The difference in price is the difference in our commitment to the community.

FAQs • Success Rate • Testimonials • Responsibility • Staff Management • Evironmental • Cultural • Back to Kilimanjaro

Greater than 90% Summit Success Rate/ more than 25 years experience

Our 8-day climb and descent itinerary allows for the optimum chance of successful acclimatization and adjustment to mountain life. This system has proven itself time and again with full groups of 14 clients reaching the summit together, healthy, energized, and happy to be on the roof of Africa.

Our route starts in the montane forest on what is often referred to as the Lomosho Route and continues along the Shira Plateau, a World Heritage site. From there it's up the Western Breach, a route pioneered by Mountain Madness founders Scott Fischer and Wesley Krause in the early 1980's, which gives you the benefits of more than 25 years of experience on the mountain. With Mountain Madness you will ascend the highest mountain in Africa in first class style the entire way!

- Risk Management
In case of emergencies, each group has oxygen, gamow bag, and a pulse oximeter. All of our trip leaders have been certified as Wilderness First Responders, the U.S. standard for professional mountain guides. During the preparation of food, our cooks take every precaution while cooking and washing, thus minimizing food-borne illness. In addition, all water is filtered or boiled for your use.

- Crater Camp
Adding this camp just before our summit day is the #1 reason we have such a high success rate. Sleeping at the crater means that we do not have a strenuous summit day of up tp 4,000 feet elevation gain, which is typical of most guided expeditions. The crater camp also prevents the need for climbing during the night and relieves some of the pressure to ascend at a certain rate in order to reach the summit and descend about 9,000 feet to the last camp of the climb. Instead, from the 18,500’ crater camp, the peak is a mere 800 feet elevation gain. We can also wake up at a reasonable hour of 7:00 am and enjoy the sunrise from the roof of Africa. An added bonus is the possibility of exploring both the remanent glaciers that are present in the crater and the crater itself.

- Porter Support
At the end of the day your tent is set up and your bag rolled out, allowing you to enjoy some rest time in camp. With full porter support you only carry a 10-15 pound pack. Pack items will include only water, snack food, a warm layer, and your camera. A porter will be assigned to your duffel and will carry your gear throughout the entire climb. Your personal porter also will break down camp in the morning, so all you have to do is enjoy your breakfast and prepare for the day.

- Tanzanian Guides: All Mountain Madness guides have completed many training courses on subjects such as natural history, environmental conservation and wildlife. Our guides speak Swahili and English fluently, and also a native tribal language that has been passed on to them depending on which of the 140 tribes into which they were born. We've found that nothing beats local knowledge, which allows our visitors unsurpassed insight into local culture. Our Kilimanjaro Trip Leaders have also been trained as Wilderness First Responders in the United States or by the National Outdoor Leadership School in Kenya. Mountain Madness guides have a passion for Kilimanjaro and all of Tanzania. They truly love helping others experience the amazing beauty of their country.

- Shira Plateau Route - Western Breach since 1984
The Shira Plateau route was pioneered by Mountain Madness founders Wes Krause and Scott Fischer and is the most remote and scenic trail on the mountain. With Kilimanjaro being one of the most over crowded mountains of the ever popular seven summits, it is satisfying to hike in beautiful mountain landscapes without having to share it with hundreds if people.

- Food & Water
With more than twenty years of trial and error, we have been able to perfect our menu to provide the optimum amount of nourishment to keep you energized for the climb, without compromising quality and taste. A full mess tent with table and chairs adds a nice atmosphere for people to wake up with hot coffee in the morning and relax with a hot meal and socializing at night. You may even forget that you are on a mountain! An example of a day’s meal is as follows:

• Breakfast: sliced fresh fruit, potato-leek pancakes, porridge and granola, toast, coffee and tea
• Lunch: fruit, packaged soup, avocado-tomato salad, cream cheese and chutney sandwiches, tuna fish sandwiches, peanut butter cookies
• Dinner: cucumber salad, home-made soup and crackers, spaghetti bolognaise, garlic bread and brownies

Clean water is critical to your health on the climb. We supply high volume commercial Katadyn water filters which can produce the vast quantities of clean drinking water your body requires for hard work at high altitudes. Katadyn is the only water filter endorsed by the World Health Organization to guarantee pure water.

- Private Camp in Arusha National Park: Our service to you begins with an evening pick-up at the airport and transfer to our private camp in the park. You will be joined only with other members in your group and enjoy the warm hospitality of our staff for two nights here. At about 6,500 feet, this camp begins the process of acclimatization and provides an entire day to prepare for the climb, rest from your travels, and enjoy some hiking and possibly game viewing.

- Private Camp Safari: All our safaris are led by specialized trip leaders who have been working in the National Parks for years and have a broad understanding of the ecosystem. Your trip leader will take you out for the day in our specially modified safari vehicles to search for game. In the evening return to your private camp and sit by a campfire under the star studded African sky while the camp crew prepare your hot shower and dinner. Our camps allow for a private experience without all the hustle and bustle of lodge-based safari. In addition, our camp are lower impact and utilize the abundant solar power to charge our camp's electricity needs and provide hot water.

