Ol Doinyo Lengai Trekking

Best hike for your bucket list 11.2km (7 miles) round trip, 6–12 hours, challenging

About 240km (149 miles) from Arusha town in the Great Rift Valley, Ol Doinyo Lengai is known as the Mountain of God by the Maasai people who live in this region. It’s an active volcano, and the unleashing of its fiery lava has led people to attribute a celestial origin to this dramatic peak. Local people walk to its summit to ask the gods for what they need, be it rain or children, or a suitable spouse.

It is located in northern Tanzania lying just south of Lake Natron in the Rift Valley, in the heart of Maasai country, and is locally regarded as a sacred mountain. Looking north from its summit crater, the hot barren salt flats of Lake Natron stretch into the distance. To the south stretch the crater Highlands and the Ngorongoro Game Reserve. The eastern horizons are dominated by Kilimanjaro and to the west, the forested escarpments and hills comprise the western slopes of the Rift Valley. Every seven years Lengai erupts and plumes of smoke billow out of the crater.

Geologists often describe Ol Doinyo Lengai as the strangest volcano in the world because of its “cold” black lava, which has a low viscosity and a low temperature (for lava) of 500°C to 700°C. Hikers know the massif as one of the most challenging summits to climb in Tanzania. It’s considerably harder than hiking Kilimanjaro. The trek climbs over volcanic ash and gravelly earth on steep inclines, and typically starts at midnight, requiring hikers to move slowly, sometimes going on all fours to secure a hold on the jagged rocks.

If you dare look up from the seemingly treacherous, narrow paths, the trek offers views of magnificent meteor showers and shooting stars. Then when the sun rises as you stand on the mountain’s peak, the silhouettes of Kilimanjaro and Meru and the Serengeti plains come into view. Looking down from above the clouds at the earth’s stillness and beauty, you might feel a bit like a god yourself.

The northernmost (and youngest) volcano in the Crater Highlands, Ol Doinyo Lengai (2878m), ‘Mountain of God’ in the Maasai language, is an almost perfect cone with steep sides rising to a small, flat-topped peak. It’s still active, last erupting in 2008. At the peak, you can see hot steam vents and growing ash cones in the north crater. Climbing the mountain is possible, but it’s a serious undertaking – you’ll need a guide, stamina, and a head for heights.

Tips for climbing Ol Doinyo Lengai: Trekking to the top of Ol Doinyo Lengai is often combined with a safari in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area so speak to your tour operator about your intended itinerary. Most people spend the day swimming at the nearby Ngare Sero Waterfall or canoeing on Lake Natron to watch the breeding flamingoes, before setting out for the summit at nightfall. Fees paid to the tour operator include park fees, conservation fees, and rescue fees.

Above all, there is a series of mountains in Tanzania like Mt. Hanang 3417 m, and Udzungwa 2576 m with so many mountains the list missing out Oldonyo Lengai with 2878 m, and its active volcano pours to the lower part of Masai land. In Tanzania even unfetters ones will hike and conquer our magnificence peaks and be rewarded with a lifetime experience.