Kilimanjaro traverse – Camps of the Lemosho & Mweka Trails – Part 3

Moir Camp – 13,650 ft., two nights

Moir is one of the least visited camps on the mountain nestled between very black and spherical, volcanic topography. The location treats you to stunning sunsets overlooking the Shira Plateau. The 7 hour ascent from Shira 1 took us to new altitudes (for the Cheeseheads) and through flora right out of a Dr. Seuss book.

Sand and dust begin to dominate albeit; with stunning sunshine…we were still 6 days from the next shower.

There is a pile of elephant bones in camp that reminded us we were certainly not in Wisconsin. About 100 yards from camp sits a two story Tee-pee structure that looks every bit the 50’s B-movie space ship. It was built by some guys from Norway in the 80’s. As my son and I walked past, a few of the porters suddenly popped their heads out and I almost voided my bladder and bowls right on the spot. I guess my subconscious was expecting some African beast to have me for dinner but our “moment” ended in much laughter. It was situations like this, however, that endeared us to our porters since conversation was out of the question. We never treated them like hired help. Indeed, we had taken plenty of trail snacks to share and we benefited by being surrounded by happy smiling people.

Our second day was again an acclimation/scramble to one of the knobs of the Lent Group above our camp and we were starting to get antsy even though we knew taking our time with the altitude would ensure our ultimate success.

Next, Lava Tower