Days 53 to 63 - Tanzania, Africa (Part II - Mt. Kilimanjaro)

Jambo Jambo!  This time admittedly a much more nervous “jambo” as we set out on what was certainly our most ambitious adventure and goal of the trip, almost totally unprepared and hopeful for a good outcome.  Of course, this adventure would not be complete without another travel snafu.  No, not luggage this time…our airport destination was wrong! After another small Cessna airplane ride, we found ourselves alone in the airport lobby when we were expecting to be met by our Kilimanjaro climb company.  Where were they?  At the other airport in Arusha, Tanzania.  This mistake tested our resilience, as we tried to figure out how to get to the right place.  The Kilimanjaro trek company was waiting for us at the other airport (50 minutes away), so we contacted them to let them know we were at a different location and hopped in the only taxi to get to our lodge (halfway between the two airports).  Then there were three of us who were lost, as the taxi driver was unfamiliar with our lodge and GoogleMaps promptly led us to the wrong place.  Korey would also like to share that during this time of crisis, he received notice that his phone data plan was void in Africa and an upcharge would occur.  Finally at our destination, Korey confirmed our reservation while Ines negotiated with the cab driver a reasonable price for the twice “scenic” ride around Arusha. We are happy to share that we recovered unscathed, with less cash than anticipated. 

The Meru Game Lodge served as a perfect meeting place to mentally and physically prepare for our impending climb, and as a wildlife refuge for injured animals, we were greeted by a number of wild game animals during our stay.  We awoke the next morning to monkeys dancing on the roof of our room (Korey loved this…), and we enjoyed seeing crocodiles, porcupines, zebras, and ostrich (Ines remarked that we may have to return after the climb to the Lodge so that she could be nursed back to health as well).  Later that day we met our guide for the Kilimanjaro trek, Godlove.  He was serious, quiet, and it definitely felt like he was sizing us up to see if we could handle the events we were about to go through the following week!  He left us with the extra rented gear we needed for the trek and wished us a good evening.  A sleepless night ensued (for Korey…this doesn’t happen to Ines), and before we knew it we were in a van traveling to the Machame gate of Mt. Kilimanjaro, the tallest free-standing mountain in the world.

We found ourselves in good company.  The path was full of hopeful summit reachers, ranging from what appeared to be expert climbers to people that appeared even more out of shape and delusional than us.  After Godlove checked us in at the gate of Kilimanjaro National Park and gathered our 24 person crew, we were off, starting our trek at a mere 5,380 feet elevation.  Needless to say elevation played a key role in our daily lives for the next week!  Below is our basic itinerary, we veered off of this a bit, and read on below for the pay-by-play!

The first section of the trek was in what’s known as the “forest” area.  Exactly as it sounds, it’s basically a humid, hot, sweaty, jungle-like area that runs for 11 km, taking us from a 5,380 feet elevation to 9,350 feet and to a new area known as the “heather” region.  Aside from a few steep sections, the trek was very manageable and really the only casualty was Korey’s sweaty clothing, to which our guide could be heard telling us both, “Sip, Sip”, encouraging us to drink more water.  We set up camp in the “heather” Machame Camp and familiarized ourselves with what would be our living conditions for the next week.  We will say it again and again throughout this post, the job done by the porters was amazing!  By the time we arrived at each camp the porters had set up a kitchen tent, bathroom tent, our own tent, a mess hall tent, and tents for the entire crew (yes, we left at the same time).  They served us tea, cooked us a hot dinner, and tucked us into bed with hot mugs of water to warm our tent, allowing us to feel great about our chances of summiting on this journey.  Of course we continue to be hopeful and in best spirits, it’s Day 1.

The first night brought us warm temperatures, although we were warned that by Day 2 the temperature drops as we climb in elevation.  Ines was prepared with her 18 extra layers of clothing (taking up the entire weight carrying limit), leaving Korey with an extra long sleeve shirt.  We trekked through the “heather” zone on Day 2 (mostly shrubs and bushes no higher than 10 feet or so) and into the “moorland”, where it turned rocky in a hurry.  Our assistant guide Deo joked with us how the prior day was easy and just walking, but today would be actual hiking/climbing.  We thought he was joking, and he wasn’t (another example of always listen to your guide).  What we thought was going to be a challenging, but uneventful walk up the mountain turned into actual rock climbing.  However, we only had 5 km to cover, albeit most of it uphill (Ines continues to caution Korey and all others in using the word “only”) and we made it through the day without a problem.  Rain hit us near the end, but again our trusty tent at our camp for the night (Shira Camp 2) was ready to go.  We ended the night at an elevation of 12,500 feet, thus beginning our next few days of acclimation to mile-high altitudes.

