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Published: April 18th 2010
Mom's First Backpack
She had no idea what to do with it, cute really.Well, I finally did it! I conquered my goal to reach the top of Mt. Kilimanjaro! It only took two tries!
What made this trip really special as well, was that I was able to do it with my mother, and two great family friends. Mom arrived mid-week while I still had 2 days of work. She had some time to relax and get used to the time change, while I tended to the last few things that I needed to do before leaving. On Thursday, April 1, we left with plenty of time to get to the airport and be there 1.5 hours before our flight. Unfortunately, holiday traffic was against us, and it took well over 2.5 hours to get there! Needless to say, we missed our flight, and there were no more flights going out that evening. All flights for the following day, Good Friday, were completely booked, and we were left SOL and needed to get to Arusha by the following night, in time to prepare for our Kilimanjaro start time on Saturday morning. In the end, our most reliable, but by no means cheapest, option was to hire a car and driver to drive us 8
hours to Kilimanjaro. So, we were picked up Friday morning at 6:30 am and drove for 8 hours (giving Mom a scenic tour of Tanzanian countryside as well as Tanzanian driving skills), reaching our hotel in Kilimanjaro in the late afternoon.
We unpacked all of our clothes and equipment for inspection, borrowed extra items from the hotel, met up with Michael and Peter, and then had our last normal dinner before the climb. The following morning we had a relaxed breakfast, a briefing about the mountain and what to expect on our upcoming climb, met our team, and eventually got onto the mountain! What follows is my account of our experience, with the descriptions provided by the hotel in bold for each day.
Day 1: Marangu to Mandara Hut- 9,000 feet. After breakfast, packing is completed and vehicles will take your party to the park entrance, roughly 4 miles from Marangu Hotel. At the park entrance, you enter the rain forest for a gentle 3 hour walk to Mandara. This can be done much faster but it is the first day of your climb and there is absolutely no point in rushing it. The slower the better for Snack Packing
Putting together our snack bags for the coming days' walks. the eventual success of your safari. It is worth the gentle walk to enjoy the beauty of the scenery. Wherever you feel like it you can stop for your packed lunch. Once you do reach the hut it is likely that you will have time on your hands before the evening. You may like to walk to the Maundi Crater at the upper edge of the rain forest, about half an hour’s walk from the hut, which is very pretty and from where you can obtain some lovely views. In the evening, a cooked meal will be prepared in the modern and comfortable huts, lit by solar power; and the following morening you will be awoken with a cup of tea, and warm water will be provided for washing.
This was a very nice and easy day. We walked at a leisurely pace, enjoyed the rainforest atmosphere, and began our group bonding. We stopped for lunch about 1.5 hours into our walk, and then continued another 1.5 hours to our camp. It started raining as soon as we got to camp, so we threw on our rain coats to check in and find our hut for the night. The huts
My Stuff
Out for inspection before packing up for the week. were simple little cabins, designed by Norwegians, with beds, some floor space, occasional working lights, and absolutely no insulation. The cold from outside makes its' way into the cabin very easily, and several sleeping layers were absolutely necessary for this tropically accustomed girl. We had what was to become our daily ritual of tea time and snacks, time in the cabin to organize for the night/next day, bowls of hot water to wash face and hands with, and then our carb-infused dinner, with tea/ hot chocolate. Overall, it was a very nice and easy day to start of the trip, and not make us too intimidated about what was yet to come.
Day 2: Mandara to Horombo Hut- 12,500 feet. After a cooked breakfast you will leave Mandara at about 8 o’clock. The first half hour or so continues through the rain forest after which you emerge into alpine meadow for the approximately 10 mile walk to Horombo. If the day is clear there are splendid views to be had of both peaks and also of the plains stretching away below the mountain. The vegetation around is also spectacular, especially higher up where you might see giant lobelia. As Our Crew
Guides, Porters, Cooks, etc for the week! you go higher the vegetation thins and you may experience some of the effects of altitude, commonly shortness of breath.
