Trek Day 1 - Off and running...

---

Marangu Gate (1860 m/6100 ft) - Mandara Huts (2700m/8860 ft)
Walking distance: 8 km/5 miles
Walking time: 3-4 hours
Altitude gain: 840 m/2760 ft

After arriving late the previous night into Tanzania we were up early for breakfast and departure to the starting point for our trek. It took an hour to drive from Moshi to the Marangu Gate, the starting point for our assault on Kilimanjaro. We were joined by our lead guide, Michael; doctor Alfred who would accompany us on the trek as well as many assistant guides and loads of porters to carry all the luggage and food.

We had our first taste of 'Tanzanian time' as it took us nearly two hours to register the group before we could enter the national park and start the walk.

When we finally got underway the first days terrain was thick rainforest and low cloud with no views of the challenge ahead. It was our first experience of the "poley, poley" approach to climbing Kili which literally means "slowley, slowley". Whilst we both found the pace slower than we would normally walk, we amused ourselves getting to know our fellow climbers and guides and saw monkeys in the trees.

We stopped for lunch on route and had our first experience of the organisation and hospitality of the cooks and porters as they had raced up an alternate route and were busy preparing our lunch when we arrived at the designated spot. Nutritious leek soup and a meat dish followed by fruit, all served on a table cloth with paper napkins and cups of tea!

After finishing lunch we continued into the rainforest with the clouds thickening around us for a few more hours. We arrived into our first camp at 5:30pm at which time the clouds were surrounding the camp. We were allocated a four man hut with our tour leader and another guy which weren't huge but provided a dry and comfortable place to sleep. After another tasty dinner we retired to our sleeping bags for a surprising good nights sleep.

---

Photos

Hotel reception in Moshi
Nice touch...

Pillow case
Just in case we forgot where we went to sleep

Ready to go
The group ready to go...

Registration
Fresh and naive....

Rainforest
The walking pace was set slow by our guide Michael.

Preparing Lunch
The porters cooked up delicious soups and hot meals 3 times a day

Lunch
Table clothes and napkins, posher than home.

Mandara Huts
Low cloud was with us for the first 2 days hampering our views of the surroundings.

Hut at Mandara
Basic but dry.