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From the summit of KilimanjaroFrom the summit of Kilimanjaro
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Why climb Kili? Why not. Leia mais
  • 16pegadas
  • 2países
  • 16dias
  • 11fotos
  • 0vídeos
  • 18,0kmilhas
  • 17,9kmilhas
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  • Abuse your passportFrom the summit of Kilimanjaro
    Dia 18

    Did you ever see Ground Hog Day?

    23 de outubro de 2007, Estados Unidos ⋅ 🌙 48 °F

    This day has gone on and on and on. We've had the same morning four or five times today. We finally got out of Arusha on Sunday, leaving the hotel around 3pm. It was nothing but a mess - DON'T EVER FLY KLM. It only took three continents, four countries, six airports and 34 hours to get home. We have enjoyed Monday morning in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; Rome, Italy; Washington DC; and Dallas. We were ecstatic to get past noon and land happily in Denver Monday afternoon. We had a great trip, but I'm certain we won't be doing that again!!!Leia mais

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  • Abuse your passportFrom the summit of Kilimanjaro
    Dia 15

    Our last day, but not KLM's

    20 de outubro de 2007, Tanzânia

    We got up early and had a final breakfast with our friends Nick and Barbara. They will be in the crater all day, but we will leave around 11 to head for Arusha. We got a better view of a male lion today. He was incredibly large and well-defined, with a huge mane and majestic body. Wow, very impressive. We got some up close views of zebras, wildebeests, warthogs, and hyenas. We also saw a golden jackal, which we hadn't seen yet. It was a little cloudy and cool, but hopefully there was enough light for the photos to come out ok. We left the crater around 11:30am and took the Leiar Ascent road up the southwest side of the crater. The Land Rover was in 4WD most of the way, due to the steepness of the road. We wound up the crater wall, finally leveling off on the rim. It took well over an hour to get off the rim and headed back down toward Arusha. On the way to Arusha, the driver got a call on his cell phone. "Your flight is cancelled for tonight." We looked at him for a minute. It takes some time to understand what he says, plus we weren't expecting the call to involve us. The safari office had gotten notification of the cancelled flight and directed the driver to take us to the Impala Hotel, in Arusha. KLM will be putting us up, until they fly us out of town. We haven't gotten any more information and the hotel reception cannot get a hold of KLM by phone. Although we are in limbo, at least they gave us a nice hotel!Leia mais

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  • Abuse your passportFrom the summit of Kilimanjaro
    Dia 14

    Ngornogoro Crater

    19 de outubro de 2007, Tanzânia

    We awoke this morning to a cacophony of bird songs. As we were staying in a tent (really a canvass room) we could hear the singing clearly. After lingering in bed a little longer than expected, I got up and we got ready for the day. We met Matt, Jim, Barbara and Nick for breakfast, as our paths had all crossed one last time. We said our goodbyes to Matt and Jim, then discussed the day with Barbara and Nick. They will be on a separate safari the next two days, but it is with the same company and itinerary as ours, so we will be spending more time together. The drive to the crater was an hour or so, then it is a painful, bumpy, dusty ride up and over the crater wall onto the floor. We first saw an elephant in the distance, then ostrich, cape buffalo, lots of gazelles, and warthogs. We also saw a variety of avian life. One bird, the Kory Bustard, is the largest flying bird. At 42 pounds, it is a flying thanksgiving dinner! We spent some time at the hippo pool, where they cooled themselves by throwing mud around with their tails. We saw a lion pride, unfortunately a little too far for pictures. And at the end of the day, we got to see the almost extinct black rhino. That was a real treat. There was a baby rhino with the two adults but we could not get a clear look at it. At the end of the day, we were covered with dust and delivered to the Sopa Lodge. We had a late dinner and turned in for the night. As we looked out our window a cape buffalo ambled by about 15 feet from the room. The sunset over the crater was beautiful.Leia mais

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  • Abuse your passportFrom the summit of Kilimanjaro
    Dia 13

    Safari in Lake Manyara

    18 de outubro de 2007, Tanzânia ⋅ ⛅ 68 °F

    We were picked up for our safari after having breakfast with our fellow (very sore) climbers. The Land Rover, driven by Rama, took us through Arusha to Lake Manyara Park. It was about a 4 hour drive and we spent a few hours in the park before it began to rain. We first saw baboons, then monkeys, giraffes, zebra, hippos, and misc. birds. We looked over the park, in the pouring rain, for elephants, and found two before we left for the day. We are spending the night in a luxury tented lodge, which is quite nice. Tomorrow we head to Ngornogoro Crater for more big game watching.Leia mais

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  • Abuse your passportFrom the summit of Kilimanjaro
    Dia 12

    Elephant knees

    17 de outubro de 2007, Tanzânia ⋅ ⛅ 73 °F

    We had descended a little over 6000 feet yesterday and were in for the same again today. It was literally all downhill from the summit. I was a little sore from going downhill yesterday, but nothing like the pain in my knees by the end of today. We walked from heather, through moorland, down into the rainforest. It was supposed to take four hours but we were working on 5 when we reached the gate. To put this in perspective for you, think of walking down stairs for 10 hours over two days. My knees hurt so bad, I'm not sure I'll walk again properly. We were too tired to be ecstatic when we finally reached the park exit gate. We signed out and got back on the truck which had dropped us off over a week ago. Back at the hotel, we received a certificate from the park service for summiting the highest mountain in Africa. We will certainly cherish it, given what it took to get it. Our evening consisted of eating, SHOWERING, and spending time with our new friends.Leia mais

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  • Abuse your passportFrom the summit of Kilimanjaro
    Dia 11