We awoke to frost on the ground the next morning, the first warning sign of what would prove to be a tough day.  Our challenge: climb over 15,000 feet to an area called the Lava Tower.  We’d have lunch there, then trek back downhill to a camp that was at about 13,000 feet.  This was for acclimation purposes.  The rain started early that day, and by the time we reached Lava Tower, the huge picturesque rock that is the namesake of Lava Tower wasn’t even visible due to the harsh conditions (despite us having lunch right underneath it).  Ines would also like to point out that at this elevation we were dining in a cloud.  We both felt the altitude at 15,000 feet, but continued on to our camp for the evening, Barranco camp.  Ines needed an immediate nap upon our return (due to serious muscle confusion), but we still managed pretty well despite the weather.  The camp was also extremely busy, as trekkers on alternate routes also used this camp, but again our porters had arrived early and secured us a great spot.  We heard rumblings of a daunting task facing us the next morning called the “breakfast wall.”  We went to bed thinking they were joking with us and feeling confident about our performance to this point (Korey= confidence, Ines = holding back tears).

Day 4, Christmas Day!  We awoke to clear skies and an immediate lump in our throat, now knowing and able to see what they meant by the “breakfast wall.”  The trek that day started with an 800 foot vertical climb (which you do right after breakfast, hence the name).  We took a deep breath, and attacked the mountain with many other big-eyed trekkers.  We were greeted with many wishes of “Merry Christmas!” in English, Swahili, French, and German from people of various nationalities, which we’ll admit helped calm the nerves of the task at hand.  Once again this was more rock climbing than hiking, fondly called “scrambling”, yet after an hour and half, we had scaled the breakfast wall successfully, Ines’ nerves fully tested.  The route continued to a camp called Karanga, where we were met with a choice from our guide: Stop and stay here for the evening, leaving us with a midnight summit of the mountain two days from then, or push through another four hours to another camp, giving us the flexibility monitor the weather and do our summit climb in the daylight.  Feeling okay after lunch, we decided to continue our hike.  Must’ve been the Christmas spirit!  Despite starting to feel the effects of an altitude of over 14,000 feet (fatigue, shortness of breath, and for Ines-uncontrollable burping), we managed our way through most of the second half of our hike.  However, there was a steep climb with lots of scrambling right before Barafu Camp (also known as Base Camp, at 15,331 feet) that left Ines in tears and everyone wondering if we could make it to the summit the next day as planned.  Sunburned, achy, and tired, we now know why this part of the trek is typically broken up into two days…

The wind howled through the entire evening, as Base Camp had no protection from the elements.  This didn’t help our already short night, as the 4:00 AM wakeup call came quickly, and we tried not to think about what we were attempting to do that day.  It was pitch black when we started, but after an hour we saw an amazing sunrise over one portion of the mountain, with the bright moon peering over the other side.  The beauty quickly faded, as we climbed higher and higher, and became more and more exposed to the elements.  The wind was constant and unrelenting, and we were lucky there wasn’t rain to worsen the climb.  A few hours into our hike, we crossed paths with dozens of other hikers descending down the mountain, their summit attempt having started in the middle of the night.  Unfortunately, we witnessed many people wobbling down the mountain with help from their guide, long faced from not having summited due to weather, fatigue, or altitude sickness.  This did not help our spirits, but we continued on.  We reached the “zig-zags”, an area that is too steep to climb without trekking in a “zig-zag” pattern, and arrived at 17,800 feet weary.  Tired and cold, we set our goal to reach Stella Point at 18,885 feet.  The next thousand feet were as steep as any we’d faced (or at least it felt like it!), and our steps were extremely short. A consistent message from our guides alternated between “Pole, Pole” which means slow, slow and “Sip, Sip” reminding us to replenish our lost water stores.  We made it to Stella Point within seven hours, around 12:15 PM, a significant milestone that marks the entrance to the crater at the top of Kilimanjaro.  From there it was a gradual ascent of another hour to the highest peak, Uhuru.  Despite being able to see the summit, it seemed to take forever to get there, and over an hour later we discovered we had reached the top of Mt. Kilimanjaro, at 19,341 feet.  It was hard to realize the significance of the moment due to our shortness of breath and overwhelming fatigue.  After many hugs, congratulations and a few pictures, we quickly headed back down so as not to tempt fate with the effects of high altitude (Ines would also like to mention that it was another three to four hours to descend the mountain to camp for a total of over 11 hiking hours).  We surprised ourselves (and certainly our guides!) but we made it!  Huge credit goes to our guide for pacing us not only on the day of summit, but also the previous days- allowing us to acclimate properly.  We can’t thank Godlove, Deo, and the entire crew enough.  

