Our group joined forces at hotel reception after breakfast and met some of the team who would be supporting us on our adventure. They took charge of our well packed duffel bags and loaded them onto the transport, ready to head to our starting point at the Machame Gate.

We arrived at the edge of the Kilimanjaro National Park and registered our entry. There was a prepared lunch ready for us while we waited for our permits to be approved and our 7 day meander to begin.

Finally we were off, 1:30pm and a 5 hour walk ahead, all uphill of course, through lush rainforest. We arrived at Machame Camp 2835m at nightfall, our home for the night.