So it's been about a full week since
successfully climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro.
Sorry, I cut right to the chase. No
build up, no suspense in making you wondering if I made it or not. My
sincerest apologies.
I tried writing a nice, flowing entry
about the whole experience when I got back but I realized too many
wonderful thoughts and feelings were spinning around my head to allow
true justice in writing. I typed, deleted, retyped, deleted some more
but could not produce anything I felt happy with writing. So, I
simply decided I would just jump in and create this entry through
free flow writing.
Anyways, I decided only about 2.5 weeks
ago that I would actually sign up and climb Mt. Kilimanjaro. I had
packed as though I would but I never had a set plan and I was
honestly on the fence...up until I booked. Kind of wild considering
the task at hand: climbing the tallest free standing mountain in the
world.
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Summit of Kilimanjaro peaking over the clouds on the drive in.
Yeah, that's a big mountain. |
The simple fact is this: aside from
loving the outdoors, hiking and camping, I realized that over the
past three months, I have seriously lacked any feelings of
accomplishment. That's not saying anything beyond exactly what I
said. It is just the truth. With that, it came time to strive for a
goal, work towards an area of achievement, literally reach the
tallest peak.
All of a sudden, this climb became a
little more overwhelming with so much at stake. Not only was I
attempting to climb to unfamiliar altitudes but I was placing much
more to attain on Uhuru peak. Call if foolish, but it truly all
occurred subconsciously. I certainly wouldn't want to make this climb
any harder than it needed to be, however, it was the reality behind
this journey.
Well, on May 17th, I boarded
a bus down to Arusha, Tanzania to meet with my guide and prepare for
the next day's ascent. Long story short, after a little police and
immigration officer shake down at the Kenya-Tanzania border, I bribed
my way across and was able to start my adventure as planned. That
story can be continued in detail, at a later date, over a nice, cold
beer if you're interested.
Without further adieu, I began at the
Machame gate on May 18th, packed up and ready to go. Most
groups are comprised of a guide, a cook and however many porters are
needed to load the gear up the mountain. First off, I had the hardest
time wrapping my head around the fact I needed all these people to
accompany me up the mountain; however, it's just the way it works
when you want to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro. I felt it was silly for
someone else to carry my gear since I carry all my needed gear each
time I hike and camp at home; furthermore, these guys already carry
upwards of 40lbs of gear without having to bear the load of my stuff.
With that, my pack weighed in around 30lbs with everything minus a
tent and food (I did carry approx 3-4 liters each day).
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Porter with an insane amount of gear.
I said they must have exoskeletons to be able to carry so much. |
Anyways, the nerves were already in
full swing and I was trying my hardest not to work myself up over the
unknown that the next 6 days held and this powerful peak that was set
before my eyes.
Day one: Machame gate
to Machame camp; distance 7 miles; altitude gain 4000ft; time 3.5
hrs; final altitude 9,350ft above sea level.
It was a beautiful trail through the
rainforest. I learned really quickly that this was unlike a “normal”
hike where it's up and down; this is a constant ascent and it
requires some pacing. Needless to say, I had sweat my face off and
knew the next day would require a change in style.
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| Rainforest trail |
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| View of summit from 1st camp; exciting and nerve wracking at the same time |
Day two: Machame camp to Shira camp;
distance 3 miles; altitude gain 3000ft; time 3 hrs; final altitude
12,500ft above sea level.
Fantastic hike. Left the rainforest and
entered into the moorlands, where the ascent was steep and rocky.
Some really great foggy parts that left you only able to focus on the
trail ahead, which then turned into beautiful vistas of Mt. Meru when
clear. I got into the groove of hiking/ascending and was feeling
great!
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| Mt. Meru when the clouds cleared. |
Sunset was obviously fantastic and the backdrop of Uhuru peak
was becoming closer. I'll say although amazing to hike closer and
closer to Uhuru peak each day, it was definitely a challenge to
mentally keep yourself focused on the day's hike at hand and not
become overly concerned with the end point, which was miles, days,
and thousands of feet of altitude away.
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| Incredible sunset with Meru in the background |
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| View of summit just up from camp |
Day three: Shira camp to Laver tower
to Barranco camp; distance 6 miles total; altitude gain to Lava tower
2700ft, descended 2150ft to Barranco camp; time 5 hours; altitude at
Lava tower 15,200 ft above sea level, Baranco 13,050ft above sea
level
Felt like I was hiking on the moon;
boulder fields and just complete lack of vegetation (other than some
lichen here and there). This hike was physically easier but stirred
the nerves. The altitude at Lava tower was of considerable altitude
and really proved to be a test of my acclimation. Although altitude
sickness can begin at any altitude about 12,500ft, this was one of
the highest points we would reach before attempting to summit a few
days later; moreover, if I got sick here, I would know that my
journey to the summit would require some slower hiking and careful
evaluation of my physical condition. Luckily, lunch at 15,000 ft was
delicious and I felt fantastic!
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| On the moon! |
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| Looking back at Meru |
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| Made it! Feeling good! |
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| Hey! |
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| View from Barranco camp |
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| Barranco camp |
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| Summit shot from camp |
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| Summit sunset |
Day four: Barranco to Barafu camp;
distance 5 miles; altitude gain 2280ft; time 4.5 hrs; final altitude
15,300ft
Day five (1st half):
Barafu camp to Uhuru peak; distance 5 miles; altitude gain 4000ft; 5
hrs; final altitude 19,341ft above sea level!!
