the war. He tries to find answers to philosophical questions - what for he lived, what good did he do. Infection with gangrene is incurable, and Harry Smith is passing away. Based on the story, the movie of the same name was shot.

Features of the ascent

Despite the fact that the highest mountain Kilimanjaro for a long time could not submit to people in the XIX-XX centuries, today anyone, who does not experience problems with breathing in the mountains and the pressure drop of the atmosphere, can make an ascent to it. Climbing Kilimanjaro, as some tourists note, on some routes can take only a few hours. For example, athlete Kilian Zhorne Burgada from Catalonia conquered the top of the volcano in 5 hours 23 minutes.

Of course, it is impossible to chase such a result to an unprepared person, but it is quite possible to keep within a day. Climbers and amateur tourists, regardless of the chosen route, will see a unique picture: the successive change of the order of seven unlike climatic zones - the equatorial, then the subequatorial, the trail of the tropical and subtropical, after - the moderate and finally the subpolar, and even the polar.

Glaciers of Kilimanjaro

Mount Kilimanjaro is interesting because it is one of the few places in Africa where even in the summer there is snow. On the tops of the volcano there are huge snow-white massifs. Basically it's not even snow, but glaciers. Scientists-geologists have a version that the ice cover of the volcano can soon disappear. Researchers recorded that in the early twentieth century, the area of glaciers began to decline. In one of the scientific papers it was calculated that from 1912 to 2007 the scale of the reduction was 85% - from 12 square kilometers to 2. According to the study, not only the area but also the thickness of the glaciers decreased. One of the reasons for this state of affairs is pollution of the environment and, as a result, global warming. Environmentalists fear that as soon as the glaciers melt, then several mountain rivers will stop receiving natural food at once, which could endanger the ecosystem around the mountain. There is another version, stating that the glaciers are still stable. It is based on the words of local residents who do not observe visible changes in the snow cover of the volcano. At the same time, some researchers believe that the stability of glaciers could be facilitated by the advance planting of trees near Kilimanjaro. 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 feed, thereby, the biosphere located below.

Interesting Facts

• The highest point of Kilimanjaro (the height of the mountain, as already noted, is 5895 meters) is the peak of Ukhtu. This figure is a record for the mountains of Africa and the fourth in the world.
• The last eruption of the volcano 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, should approach 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.
• Monetary revenues from the organization of tourist trips for foreign tourists to Kilimanjaro - one of the conditions for the stability of the economy of Tanzania. There are data that Kilimanjaro is visited by about 40 thousand people a year. On average, each tourist leaves over $ 1,000 in the country.

Kenya or Tanzania?

The first question that a tourist is asking is planning a trip to Kilimanjaro: where is this mountain located? Answer: territorially - in Tanzania. But there is an option where you can get to this wonderful place and through Kenya. What is the difference, advantages and disadvantages of traveling through a specific country? According to some experts of the tourism industry and tourists themselves, in Kenya, the hotel infrastructure and service are more developed.

There is a version that this is due to the fact that Kenyans are much more interested in learning English than their neighbors. Therefore, they are given easier communication with foreigners. In 1977, Tanzania made an attempt to take the main tourist flow to Kilimanjaro to itself, closing the border with Kenya. But nothing happened, the profit was insufficient. The border was opened. According to some tourists, Tanzanians - the people are more friendly and tuned to informal communication. Kenyans are businesslike and rational.