It’s peak selfie as Kilimanjaro gets wi-fi at the top
Africa’s tallest mountain will take social media exposure to new heights thanks to a high-speed internet connection enabling trekkers to post instant selfies from the summit.
Bringing broadband to Mt Kilimanjaro will improve its appeal to tourists and keep them safer, said Nape Nnauve, Tanzania’s information minister. ‘‘The internet access will enable them to make a call right from the freezing point,’’ he said. The 5895m mountain is key to ambitions by the east African nation to reboot its tourism sector, which contributes 18% of its GDP. Kilimanjaro draws up to 50,000 visitors a year and having access to the internet would not only make the ascent to the ‘‘Roof of Africa’’ less onerous but would also boost the profile of the Unesco world heritage site, the minister said.
New low-tech arrangements may also be needed to mitigate the wi-fi’s likely consequences. Hikers battling with Kibo Peak’s altitude and low temperatures are reporting lengthening queues to get pictures at the summit’s signpost. The rising popularity of TikTok has left groups less willing to settle for mere selfies, opting instead for ambitious musical recitals and dance routines.
The eighties soft-rock hit Africa by the US band Toto has become a firm summit soundtrack because of its lyric ‘‘Kilimanjaro rises like Olympus above the Serengeti’’ – even though Africa’s highest peak is not actually visible from Tanzania’s best-known national park.
Predictions that there would be no more snow on Kilimanjaro before we entered this decade has also spurred a rush to see its white cap before it vanished for ever.
An Inconvenient Truth, the 2006 documentary on climate change written and fronted by Al Gore, the former US vice-president, is cited by many visitors for making the mountain a so-called ‘‘bucket list’’ priority.
However, it won’t be just the fit who will be able to claim Kilimanjaro bragging rights if the government pushes ahead with plans to build a US$72 million (NZ$115m) cable car on the established Machame route, on its southern flank.