The trek back to camp saw Korey struggle, as the altitude (and a case of bronchitis) made breathing difficult.  The steep slopes were somehow even more difficult going downhill, especially on Ines’ knees and Korey’s inability to properly use the trekking poles.  After a long three and a half hours, we made it back to base camp and collapsed.  The altitude had stolen our appetite as well, so our energy level was at an all-time low.  After another night on the mountain (this time with aches and pains) at 15,000 feet, we awoke the next morning feeling accomplished and definitely wanting to get off the mountain!  We trekked another six hours, descending to Mweka camp (10,065 feet).  Upon reaching Mweka, we had a ceremony with all of the porters and guides where they congratulated us and we thanked and tipped them for their services.  Songs were sung and we gave a small speech (translated into Swahili by Godlove).  We shook everyone’s hands and tried our best to express our gratitude.  The next day we woke up early (we were told the earlier we started, the earlier we could get to a hot shower.  No more motivation needed!).  It was only four hours of down mountain hiking, but again seemed long.  A quick lunch at the end, along with a presentation of our completion certificate followed, then we were in a van on our way to a hotel.  It all happened so fast, we are still not sure what really happened on that mountain…

With four bruised toes (possibly a loss of one toenail), sunburns, battered knee joints, a short-lived bronchitis, and some really really sore muscles, we arrived at the Kia Lodge in Arusha (next to the correct departure airport).  A shower and some clean clothes felt even better than we could possibly imagine, and after taking advantage of laundry service, we closely resembled our former selves.  Ines struggled to walk after a well-deserved nap, and took advantage of the post-Kilimanjaro massage offered by the hotel, and it worked!  Ines had no problems walking afterward.  Meanwhile, Korey sipped the best tasting Coca-Cola Light and Kilimanjaro beer he’d ever had.  We can say this now, after having the last couple of weeks to reflect, this was the most challenging (physically and mentally) experience we have ever accomplished, and could not have possibly summited without the guidance and care of our guides and porter team.  We learned afterward that only about 50 percent of the people that went up the mountain with us were able to summit, due to a combination of bad wind conditions, low temperature, cloud visibility, fatigue, and failure to acclimate “altitude sickness”.  That said, we can definitely say it has been and will likely always be one of the most rewarding experiences ever and has both humbled us and at the same time showed us a level of teamwork and resilience neither one of us has ever had on our own.  Needless to say, the wedding is still on…

Things we learned:  1) Climbing a mountain, tent sleeping, and breathing air without oxygen can really put life into perspective, 2)  Tanzania is a wonderful country in Africa, providing much more that we ever expected, and should be considered in your travels, 3) As we prepared to leave the airport in Tanzania, we met a couple from the East Cost, living in Abu Dhabi, who were not able to summit due to cold weather conditions and altitude sickness, who said it best,    “We really have to rethink our vacation philosophy and risk-reward value system”

Resting up before the big climb!  Wildlife recovering from their injuries in the background (maybe not the best sight for Ines to contemplate)

Entering the Machame Gate, our adventure begins! 

So cute, so hopeful.  First steps of the trek (spoiler alert, the path doesn't stay paved)

Who doesn't love drying their clothes on a tent?  That's also Ines' sleepy face...

A picture with the summit in the background...Day 2, 11,000 feet

Guess who's idea this was? Also, guess how many people copied her afterward?

More shenanigans.  Not to worry, only treated drinking water for us!

A forest of trees and tents amongst the clouds.  Yup, our heads were in the clouds for days

The end of Day 3, having climbed up to over 15,000 feet and back down to 13,000 feet

A good meal to bring Ines back to life.  Our compliments to our chef, Simon

Our experienced guide, Godlove (affectionately known as G-Love)

Ines giving a thumbs up to the amazing porters 

Ines showing off her rock "scrambling" skills on the breakfast wall

Struggling after climbing the breakfast wall, Ines is concentrating on holding onto her breakfast

An almost eerie sight of the summit from base camp.  Camping on the side of a cliff at 15,000 feet with the wind swirling was certainly an experience!

These pictures were taken at the same time on the morning of our summit.  Sun rising in the east, the moon shining bright to the west (with a great shot of Mt. Meru as well)

A picture of the moment we realized we're looking down on the clouds

Stella Point!  We're almost there.  Uhuru Peak is within sight, but "only" an hours hike away

Summit pictures!  Korey wouldn't dream of not including his Alma Mater and his lucky card Scott Mitchell, and oh yeah, Ines too!

Beautiful view from the summit.  We were lucky the clouds cleared.  This is the crater within the peak at the top.

In case of emergency, this emergency vehicle can be used to descend.  Ines spent half the climb down trying to convince our guides to bring her down using it.

What an accomplishment!  View of the mountain we'd just climbed before the end of the trek.

The appreciation ceremony at Mweka Camp.  We both defend our jello-leg dancing skills!