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Published: April 20th 2016
Day 8 (Nov 7) Kilimanjaro l - As expected the rain picked up just as we woke up for our big trek. Timothy picked us up again, with the crew including 2 guides, a cook, and 2 porters. We drove 2 hours with 8 of us crammed into the safari jeep with all our luggage and gear. Found out along the way that we'll be grabbing 6 more porters at the gate, which we didn't have sufficient tipping funds for, so we stopped at a bank and luckily took out enough money on the second try.
So, after waiting for an hour at the gate during registration and gear weighing, talking with a few other folks hiking the same route with other guides, we set out on our way. 8 porters, 2 guides and a cook just for the two of us.
The rain let up for the most part as we walked 6 miles through a lush rain forest, starting at 1,800 meters. The trail was very well maintained, where it used to be a muddy mess in years past apparently. Our porters shot by us with probably 50-60 lbs of gear each. The guides frustratingly went ridiculously
slow, as they have a motto of slow and steady (polé polé) to ensure their clients make it to the top. We finally made it to camp at 3,000 meters and the crew had all the tents set up, provided us warm water to clean with and hot tea. We had a "mess" tent set up for our dinner which one porter served as a waiter. We shared dinner and laughs with one guide, briefed the next day and went to bed. The clouds cleared by then and the stars were like a star map and provided a great view of Kili at dusk, and I saw a fireball (meter) shoot across the sky for a good 3 seconds. The clear sky made for a cold night but it was manageable.
Day 9 (Nov 8) Kilimanjaro ll - We woke up to beautiful sunshine and a view of our goal, which we won't see for 3 days. We were able to dry and warm our clothes for day 2. Guide 2 (Hussein) pointed out the ridge we were going to hit, 800 meters higher from camp. After a nice breakfast and coffee, the clouds came back but no rain,
which made for perfect hiking weather. Which was good as we walked straight up hill for roughly 3 miles up some slippery rocks which act as the wash during rainy season.
Stopped at the second to last ridge for a quick lunch and continued our way up another steep section. Hussein slipped and face planted somewhat, catching himself but cutting his finger in the process. Ang and I both had first aid kits to bandage it up. We reached the top, hiked downhill slightly for 1/2 mile and found camp set up for us again.
We washed up, joined the guide for a hot tea in the mess tent, just as it started to rain. A nice hour nap after that and then dinner. Went to the head one last time before bed and enjoyed another amazing clear night with tons of stars and two small meteors in just a few minutes. If it wasn't so damn cold I would sit outside and soak it up. Tossed and turned all night through another freezing evening.
Day 10 (Nov 9) Kilimanjaro lll - Woke up to some frigid air with ice on the ground and the tent. Perfectly
clear dawn views of Shira peak and Mt Muru in the distance. Angie is still battling through the remnants of her could but is being quite the trooper on the hike.
After breakfast, the sun is shining and we enjoy the first hour of the hike in the sun. The fog slowly rolls in but no rain as we continue up to Lava Tower at 4600 meters. We have lunch in the chilling high altitude air and begin our descent to camp.
A painful drop of 700 meters down some fairly difficult rocky terrain at times. We beat the rain yet again as we arrived to camp for a hot tea and a nap. An early dinner, and as we come out into the dusk of night we find the fog has temporarily cleared for a perfect Kodak moment of the two of us just below the Uhuru peak. Then a lightning and thunder show begins below our elevation. We hunker in for another frigid night as the rain creeps in. Quite sore at this point but confident in our ability to succeed. Just praying for another sunny morning the next two days as we head for the
summit.
Day 11 (Nov 10) Kilimanjaro lV - The night wasn't quite as cold as before, Angie slept much better, but I could only sleep for a few solid hours before tossing and turning the rest of the night. After breakfast we start off with 300 meters up "breakfast wall", basically rock climbing straight up for an hour.
We continue on over the ridge and descend 200 meters before ascending another ridge. We descend again another 300 meters before ascending a steep wall to Karungo camp. We have lunch there and notice two guys filming a documentary of a veteran with two prosthetic legs making the climb.
