4 Days Mount Meru Guided Trekking Tour

Did the 4 day Mount Meru trek as a solo, female traveller. Here's my honest review and everything I learned along the way. The route is steep with little to no flat paths, you will be climbing on inclines for about 2 and half to 3 days straight. Summit day involves a technical climb, past Rhino point (3800m/ 12,000ft) you will be climbing through rocks and rock faces for a good 3-4 hrs before you reach summit. Coming to the guide and tour company, I recieved no trek plan and was given zero information about what to expect on the trek by the guide. The guide visited me the previous day to inspect my gear (?) but failed to tell me that there is no electricity at any of the camps, neither are there showers. I had a power bank as back up that could get me through 2 days for a 4 day trek. This is crucial information to be giving climbers but I was not informed as part of my briefing, which as I mentioned was just the guide inspecting my gear. Once you reach Saddle Hut on Day 2 (the last camp before climbing to the peak) you usually do a short trek to little Meru - 1 and half hours to 2 hours from the hut both ways. This was very poorly planned in terms of timing, we started around 4:30pm and got back by 6:30pm or so when we needed to be up by 12:00am to begin the summit climb. By the time we were given dinner and had finished for the night, we were left with less than 3-4hrs of sleep for a 16hr day the following day. On the summit day (Day 3) something inexcusably dangerous happened, the guide Zakia kept dozing off and stopping to take naps along the way. The first few times I felt sympathy thinking she was tired but this kept happening till day break (~4hrs), more times than I can count along the way where the Summit Porter and I were left to find our way in the dark while she stopped to sleep. I want to reiterate how dangerous that was for her and us and how much that messes with your mind when you're already struggling with walking in the dark, cold winds and lack of sleep yourself. Massive kudos to the Summit Porter Albert, I don't know what would have happened to me if he wasn't around. Not only was the guide not present for most of the climb, there was also no encouragement or motivation from her. For starters, I was not given a trek plan or briefing to help me mentally prepare for the climb. The entire way after Rhino point is technical and I was not told about this at any point during or before the trek. The terrain is challenging, you're walking in the dark, on steep inclines, sheer rock faces, lava rock and loose gravel paths, no food in your system, barely any sleep and air that keeps getting thinner, making you more tired than usual faster. You don't need your guide to be a cheerleader but regular time checks, information about how much further we need to go, etc. would've helped a great deal. Again, I was given none of these and had to ask regularly to keep myself motivated. The most disappointing part has to be when we were almost at the peak and I was incredibly out of breath and stopped for a moment and the guide turned to me and rudely said - shall we just go back down? That is the last thing you need to hear when you've been climbing for nearly 7hrs straight keeping Summit in mind. Even on the way back once we reached summit, she was checked out and on her phone for most of the way and I had some of the guides from other groups help me down rocky paths with big drops because she wasn't paying attention. Extremely disappointing. Once you reach Saddle Hut after a nearly 12hr trek, you barely have any time to rest or change because you will begin a 4hr descent back to Miriakamba Hut and need to squeeze in brunch before you leave. After a very, very long 16hr long hiking day, you arrive at the huts. It may have been a combination of low bloodsugar, lack of sleep and fatigue but I ended up with cold shivers and temperature by evening. Given everything that had happened through the day and my physical state - I was visited in my hut for a sit down briefing by Zakia where I was given a strict talk about a mandatory minimum amount I need to be tipping the crew in the morning. I was handed a piece of paper with the names of the members of the crew and forced to write down the tip amounts and submit it to her. The tipping amount quoted was well above $300 for dangerous and subpar service, not to mention that it works up to about 30% of the trek cost which is far beyond ridiculous and unseen anywhere in the world even for climbs on >8000m mountains! I wrote to the trek company to cross check and they were also insistent that it was right. Tipping should always be based on service and the discretion of the climber and not arbitrary like this, especially when they sent me a guide that put herself and me in danger on summit day! Either way, there was so much pressure and repeatedly reminding me through the next day that I just gave them the money but it was absolutely unjustified for the guide. The porters work incredibly hard so do the cooks, they deserved every dollar they get paid but this guide shouldn't have been tipped. I had a really unfortunate summit experience but I do want to say that the walks through the forest on the remaining days are really beautiful. You will meet wonderful people along the way and learn so much about their animals and birds. We had a lovely Park Ranger with a great sense of humor that helped us get to our camps in the best mood every single day. The people, crew, others guides, cooks and staff are genuinely warm and friendly. I wish I was given the right information to mentally prep better and a different guide but I did manage to make some unforgettable memories along the way. I am grateful for the lovely people I met and the conversations we were able to have along the way. Hope this helps you make an informed decision if you do plan on climbing Meru. Safiri salama!

+6

Fantastic experience. Suricata were first class from booking through to actual trek. Special mention to guide Modest and porter/waiter Zacharia. Push to summit was difficult but paced expertly by Modest to our capabilities and ably supported by Zacharia. The views from the top were amazing and worth the effort. The accommodation is basic but the food served was exceptional. None of this would be possible without the other porters. .

What an incredible experience!! Fred, our guide, was absolutely perfect. He motivated my friends and I, made us laugh, taught us about the local area,helped with injuries, and was genuinely kind and caring. We wouldn't have made it to the summit without him! If you ever get the chance to climb in Tanzania, you are going to want Fred as your guide. Our whole crew were such special people and spoiled us. Erasto, our guide in training, was always there to help us, and was a huge support for us in getting to the summit. Chef Gasto made us fresh tasty soups with every meal, and cooked us more food than we could imagine. Loved the experience and cannot recommend this crew enough!

Amazing experience hiking from base camp to Mt. Meru summit and back down with Fred and his fantastic team. Fred’s experience of the mountain and the rest of the team’s incredible hard work helped make our trip a memorable and once in a lifetime experience. The porters do an unbelievable job carrying so much weight up the mountain and make it look easy. The chef was also great, we both have difficult dietary requirements and he made us something new every meal that catered to our needs. We made it to the summit for sunrise, after setting off from camp at 2am (a truly unique experience), and back down in one (exhausted) piece. Would highly recommend Suricata Safaris for your Mt. Meru adventure.