- Summit
- Socialist Peak, 4,566 m
- Duration
- 3–4 days
- Start
- Momella Gate, Arusha NP
- Accommodation
- Mountain huts
- Wildlife
- Buffalo, giraffe, colobus
- Best for
- Acclimatisation, quieter trails
About Mount Meru
Meru is often overshadowed by its famous neighbour, but many climbers say it is the more beautiful mountain. The trail starts among giraffe and buffalo inside Arusha National Park, so an armed ranger walks with every group, and it climbs through forest and heath to a knife-edge crater rim.
Summit day follows the rim to Socialist Peak at sunrise, with the ash cone below and Kilimanjaro floating above the clouds to the east.
Things to do
Meru summit trek
Three or four days on the Momella route, sleeping in mountain huts.
Napuru waterfall hike
A half-day forest walk on Meru's slopes to a beautiful waterfall.
Kilimanjaro warm-up
Climbing Meru first greatly improves your acclimatisation before Kilimanjaro.
Gallery
Mount Meru photo: Wikimedia Commons (source & licence).
Getting there
The Momella Gate is about an hour from Arusha. Combine Meru with a Kilimanjaro climb or a Northern Circuit safari.
When to go
June to October and late December to February have the most stable weather.
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