I had less than 3 hours of sleep and got up at 10pm. I forced down a few cookies and tea...then at 11pm sharp, about 10 of us started the slow hike to Uhuru Peak - the top of Kilimanjaro. Hiking in the dark was scary. Winds were blowing at 40 miles per hour and temperature was less than 30 degrees when we started the climb. My head lamp went out 10 mintues into the hike (the battery stopped working when the weather gets too cold). I had to follow someone who had a decent head lamp the rest of the way. The hose to my camelback (even though it was insulated) froze within half an hour of the hike. It didn't occur to me that I should turn back. I kept on walking, one step ... read more

Barranco Hut to Karanga Valley (13,000') Most of the hike today was over steep hills...climbing up and down without the use of my trekking poles for the first 3 hours. It was foggy for the most part. Certain parts of the hike reminded me of the "Planet of the Apes"...moon like, devoided of life. I saw many stones were stacked together to form a temple like structure. It appeared to point to certain direction or to indicate the trail. Regardless of its purpose, I found the stones beautiful to look at. Near the campsite, I took several snap shoots at the peak. Sometimes by the time I had my camera out, the fog had covered the peak. It seemed like Mt. Kili was playing a game of hide-and-seek with me. The stars were amazing to look ... read more

Machame Hut to Shira Hut (12,300') I felt weak today. I had soup for breakfast and lunch. The hike was noticeably more difficult than yesterday due to the gain in altitude. I got to camp after 4pm and lied down in the tent. * I did not have an appetite for dinner...just had soup again. Afraid that I was going to have to turn back the next day, I finally took an anti-nausea pill at night and felt much better the next morning. ... read more

I almost forgot that it was Christmas. Dates and holidays seemed less relevant when you are not surrounded by friends and family. The only signs of Christmas at Moshi were the plastic trees and the annoying "jingle bell" song played over and over again at the hotel lobby. I set out to explore the town a bit with Sherry this morning. Madhu and I met Sherry during the bus ride from Nairobi. Sherry is one of the 28 people on the bootsnall Kilimanjaro/Safari tour. The people greeted us with "jambo" (hello). One little boy came up and sang "happy birthday" to me (it was not my birthday). The streets were dusty. The air was hot and humid. We turned the corner and came upon the local market bustling with open stalls selling everything from produce, healing ... read more

The goal for the last weekend before the trip was to summit Mt. Diablo in Concord, CA, via the Mitchell Canyon Road trail. The elevation gain … about 3,300 ft, round trip about 15 miles. The weather forecast said it would rain in the evening. I figured Madhavi and I should have enough time to get back before the rain set in… On the way to the staging area on Mitchell Canyon Road… hmm, strange….there was a mining operation right next to residential houses. There were few cars parked at the lot. I can see why….the weather didn’t look too good. * First mile, saw some beautiful fall color. Third mile, getting very misty. The mist covered the mountain range. I felt like I was walking on clouds. Five miles into the hike, rain started pouring. ... read more