Unfortunately, Day 2 did not start as easily for me as Day 1. I woke up feeling ill, and was very worried that the altitude was already affecting me, despite the loads of drugs that my doctor prescribed me to help prevent any illnesses this time around! My stomach was completely distended, making my backpack strap ill-fitting, and making me look like I was suddenly several months' pregnant! The entire morning is a blur, and about 3 hours into the walk, I finally gave in, and vomited. That seemed to be a turning point, and afterwards I started feeling much, much better. We deduced that it was in fact not the altitude which affected me, but the massive amount of bread that I had consumed the day before! I cut bread out of my diet for the rest of the week, and all was fine! Hallelujah! One less obstacle to deal with on the mountain!
We had a long, long day of walking- about 6.5 hours, but we did have clear skies and many great views of both Kibo and
Mawenzi peaks. We walked slowly, enjoying the views and taking breaks to relax and hear stories about the vegetation, craters, and other sites that we'd seen. I definitely felt shortness of breath, as did Mom, but Peter and Michael were seemingly unaffected by altitude! Lucky! We arrived at camp in the late afternoon, had our tea time ritual, and then had some down time to talk to other travelers, who had already been up to the summit and were en route back down. Very motivating to hear success stories! We had another carb-loaded dinner, and then rested up for our following day, a very relaxed day to come!
Day 3: Horombo Extra Day- 12,500 feet. Some people choose to spend an extra day at Horombo Hut on the ascent. This day is spent walking up towards the saddle between the peaks of Kibo and Mawenzi. The important point to remember about this extra day is not to become overtired by attempting to climb as high as possible during the day in the hope of becoming better acclimatised. I am so, so glad that we chose an extra day to our hike. We had a leisurely wake up and
Bag o' Potatoes
Michael attempts to balance a 50lb bag of potatoes on his head, like our porter did. He wasn't very good at it. breakfast time, and then did a 1.5 hour walk up to Zebra Rock, which is near the base of Mawenzi peak. We enjoyed the views, and used the time to walk slowly and let our bodies acclimatize to the added altitude. Mom had some struggles on this day, so it was especially good that we had the extra day to acclimatize for her. When we got to Zebra Rock, so named because of the white stripes running across the face, making it look similar to a zebra, we relaxed and enjoyed the sunny weather and beautiful landscapes. Peter and Michael chose to go on with our head guide, Philipo, a little further up the mountain, to get another view of Kibo peak. Mom and I headed back to camp to relax in the sunshine with books, journals, hot water soaks for our feet, and even some snacks. It was such a nice day, to be able to relax, and enjoy our time on the mountain for a bit, without worrying about walking for a long time, being tired, or any other troubles the mountain might give us!
Day 4: Horombo to Kibo Hut- 15,500 feet. After breakfast start the First Camp!
Day 1: complete! climb to Kibo Hut. At this stage you are closer to Mawenzi than to Kibo, and the climb appears to be taking you to the wrong peak. There is a more direct route to Kibo which the porters use, but it is not advisable on the ascent, as the route you will follow will assist in a more gradual acclimatisation, and there is the added advantage of spectacular views of Mawenzi from just under the peak. Until you reach the saddle the terrain is very similar to the previous day; once on the saddle which resembles semi-desert, you can see clearly across to Kibo Hut which seems scarcely any distance away but is in fact some few hours walk. Again, take this slowly in order to acclimatise. The last half hour to the hut can be very tiring as the hut is some way up the peak, and the sight of the next day’s path can be pretty daunting, but most people recover some strength after a few hours’ rest.
