Uhuru Peak - Kilimanjaro

Uhuru Peak is the highest peak of Kilimanjaro: 5895 m. It is also the highest point in Africa.

It is one of the 3 volcanic peaks that the mountain has: Kibo (5895m), Mawenzi (5149m) and Shira (3962m). Kibo is the only volcano that is dormant and can erupt again.

Uhuru is Swahili for "freedom" and a term used during the struggle for independence as a British colony. On December 8, 1961 , Brigadier Alexander Nyirenda was ordered to raise the Torch of Liberty and the flag of Tanzania at the top of Mount Kilimanjaro . When the flag was raised on Uhuru Peak, the Union Jack was lowered at National Stadium as a sign that times had changed. Until then , the peak was known as the Kaiser-Wilhelm-Spitze . This is the name of the first mountaineer who reached the summit on October 6, 1889 during an expedition led by the German Hans Meyer. In 1964 the name was changed.

The great height and size of the mountain affects gravity as it is difficult to know where it is going up . As a result, you can get lost as the summit doesn't feel like the highest point!

Willem Vandenameele