After 3 hours of sleep, we woke up to
begin our ascent to the summit at 1230am. The plan was to summit at
sunrise and have our lives forever changed. The hike began well, a
few steep parts and difficult gravel trails that truly left you
sliding a step-and-a-half backwards with each step. The great part
was we had a full moon to hike by and we were able to do the majority
of the ascent by moonlight only. The night sky was absolutely
incredible. I've never seen the stars like that. It almost seemed as
though there wasn't enough room in the sky for all the stars, it was
so densely packed. The milky way stretched far beyond the boundaries
I have ever known it to stretch. Definitely provided much needed
excitement to fuel tired and altitude-susceptible bodies. I felt
great until I reached 18,300 ft. At that point, someone must have
repeatedly struck my head with a baseball bat and then got me
incredibly intoxicated...all at once. We all agreed our coordination
began to lack, with goofy side-steps and poor motor judgment.
Cognitively, I was completely there; and it took every ounce of
cognition to stay determined and positive, blocking out that “mental
chatter” of doubt and negativity, which creeps in easily when
you're physically and mentally tired. I simply focused on each step
and only that. I completely devoted my attention and determination to
that single step because not only was that the only thing I was
physically diminished to, but it was truly the only method that was
going to allow me to summit. It was amazing, all of a sudden Stella
point's “Congratulations!” sign came into view.
I nearly cried.
It wasn't even the summit, but it was the first peak we reached and
it assured us we were nearly there and that whatever challenges of
altitude we may have encountered were well worth it. Stella point was
only about 20 minutes from Uhuru and a mere 300 feet in elevation
lower.
We reached Uhuru about 45 minutes before sunrise and to keep
warm, we hiked down to crater point and saw some of the glaciers and
amazing vistas. At 630am the sun broke the horizon and with those
rays an incredible feeling of accomplishment warmed us all.
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| Unreal. Minutes before sunrise. |
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| Success!!! |
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| Galciers |
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| Beautiful, beautiful sun! |
Day 5 (2nd half): Summit
to Mweka camp; distance 9 miles; altitude loss 9250ft; 5 hrs; final
altitude 10,100ft above sea level
After celebrating our successful climb
to the summit, we slid back down the terrible gravel trail to Barafu,
grabbed a quick nap and some food, and then continued our descent to
Mweka camp. Not only did I mentally check out, feeling as though all
that needed to be accomplished was, but I underrated the difficulty
of continual downhill hiking. Not even after 4.5 days of uphill hill
hiking did my legs hurt as much as they did during descent! It was
great descending however; not only did that killer headache gradually
subside as I entered regions of more acceptable atmospheric pressure
but we gradually came back into the moorlands and saw signs of life
again. Shrubs, insects, flowers, trees and a variety of birds (not
just ravens) welcomed us to lower altitudes. We camped that night and
understandably slept like babies.
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| Goin' to Mweka! |
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| More hospitable altitudes |
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| Camp :) |
Day 6: Mweka to Mweka Gate; distance
6 miles; altitude loss 4700 feet; 2.5hrs; final altitude 5,400 feet
above sea level.
This was a nice, gradual descent
through the rainforest again and it proved to be an excellent,
relaxing way to conclude the hike. I was able to have some nice
conversations with my guide and caught up on some topics we didn't
really get to discuss during ascent (mainly because I didn't want to
talk during the huffing and puffing associated with altitude
acclimation.) Upon reaching the gate, hawkers pushing t-shirts,
paintings, Masai garb didn't miss a beat. I was worried I wouldn't
have contact with a desperate peddler that doesn't take “no” for
an answer upon my arrival, for I missed their company on the summit.
I inquired if the t-shirts were complimentary since I actually
successfully climbed Kilimanjaro, however the price remained the same
$15 with no humor appreciated. Interestingly enough, a tour group of
Germans were at the gate (for what reason, I don't know) and were all
enthralled with the group of us that came off the trail, taking
pictures and asking questions. Again, the reason why a gaggle of
tourists were at this random park gate remains unknown, however the
fanfare was kind of endearing.
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| Peaceful descent |
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| Nice last view of the summit |
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| Heath, Han and I. All smiles! |
Overall, I can say this was one of the
hardest mental and physical challenges I have done. The endurance and
determination required certainly pushed me. Beyond that, it was, as I
have described to family and friends already, the most spectacular
physical, mental and spiritual journey I have ventured on. For lack
of better words, when you get “into that zone” of hiking and
pushing forward, you realize it's simply you, God and the mountain.
That's your reality and it's beautiful. Honing your will and
determination to overcome all the aforementioned challenges teaches
you so much about yourself. The main lesson I learned was that
instead of setting your sights, hopes, desires and efforts so far
ahead—placed upon a peak ( ie: the future)—if you fully devote
yourself to each, singular step required, that goal, no matter how
seemingly far and unobtainable it may seem, will be achieved.
Reaching the summit, Uhuru, became a
namesake experience. Uhuru, in Swahili, means freedom; and when I
saw the sunrise and began to realize these amazing life lessons, a
true feeling of freedom came over and has thankfully remained with
me. I am so incredibly thankful, not only for the success, but the
entire experience I was afforded.
With that, if you ever have the chance to make this journey, do it!
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| Hussein (my guide) and I...freezing...but feeling great!! |