The previous day was definitely helpful, as we all started day 4 with some extra strength and bounce in our steps- our slow, slow steps of course. It's a
good thing we were so well-rested too, because this day was not easy, by any means. We had gorgeous clear weather, with great views of both peaks while we walked. Most of the walk was on a long, uninteresting, dirt path, which we had to take slowly because of the altitude, which seemed to make it all the more long and uninteresting. About halfway into the walk, you are able to see the destination camp, and summit path, on the peak, which makes it seem like you are almost there, while you really still have several hours' worth of walking ahead. The altitude hit us more and more as we walked, and the last hour, involved some slowing down (who even knew that was possible?!) and many more breaks. One of the most unfortunate parts about this day's path is that the terrain is completely barren desert. Not such a bad deal, except for when you are a woman, walking for 6-7 hours, needing to pee. Talk about strategic pee spots! I'd scope rocks out from a distance and hope they were as big as I imagined by the time we got up close, so that I could actually hide
behind it! Sometimes, it was. Luckily, the park also realized how difficult this path was for women with bladders, and there were some strategically located, albeit smelly, latrines along the way. We finally made it to our final hut around 3:30pm. We unpacked our layers of clothing for the evening's summit attempt, prepared our beds, and then had an early dinner at 5pm. By 6pm we were preparing for bed, and at 7 we lay down to try and get some hours of sleep. I did not manage any sleep. Due to the cement block that was our room having zero insulation again, Mom and I cuddled in one bunk, with 3 sleeping bags and a blanket for warmth. I was nice and cozy, but not able to sleep, knowing my upcoming summit attempt was either going to make or break my life goal, for a second time.
Day 5: Kibo Hut to Summit, Descent to Horombo Hut. You will be woken shortly after midnight with a hot drink, and then you put on all your warm clothing. The first part of the ascent to the Hans Meyer cave is quite indirect, going around large rock outcrops and The toilet huts
These actually flushed! it is not as steep as the latter part. The surface is loose and hard going and it is very important to pace yourself. After the cave the scree slope becomes extremely steep and you have to climb in a zig zag fashion. It takes an average of 6 hours to cover the 4 miles from Kibo Hut to Gilman’s Point on the crater rim. If you are lucky you will see a fiery sunrise from behind Mawenzi. Gilman’s Point, at 18,683 feet is acknowledged to be the top and you will receive a certificate from the Park authorities for reaching it. From here, there are splendid views of the ice cliffs across the crater. After a rest, if you feel able, if weather and time permit, and, most importantly, if your guide says it is possible, you can attempt to reach Uhuru Peak around the crater rim. This is about another one and a half to two hours’ walk. If you reach Uhuru you will get a different, gold, certificate, and the satisfaction of having reached the roof of Africa! The descent that follows is, in some ways, as difficult as the ascent. You will be tired, and the
Our camp
All the silly Norwegian huts- no insulation. slope has lost none of its steepness. Back at Kibo Hut, you will have a rest, take off a lot of your warm clothing which will be packed into your kit bags. Then you will continue to Horombo Hut, this time by the more direct route. This is a long and tiring day, and you will be sure to sleep well.
At 11 o'clock, we were "woken up" to dress and prepare for the summit. We were given some tea and snacks, though nobody was really all that hungry at the time. At 11:45, we departed camp and began our summit. It was hard from the start. Much harder than all of the other days. It was also much steeper than the other days. We weaved back and forth, through thick, slippery skree, trying not to fall over from clumsiness, poor grounding, or exhaustion- or a combination of the three. After about an hour, Mom was ready to throw in the towel, but our guides wouldn't take no for an answer, and separated her from the group, so she could go at a slower pace, with her own personal guide. The rest of us continued up... I counted
200 to 250 steps between breaks for water or breath-catching, which helped me to keep a goal in mind to get through the night. It was here that I learned one thing about myself, and one thing about the guides.
What I learned about myself: I am very good at getting inside my own head, in a very manic-depressive way. I silently battled with myself for most of the hours going up to the summit, convincing myself that this was not fun, I needed more air, and I should just go back down to the camp. Two minutes later, I'd realize that I was not experiencing any altitude sickness, was just tired, but otherwise totally capable of making it up to the top of this mountain! Back and forth my mind went, silently I listened to both sides, but never voiced concerns out loud- knowing that the real, and only option, was to get to the top. Occasionally, I tried to alleviate my dueling minds by asking how far we were, how far we still had to go, etc. Conversations would go something like this:
Alex: Are we halfway yet?
Guide: No.
Alex: Are we almost halfway?
Guide: No.
Alex:
How much longer til halfway (expecting to hear: 30 minutes)?
Guide: Maybe 2 hours.
Alex: Seriously? Seriously?!
