Trip Reports

Kilimanjaro Lemosho Glades - 27 Dec '14-5 Jan '15

Written by Leader Mungo Ross, January 2015

Kilimanjaro. 11 letters that spell a place name full of mystery, magic and adventure; like Timbuktu, Marakesh, Cotopaxi - to the traveller just the word has a magnetic property, something musical about it, somewhere you just have to go to ñ sometime. So nine of us gathered at near to midnight in Moshi, drawn to Africaís highest mountain to share our different individual dreams - albeit three without the carefully prepared and packed kit bags deemed so essential for attempting the ascent, Schipol Airportís baggage handling system proving at least consistency in its ability to misplace luggage! Because our itinerary is designed to give us the maximum amount of time possible on the mountain to allow for the essential acclimatization in favour of time by the pool or exploring the culture and wildlife of Tanzania (that can be done as optional extensions), we were away on a bus before ten the next morning to get going on our walk but no one minded stopping at a couple of shops to replace essentials like a tooth brush and sun hat. The nine of us were to be supported by a team of 32 for our 8 days on the hill ñ guides, porters, camping and kitchen crew - so after signing in to the National Park, repacking our bags (at least those of us who had any to repack) and distributing the assorted luggage, it was off into the forest for what has to be one of the great walks of the world.

So you might not go to Kili (even the abbreviation resonates something magical) for solitude, certainly if you go at peak season and stay on the popular routes ñ thousands of folk are being drawn every year by its challenge ñ the camp sites are congested and the chatter of humans sometimes drowns out the chatter of monkeys and the birdsong; but it is still a fabulous walk. Setting out each morning there is the inevitable interruption for the first couple of hours of ìporters coming throughî, but they are carrying our bags and making the climb possible! And the cheerful exchanges of ìjamboî and friendly smiles definitely add to the experience. Ascending through the different vegetation zones is what makes climbing Kili so unique, from sub-tropical rain forest to Arctic tundra in just a few days (in only a few hours on descent!), each zone deserving much more time to appreciate the extraordinary volcanic landscape and diversity of animal life and vegetation. But the focus for most is to reach the summit, to stand on top, so the daily routine is to pack up camp and move on each morning on what has been established as a well proven acclimatization profile.

Most of the group had little or no experience of climbing at altitude so there was the inevitable anxiety of going to very nearly 6000 meters for the first time, and the also inevitable influence of the milder effects of decreasing oxygen levels ñ headaches, nausea, fatigue, sleep disturbance, dizziness, (no one seemed to lose their appetite ñ indeed the only criticism of the whole trip was that there was too much food!); and it is testament to how much ìstuffî we take on these trips that we could provide the three who had lost all theirs with enough to keep them (more or less) comfortable until they were reunited with their own in time for the all important summit day.

From Barafu Camp it is over 1100 meters to the top; thatís like climbing Ben Nevis, but starting near the top of Mont Blanc itís always going to a tough day for anyone. And tough indeed it was ñ the consensus being that everyone had to dig deeper than expected, perhaps a reflection of how climbing Kilimanjaro is being portrayed in the media as ìeasyî, ìjust a walkî, ìanyone can do itî. The responsibility and experience of leadership demanded that one of the group had to be instructed to return to camp from around 4900 meters (his will still determined but his cells screaming for those all important oxygen molecules) leaving the rest of the group to walk together to the sign post at Uhuru Peak at around 09:30 on the 3rd of January under a clear blue sky and with the place to ourselves.

Itís a long way down, and with no slack in the itinerary thereís the need to dig even deeper just when folk think itís all over; the summitís often not even half way, and in order to catch our flights the next day (or go off on safari) it means getting well down the mountain when snuggling into a sleeping bag is whatís really wanted. The reward of a long summit day was a glorious shorter morning walk through the sun-lit foothills forest to the park gates, the wonderful rhythmic harmonies of our support team singing their song ìKilimanjaroî for us, and time to enjoy a leisurely celebration lunch and take those so longed for showers. The magic, the mystery and the challenge of Kilimanjaro has drawn us together for these 10 days; your collective effort, co-operation, good humour and good company has made those ten days not just ìsummit successfulî, but good fun and a trip to remember. Thank you all for becoming friends in such a short time, for sharing your dream, for inspiring each other to your next adventure. Thank you too to Jagged Globe and Keys Hotel for the usual seamless organisation and support of climbing Kilimanjaro. « Previous report | Next report »

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