Located to the east of Arusha town, about 20 kilometers drive from Arusha; Mount Meru is the second highest mountain in Tanzania. The mountain stands at an altitude of 4566 meters above sea level inside the Arusha National Park.
Meru has one route to the top and can be attempted for three days but we highly recommend doing for four days for acclimatization. Most alpines uses Meru for acclimatization before the Kilimanjaro climb. The mountain has less snow formed at the volcano eruption.
Unlike Kilimanjaro when you are climbing the Mount Meru you have to be escorted by an armed ranger(s) as you pass through the Arusha National Park. It is at this time when you will enjoy the walking safari as you pass the groups of African buffaloes, Zebras, Black andwhite colobus monkey just little wildlife to mention.
The Momela and Ngurdoto Lakes are rich in birdlife as you trek to the mountain; birds like Pelicans and Flamingo are closely seen.
Mount Meru Over view:
Mount Meru is sub-Sahara Africa’s third highest mountain. Meru’s last minor eruption occurred around 1877. Since then activity has been negligible, with small tremors occurring occasionally.
The crater wall of Mount Meru was ruptured by a series of violent explosions a quarter of a million years ago. These explosions may have been caused by the vent becoming blocked or by water from a crater –lake seeping into it. This caused the whole eastern wall of the crater to be blown away.