-Enter depressive state of mind-
What I learned about the guides: Water is their Windex. I don't know if you've seen the movie "My Big Fat Greek Wedding," but in the movie, the father is obsessed with Windex, and think it can cure any ailment, from a pimple to a broken bone. Well, our guides felt the same way about drinking water, and they may have been right! Any time I needed to stop to catch my breath, I was encouraged to "drink some water." Anytime I complained about pain in my chest, feeling ill (Day 2), or anything else, I was encouraged to "drink some water." When I got a headache, from having a headlamp wrapped around my forehead for so many hours without respite, I was encouraged to "drink some water." And so it went all week, and all the way up the summit. Until we got to the top, at which point we were told to "drink some tea." Water can do many, many things- and at this point I'm convinced that the gallons of water that I drank
Second Camp
Slightly rainy while walking up that mountain, definitely helped to get me to the top.
Just before we reached the 5000m mark, we learned that Mom had decided to definitely turn back. She did an amazing job and gave it an excellent effort, and we're all very proud of how far she made it. Such an accomplishment! We continued on, past the Hans Meyer Cave, past the midway mark, and on towards the top of the mountain.
Needless to say, the switchbacks continued, and the climb became steeper and steeper. We were surrounded by an ice cloud for much of the climb, turning everything we were wearing into a finely iced layer, even my braids in my hair! We couldn't see more than a foot around ourselves, much less where we were headed! I relied heavily on Peter to help me out, as I was basically only capable of reminding myself to breathe, and take each step at a time. So, Peter became like my hand-maiden, putting chapstick on for me, providing me with pieces of chocolate to eat so I could keep up some energy, etc. I tried once or twice to suck on a Werther's or other hard
candy, but found the taste was far too overwhelming at that altitude and immediately had to spit them out for fear of getting sick!
Eventually, we started to walk past snow! That was encouraging, as anyone that's seen the summit from a plane, postcard, or anywhere else, knows that the snow is only really near the top. Some more "how much longer" conversations ensued, where I was always dead wrong about my estimated times. And soon, we were faced with the final hurdle of the summit- a giant pile of rocks. In order to get to the top of the mountain, at the very end of the 6 hour walk up, in the middle of the night, freezing cold temperatures, while completely exhausted, you have to spend the last 30 minutes clambering over rocks. Yes, clambering. Walking sticks become useless, as you need your hands to pull yourself up and around each rock bed.
And then finally at 5:50am, I made it to the top of Mt. Kilimanjaro. I cried. Several times. We took some photos, none of which I remember in my state of delirium, and then sat and drank some tea. Our guides were thrilled, and
Inside Hut #2
Nice and spacious compared to our first hut. sang us some songs. Other groups started to join us up top, some people threw up, others tried to find a not too open spot to pee in, but the general atmosphere was jubilant and super supportive. We decided to continue on to Uhuru peak, the highest point in all of Africa. I began to join the group in the walk but immediately felt my body lose all ability to breath. I became very nervous of 1.5-2 hours worth of walking with such difficulty breathing, and decided to cut my losses and head down, happy I'd finally made it to the top at least. So, down I went, while Michael and Peter continued on.
I don't know if it was my delirium, the fact that I haven't been skiing in 3 years and miss it so much, or what, but I very much enjoyed the first half of the descent from the summit. The thick, loose skree, is much like snow, in that you can just dig your heels in and "ski" straight down the mountain! I totally let loose and did so. I fell, once, but it didn't hurt, so I was encouraged to keep pushing myself. Once the
skree runs out and you're just on rocky ground, that you have to walk down, it becomes much less fun, and you realize how tired you are. You can see the camp as you go down, and it just keeps getting farther away! It really felt like it took 4 hours to get down the mountain, both because I was exhausted and because I really just wanted to be there already. In reality, what took 6 hours to go up, took me less than 2 hours to go down, and at 8:20am, I was back in camp. I cried upon arriving down there and being greeted by our cook, congratulating me on finally making the summit. Then, I walked into the room to see my mom, and cried again. I knew that she wouldn't know if I was crying out of happiness or sadness for not making it, so as soon as I saw her and burst into tears, I also made sure to blubber out "Mummie, I did it!" We hugged, and then I changed out of my layers of clothing, as the sun was out and it was no longer below freezing. I was afraid of passing out
Kibo!!!