    Summit day

    16 de outubro de 2007, Tanzânia ⋅ ⛅ 73 °F

    We woke early and had breakfast. No one felt particularly well, but it didn't stop any of us. The hike was almost straight up on loose gravel and dirt for about 600 feet. It took over an hour to get to the ridge. We walked the ridge, past immense glaciers, to Uhuru Peak. Barbara and Nick arrived first, followed shortly by Kim and I. every one hugged and cried. It was very emotional and wonderful at the same time. We spent quite a bit of time taking photos. The views were incredible and it was hard to comprehend what we had just accomplished. With little oxygen, it all went by quickly. Barbara, Matt and I followed the first guide down, basically running down the mountain. Suddenly I had a lot of energy, knowing I would have relief by the end of the day. We reached Millennium camp in the afternoon. There is actually a ranger there that sells soda, beer and small souvenirs. Kim and I bought $3 cokes to celebrate our accomplishment and honor my mom ( a 6-12 coke/day gal).The wind was still blowing a little and the dust was almost unbearable, but we were happy!Leia mais

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  • Abuse your passportFrom the summit of Kilimanjaro
    Dia 10

    Straight up

    15 de outubro de 2007, Tanzânia ⋅ ⛅ 73 °F

    The wind did not relent and was blowing hard when we woke. The climb today is basically straight up from 15K to 18,500, then we go into the crater. It was very difficult hiking, as the wind would regularly blow you off balance. We would later find out this was the worst wind our guide had experienced in 10 years on the mountain. It was a long, hard day. As the oxygen got thin, so did my thoughts. I would start to have one, then it would trail off. I'd finally come back to it in 20-30 minutes. Most of the time I would breathe and step. Kim, Matt, Anhgus and I split off from the rest of the group and were led by Liberaty to Stella Point. At some point, Liberaty took my pack because my back was hurting so bad. We limped down into the crater and finally made it to camp, after about 8 hours or so. I fell asleep with a headache. When I woke and entered the dining tent, Barbara was on oxygen, and I think Jim, Kim and Nick had already been hooked up. They were also given some type of steroid for brain swelling. Great fun. I walked outside and puked. Then went immediately to Francis, who gave me something for the nausea and told me I was dehydrated. I pumped fluids all night, but didn't feel well. Then again, I did feel better than some. It was a miserable evening: cold, nauseated, and windy. On the other hand, it was beautiful, camping right next to the glaciers and drinking the water melted from them. Tomorrow, if we all live, we summit and descend. Can't wait!Leia mais

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  • Abuse your passportFrom the summit of Kilimanjaro
    Dia 9

    So close

    14 de outubro de 2007, Tanzânia ⋅ ⛅ 72 °F

    The peak of Kilimanjaro seemed so close this morning. It was a beautiful sight to awaken the tired soul of this hiker. It is getting cold in the mornings and harder to get out of bed, especially knowing we are walking all day and I have to tell some guy when I had my last poop. I digress. We hiked up today. Pretty much no descent whatsoever. We got into Barafu camp by lunch time, which was a nice change. I stripped in the warm tent and used a bunch of wipes to get the grime off my body. I haven't had a shower now for....a while. My feet are starting to stink no matter how clean the socks I put on them. I felt like I was going to a party when I was done; new underwear and clothes, yea. By the afternoon, the wind really started to whip through camp and it got really cold as the sun went down. Kim is not feeling particularly well. I wish I would have seen it, but the toilet tent blew over, leaving only the little porta potty sitting on the edge of this rock face. Kim said she just didn't care and sat right down on it in front of God and everyone. It was nice to laugh, despite the conditions.Leia mais

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  • Abuse your passportFrom the summit of Kilimanjaro
    Dia 8

    Barranco Wall

    13 de outubro de 2007, Tanzânia ⋅ ⛅ 72 °F

    We got out of camp around 9am and worked our way out of the Lava Tower area to the Barranco Wall. The fog had set in, so we couldn't see what was ahead. That was a good thing. The Wall required some bouldering skills, which was fun, but it just kept going up and up. We would scramble on boulders for a while then walk up a bit, and it went on and on. We finally got to the top, where it "leveled out" (a relative term at this point) a bit. A break in the clouds came and Genes, one of the guides, pointed out our tents-across a narrow steep valley. I asked if that was the trail, the one that went up about 60-70 degrees, and he said yes, "Akuna matata." That's "no problem" in Swahili, although I’m sure I heard Barbara mutter, “Bloody hell.” By the time we go to Karanga camp, I was beat. It was well over 8 hours today on the trail. Akuna matata. Right.Leia mais

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  • Abuse your passportFrom the summit of Kilimanjaro
    Dia 7

    Close Encounters

    12 de outubro de 2007, Tanzânia ⋅ ⛅ 72 °F

    Today was supposed to be shorter (3 hours) and somehow I equated that to easier. We climbed up from Shira camp, then it flattened for a while. We again climbed into the alpine desert and walked up to a ridge. This was the junction with the Machame route and the first time we had to share the trail with other climbers. The fog rolled in, and occasionally the sun would peek out. The terrain began to look like the moon's surface, with no vegetation. We finally got to Lava Tower, which looked like Devil's Tower in Wyoming. I was exhausted. We were at about 15K feet and it took a lot of effort to do just about anything. Much panting was done to get to the dining tent and back to our tent for sleep. While we sat around after dinner, we could hear the porters harmonizing and singing gospel in Swahili. Their voices were amazing, and I could even pick out a few hymns I knew from church. By tune only, as my Swahili is limited.Leia mais

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