Mountain influencers of the world, rejoice: In a few months, you’ll be able to post selfies live from the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro.
A high-speed connection has already been installed at the Horombo Huts at 3,720m. The plan is to extend that to the summit itself soon, Dan Bailey reported for UK Climbing. The cable is currently being laid toward the Kibo Hut at 4,720m, Bailey said. Kilimanjaro tops out at 5,895m.
The Marangu route. Map: Ultimate Kilimanjaro Treks
The connection will work anywhere on the Marangu, aka the Coca-Cola route, up the mountain. The Marangu is the oldest, easiest, and most crowded of the many options up Kilimanjaro. It is the only one with huts along the way. Trekkers don’t need to camp and can have their gear toted up and down the mountain for them.
A rescue tool
Because it’s so straightforward, it typically attracts the most inexperienced, sometimes unfit, and often poorly acclimatized people. This results in a significant number of would-be summiters falling sick and requiring evacuation. For this, cell coverage will help.
Rescue on Kiliamanjaro. Photo: Climbing Kilimanjaro
Kilimanjaro will thus become the fourth of the Seven Summits with a more or less constant cell connection. Everest is usually connected, thanks to a Chinese antenna and a signal receiver at Gorak Shep, on the mountain’s Nepali side. Aconcagua has had an antenna in Plaza de Mulas, at 5,000m, since 2020. Elbrus in Russia, with a ski resort on its lower slopes, is also connected.
Climbers on the Marangu route on Kilimanjaro. Photo: Tour Radar
There is no such service, however, in Denali National Park, or in Antarctica. Here, Mount Vinson climbers still need to use their satellite phones to communicate.
Carstensz Pyramid (Puncak Jaya), in remote Irian Jaya, also lacks a cellular link, although Carstensz involves a mere one-week expedition. Social media connections are amply available back in Bali, the start/finish point for most international climbers.