After lunch we head straight up another hill, almost non stop for 700 meters or 3 hours. The last two hours were above 13,000 ft with rain, freezing rain, and eventually snow. All the while poor Angie's nose wouldn't stop running so we had to stop numerous times for her to blow her nose. We both were reaching our mental and physical limits just as we arrived to camp in the snow.
Our porter/waiter Charles brought us tea in the tent and we took a nap hoping our clothes
would dry and the weather would turn for the better by the time of our scheduled midnight departure for the summit to catch the sunrise.
Day 12 (Nov 11) Kilimanjaro V - Woke up just before our 11pm wake up call to find the tent half collapsed on our heads from weight of the snow that had been falling. We struggle to find the motivation but depart for Kili anyway just after midnight as it continues to snow.
Thankfully our guides are very experienced and had no trouble finding the correct path up the mountain in the dark and covered in snow. The snow kept temperatures from dropping too low, so that was the one good thing about it. And it did stop after the first two hours. But after 3 hours of walking in the dark and snow straight up hill, our bodies began to fall apart. I can't tell you how many times we both said I have nothing left and we were only half way up to the initial peak (Stella at 18,800ft).
We were supposed to make it up there in 6 hours to catch the sunrise, but we were struggling and thankfully
caught the gorgeous sunrise as we approached the peak. I grabbed a few photos of glaciers and the Stella peak sign before the fog rolled in. Angie was absolutely spent, as was I, but when I saw Uhuru peak was just another half mile and 700 ft elevation gain I had to do it. And thankfully Amir, our guide, convinced Ang to go as well and held her arm the whole way up. They take pride in having their clients reach their goals and dreams.
We made it to the official peak, snapped a few photos, and headed back down as it was quite chilly. We both exhausted every ounce of energy during the climb, which took 8 hours instead of the expected 6. But somehow we managed to fly down the mountain in just 2 hours, with the help of a "shortcut" which basically involved sliding on our feet in the snow and dirt, straight down the mountain bypassing all the switchbacks.
We got back to camp, both with some reasonable altitude sickness of headaches and stomach aches. We napped for an hour, ate lunch, and then heading down the hill 1,500 meters for our last night
on Kili. It was a painful walk down, half of which in a dried wash filled with rocks. Our knees were destroyed by the end. Safe to say, even before the walk down the mountain, today was the most strenuous, exhausting, and brutal day I have ever put my body through. The usual hot water for cleaning was brought to the tent, followed by the usual tea and popcorn. We rested for a bit and enjoyed our last dinner with our guides.
Day 13 (Nov 12) Kilimanjaro Vl - We woke up to our typical coffee in bed (tent) at 6am, the hot water for washing at 6:30, and breakfast at 7. We finished breakfast and came out of the mess tent, as the entire crew gathered together and began singing us a Kilimanjaro congratulations song. Pretty special. We gave thanks and gave each of them an envelope to show our appreciation. There were not many people on the mountain, which was great, but I can guarantee our crew was the loudest. And that's a good thing. All porters who passed us looked miserable and were pretty quiet at camp, ours always had a smile and would not stop
smiling and telling jokes to one another. Apparently it's great "guy time" where they don't have to have a filter.
So we left our crew for our final stroll down 1,300 meters of a better trail but still quite painful with lots of steps. Beautiful walk through the rain forest though. We finally made it down and took one final group photo with our guides, who we made a pretty strong connection with. Amir said he will text us when he proposes to his gf next spring. (It's now April and I did get that confirmation text. Congrats Amir!)
We got our certificate and headed for Moshi. We stopped for a nice hot lunch with our guides and then drove 10km out of town to another beautiful secluded resort, where we appear to be the only people staying at. Nothing is around here even if we wanted to check out the town. I immediately jumped in for a hot shower, which was amazing. Poor Angie got about 3 minutes before it turned cold. Not the refreshing shower she was hoping for after the difficult hike.
We grabbed an early dinner and hit the hay early extremely exhausted.
Pretty horrible night sleep as the AC didn't work and it got quite stuffy and hot in the room. The mosquito nets didn't close all the way and I got buzzed a few times and bit once. Not the R&R we were hoping for.
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Pallav
non-member comment
good going!
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