The peak of Mt. Kilimanjaro, as viewed from midway up the mountain! and not waking up in time to make it down to the next camp we still had to walk to, so I set about looking for food and drink. Once I accomplished that, I packed up my bags so that I was totally ready for the next walk down, and then Mom and I set ourselves up at a picnic table outside, congratulating people as they came off the mountain, and watching for Peter and Michael. 3 hours later, they arrived, we ate some lunch, and then we headed off for another 3 hours of walking to our camp for the night.
Longest. Day. Ever.
We were delirious, hauling butt downhill, trying to get to camp as quickly as possible, hoping to get there, get into bed, and wake up the next morning. I don't think I can lucidly recall any conversation that we had, though I know we talked pretty much non-stop the whole way down, trying to keep each other awake. Michael and I also did a lot of singing- I believe our playlist included some Lion King, Pocahontas, Rocky Theme song, and other glorious hits. We were met with rain, for the first real time in the
Looking down from the Mountain
Yep, above the clouds. We felt like gods. week. Ponchos were thrown on, waterproof pants were pulled on, bags were covered, etc. This made us even more tired and cranky, and ready to be in bed. We finally got to camp, changed clothes, prepared our beds, and Mom, Peter, and Michael napped for a few hours until dinner. I turned on my phone to let family and friends know that I'd made it to the top, only to be met with heart stopping news that my beloved pup, Kibo, had gone into a coma the previous evening and was teetering on the brink of death, poison being the suspected cause. I was hysterical, but there was nothing I could do while still on the mountain. What I needed was to sleep, clear my head, and then get back to Dar as soon as I was off the mountain. I skipped dinner, in favor of sleep, and had a glorious 12 hours of sleep, not waking up once through the night. Amazing.
Day 6: Horombo Hut to the Park Gate. Today you complete the trip back to the Park Gate, still going slowly so as not to sprain an ankle or twist a knee. At the Gate Mawenzi Peak
"The Ugly Sister" on Mt. Kilimanjaro. vehicles will be waiting to take you back to the hotel to the luxury of a hot bath and a cold beer.
I woke up to 20 text messages from my Dad, encouraging me that Kibo would get through her ordeal, plus several other messages from sisters and friends, all of which helped me to start my day out on a positive note, and enjoy my last day on the mountain. We had a long, 6 hour, walk down the mountain. We had some light showers, lots of mud, and a few slips and spills, but all in all were in high enough spirits, as we knew that there was a light at the end of the tunnel. The walk down wasn't easy, especially since it was so long for the last day, but we did it! We passed several groups on their way up, and dealt with our continuing moral battle: "do we wish them good luck and leave it at that, or do we tell them it'll be fun, tell them the truth that it's not so fun, or what?" We tended to stick to just wishing them lucky, cursing those that told us to "have
Zebra Rock
A nice little jaunt for our "day off." fun" on the way up, since they knew better.
Finally, we made it down to the base station! We signed the log books to let the park know how high we each got, then piled into the hotel car. We got back to the hotel and had our first showers/baths of the week- luxury! We then met up with our porters, cooks, and guides for our end of trip celebration. We shared some beers, speeches, photographs, and received our Park Certificates. The guides sang us songs, we sang them a song, and they even granted me honorary Tanzanian citizenship, due to my bumbling attempts at Swahili over the course of the week, and in my thank you speech that night. It was all very touching, and we had such an amazing group to help us get to the top. After about an hour, the celebrations ended and the guys all went home to see their own families for the first time all week, and we went off to have our final group dinner. At 4:45am, I flew back to Dar to take care of my pup. *She miraculously survived, and is on the mend now, thank goodness!*
I am
Our guides
The crazy hat was in honor of Easter Monday. so glad that Mom, Peter and Michael were able to make this trip with me. They were so supportive and encouraging the entire time, and it was their help that got me up that mountain. It was such a great group to spend the week with, and I wouldn't have made it any other way.
I made it!!!!
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mom
non-member comment
amazing week
I have great admiration for Alex doing this 2nd time .. knowing what awaits one at the top ...one does test oneself .. An amazing trip - great camaraderie in seriously fantastic setting. I will never forget this - thanks Alex!! Mom xx