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Social, Cultural and Environmental Responsibility in Tanzania

You may notice a slight difference between Mountain Madness’ prices and those of other outfitters. This difference reflects our commitment to, and investment in, our host country. Mountain Madness believes in ethically responsible tourism and we put our money where our mouth is by ensuring that the environment and the indigenous people are respected. Here is how we address these important topics:


Wage and Fair Treatment Concerns:

Tanzania is a country where jobs are scarce and pay is among the lowest in the world. Unqualified young men and boys are willing to work on the mountain for the rock bottom wages offered by cut-rate mountaineering and safari companies. This presents a hazard to their lives as well as the lives of others climbing to the summit. Death among young, inexperienced and/or poorly equipped porters is not uncommon. This tragedy is the direct result of climbing companies being unwilling to pay proper salaries to hire and train professional support staff. The practice of hiring unprofessional mountain staff also results in strikes for increased wages halfway up the mountain, which disrupts or ends a climb.

Mountain Madness’ Ensures Fair Wages and Treatment:
Mountain Madness offers the highest wages of any company operating on the Kilimanjaro and requires that everyone working on our climbs is properly outfitted and fed.

All the mountain staff in leadership positions are required to have first aid training and to have attended courses in high altitude physiology and mountain rescue. We also have a specialized program that trains guides and porters so they can perform their job on the mountain professionally and safely. More often than not these skills are used to save the lives of the staff and tourists that happen to be climbing the mountain simultaneously with other operators. Every spring and fall, during the tourist "low season" we offer additional courses and training programs to our guides, cooks, drivers and porters. Classes offered include high altitude physiology, first aid, ecology, tracking, and ornithology. We feel it is important to offer continuing opportunities for personal growth and career advancement to the Tanzanians that work for us.

Mountain Madness provides porters with quality mountain equipment appropriate for the harsh mountain weather, improving your both safety and comfort. A huge staff of Tanzanian guides, cooks and porters support western climbers so they can have an enjoyable and successful climbing experience.

To further this commitment, Mountain Madness has joined forces with the Himalayan Explorer’s Connection (HEC) Porter Project, which has developed guidelines for the proper treatment of porters including making sure porters have adequate gear and equipment, proper shelter arrangements, proper food, cooking equipment and water, proper medical care for sick or injured porters, insurance where available, acceptable weight limits on loads, and fair wages. The HEC Porter Project also educates the tourist population about acceptable standards of porter treatment, and encourages the reporting of abuse or mistreatment. The Tanzania office was opened in December, 2002, and has outfitted over 500 porters in the first climbing season alone. In addition, over 20 porters a day attend the English language, first aid, HIV/AIDS awareness, and empowerment classes that are offered free of charge through the Porter Project. Mountain Madness is proud to be involved in such an important and groundbreaking program. For more information, visit the HEC Porter Project web site at http://www.hec.org/club/clothingbank2.htm.

To a video about this click here

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Environmental Concerns

On the Mountain:

The fragile tropical alpine environment of Kilimanjaro receives up to 27,000 visitors per year. Hauling trash off the mountain is costly because it requires hiring additional porters, which results in many expedition companies simply leaving their trash. And until recently, cooks and porters collected their cooking fuel from the mountain forest because cut-rate operators would not purchase stoves and kerosene and hire the porters to carry them.
A policy of requiring that each climbing operator haul their own trash off Kilimanjaro has been adopted by Tanzanian National Parks. To ensure this is done the Park Service actually weighs the trash when the trip leaves the mountain exit gates. And in 1999, all companies were required to provide stoves on climbs that are fueled with kerosene to help end the plunder of mountain forest

Mountain Madness Solution:
Mountain Madness not only ensures that it complies with all local regulations, but has been hauling trash off the mountain and providing porters with kerosene stoves since the beginning. We have been 100% committed to maintaining Kilimanjaro’s incredible scenery and health since 1984.

Environmental Concerns on Safari:
Dining in huge canvas mess tents, sleeping on a “proper” frame bed, having ice in your drink and being attended to by a small army of staff is all part of the "classic" luxury safari camping experience. It is also partly the cause of severe environmental degradation in Africa’s wild places that is caused by photographic tourism.

