Trip Reports

Kilimanjaro - Lemosho Glades 8 to 17 Sep '08

Dawn on summit day - Kilimanjaro Lemosho Glades

Written by Leader Paul Westwood, September 2008

Uhuru summiteers – Laura B, Joelle B, Simon B, Sophie B, Teresa C Mc, Sevra D, Paul D, Peter D, David Mc, Richard P, Ian S, Paul Westwood (+ 3 local guides & 3 porters)

Team members congregated at Amsterdam airport having flown from regional airports in the UK. Identifying Jagged Globe clients was, as always, a bit of a challenge as there were quite a few people waiting at the departure gate who looked like mountaineers. Fortunately most of the team were friends, partners or relatives and some had met at the pre expedition meeting in North Wales and this helped. Jagged Globe’s Kilimanjaro Western Breach Team joined us on the flight so a total of 19 were able to share this first part of the trip.

The flight to Kilimanjaro airport was uneventful however a number of team members complimented KLM on the level of service provided

All the team had got their Visas in advance so a potentially long wait at the airport was avoided. We continued through immigration, found our contact from Keys Hotel, boarded the vehicles waiting for us and enjoyed the journey to the hotel. Having checked in to our rooms we met back in the restaurant for dinner and a briefing before heading off to bed.

Off for Kili the following morning we met up with Thomas, Dennis and James, our guides, and the rest of the Keys expedition team. Bags, kit and food were weighed and weighed again to establish the porter numbers and we eventually headed off on foot into the park at about 2pm. Everyone was surprised to see the range and quantity of wildlife we saw within minutes of entering the park. There was even fairly fresh evidence of elephant activity. Lunch had been eaten whilst waiting for the formalities to be executed at Londorossi Park Gate so our first proper meal on Trek was to be a hearty dinner at Mti Mkubwa (Big Tree) camp. This was the first time most of the team had encountered the traditional long drop toilets and it was an experience most would not forget.

A steady walking pace the following day saw us easily reach our lunch stop high on an airy ridge with great views all around. We followed up in the afternoon with more good walking although during the latter part of the afternoon the heavens opened and we were subjected to rain and hail, the first poor weather the area had seen for many days. Kili was partially obstructed by clouds but nonetheless its scale and magnitude were obvious. A cold clear night gave stunning moonlit views of the whole mountain.

After a sub-zero night, the following days short walk across the Shira plateau gave more good views of Kibo and ended once more in rain and hail. An excellent lunch of fruit followed by fried chicken and chips raised spirits and once the rain stopped at 4pm clients enjoyed wandering around the area exploring or preparing for tomorrows harder and longer day. This fourth trekking day would be a good indicator of the teams ability and stamina and would determine the likely start time for our summit day. Everyone rose to the challenge and saw the team at Lava Tower camp, a height gain of 740m, within 5 hours. Along the way, Richard was adopted by a friendly Granny, from his home town of Liverpool, and her South African friend who sang little ditties together as our groups leap-frogged each other along the trail. From Lava Tower we descended to Baranco camp and the team’s first views of the intimidating Baranco wall.

A clear night gave more good views of Kili and resulted in breakfast at 8am being eaten in a temperature of minus 5 deg C! The impressive Baranco wall was overcome with relative ease and in next to no time we were setting up camp at Karanga. No rain this afternoon but still chilly.

Karanga to Barafu was a short day too, an opportunity for a lie-in but more importantly to gain maximum altitude acclimatisation before the following day’s summit attempt. As much food and drink were taken in to help with the following days exertion and everyone tried, mostly unsuccessfully, to nap before and after dinner.

Midnight exactly and we were off walking again. A beautiful clear sky and full moon lit our way and made our head torches almost redundant. Thomas lead the team out and maintained a good steady pace. Temperatures were again low, low enough for David to don long trousers, until the morning sun rose above the horizon just before the team reached Stella Point. Nine hours of continuous uphill saw us at the summit of Uhuru having had only a brief pauses at Stella point and along the crater rim to take in the stunning views. Some of the team struggled on the final part of the ascent but all the team including guides and high altitude porters were together on the summit. A great team effort.

After the descent and an overnight camp at Mweka the team walked out to Mweka Park Gate where summiteers certificates and crew tips were presented. “Thank-you”s, smiles and handshakes were exchanged between clients and crew and, after a bit of bartering and souvenir shopping, we headed back to Keys Hotel in Moshi.

Lunch by the swimming pool, showers and repacking for our flights home was all the time allowed back at the hotel. More than half of the team were remaining in Tanzania for beach/safari extensions so Paul and four clients waved goodbye to them as they departed for the airport. We then said our goodbyes in Amsterdam and flew our separate ways with success and many happy memories.

Paul Westwood, Trek Leader « Previous report | Next report »

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