Mountain Madness’ Solution:
At Mountain Madness we have tried to find a balance between meeting your comfort needs in the wilderness while minimizing the impact on the environment. For starters we insist on packing our camp in Toyota pick-up trucks rather than the huge 7-ton lorries that are typical of luxury safari camping. Smaller lighter pickups do not tear up the ground and do not leave deep ruts when it is wet.
In order to pack our camp in Pick-ups we have had to adjust the camp amenities slightly: we carry coolers of ice rather than a deep freeze, the tents are a classic “A” frame shape rather than wall tents, beds are lightweight imported camp cots with mattresses rather than wood frame beds, and the number of staff per person is slightly reduced.
Our toilets are "long drop" style and we provide a small bucket next to the toilet for the disposal of toilet paper. All organic matter goes in the "hole" and toilet paper is burned by the camp staff after you leave the tents. We have found that if the toilet paper goes in the dug hole, it quickly gets excavated by animals and is left scattered around the campsite. Many groups use these campsites throughout the year and we are doing our best to keep them clean for future users.
The areas we camp in are often very dry and remote, making water collection difficult and supply limited. We provide you with a shower everyday but encourage people to use just one bucket each for their showers. It is most effective to have a “Navy Shower”? get wet, turn off the faucet, and soap up. Then you can open it back up and enjoy the hot water.
These simple adjustments make all the difference, offering our clients a comfortable experience that is much more ecologically friendly.

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Cultural Interaction Concerns:

Cultural interaction between tourists and indigenous African peoples can be a valuable experience for everyone. However, too often it results in tourists poking cameras in the faces of locals while the locals grapple for money and gifts.

Mountain Madness’ Solution:
Mountain Madness has put a lot of thought and effort into creating meaningful interactions that are positive for everyone. We identify a local family or group with strong leadership who help us establish rules for interactions: no cameras, no begging or bartering. Everyone meets and is shown around the village and maybe shares a meal or a song or story. At the end of the visit the guide will usually ask if visitors can take pictures. We pay the village leaders a lump sum for this visit and encourage them to spend the money on projects that will benefit the entire group.
In all the village areas Mountain Madness visits we hire local guides, which is another important income source for the villagers. We find that often the best way to interact with locals is to share an activity such as walking. For this reason, walking safaris are naturally cultural safaris as well.

We periodically review the effect that these visits are having on the village or family to ensure that the visits are acceptable to everyone and the overall experience is beneficial.

Because many of Mountain Madness’ visitors are interested in contributing to the welfare of Tanzania we have identified and developed some important projects that clients can visit and contribute to. All of these projects are grass roots and ongoing. Our current project is supporting a rural village school with over 600 students near the city of Arusha. Mountain Madness has delivered school supplies and has an ongoing commitment to supporting this small school. If you are interested in visiting and or contributing please let us know.

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Testimonials

Read what others have to say below, or call our office and ask for referalls;

Fantastic trip. Will recommend to anyone considering a Kilimanjaro climb.
Mike Nutter, Kilimanjaro

Even better than I expected or hoped for!
Dan Lange, Kilimanjaro climb and safari

Our Kilimanjaro trip was very enjoyable and could not have been better. Everyone, the trip leader, guides, cooks, and porters were all very friendly and helpful. The equipment was first rate and the food was excellent.
Danny Puett, Kilimanjaro

Terrific Trip!! These words summarize the Mountain Madness experience on my recent trek to the summit of Mt. Kilimanjaro, as well as, safari to Serengeti and Ngorongoro Crater.
Joseph P. Longosz, Kilimanjaro

“You made us fall in love with Tanzania”
Bruce Hamilton, Kilimanjaro/Serengeti

Fantastic! Seriously wouldn’t change anything! You made my dream of climbing Kili come true!
Cheryl Marfia & Michael Marfia, Kilimanjaro

Fantastic experience from start to finish.
Paul Weissman, Kilimanjaro

It was the trip of a lifetime.
Michael E. Karby, Kilimanjaro climb and safari

Each part of the operation exceeded my expectations. The entire team of porters, guides, cooks, etc. did a great job of anticipating our needs.
Chris Fraser, Kilimanjaro climb/trek

A great trip – 100% success rate. Lots of fun. I was very comfortable with the guides/staff. I also felt well taken care of and safe at all times.
Keith Serdman, Kilimanjaro Climb/Safari

A memorable trip – I felt that I was able in 2 weeks’ time to experience not only the environment but the culture of Tanzania – the leadership was of such high quality. I left wanting to return soon again.
Diana Wolf, Kilimanjaro Climb/Safari

Climb and safari were both excellent. I would not hesitate to recommend this trip to anyone.
Don Flood, Kilimanjaro climb and safari

I was impressed by the excellent organization, professionalism, & attention to safety of the guides. The trip was excellent & Mountain Madness exceeded what I expected from this trip.
Valerie Potenza, Kilimanjaro climb and safari

Outstanding, memorable trip! MM was well organized and I appreciated the close attention to everyone’s safety and well-being.
Stu Rosenberg, Kilimanjaro climb and safari

I had a fantastic experience. The trek was a great experience made even better by the friendly, professional staff in Tanzania. The trip leader made us all feel safe and comfortable throughout the trip. The food was great, too! Best of all, Mountain Madness attracted a terrific group of hikers that made the trip tons of fun.
Karen Kenney, Kilimanjaro

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