Day 1 21st July 2008
The morning started chilly and very cloudy and that was not an auspicious start to our 6-day trek to the top of Africa. We imagined in the towns we would find East Africa hot and dusty but what we hadn’t realised was that someone built Africa on stilts! Dusty yes but at over a 1000m high, hot it certainly wasn’t! We’d booked to do the trek (and the safari week) through Bobby Tours and we just prayed that it wasn’t going to turn into Bobbins Tours. The non-auspicious start continued when the van failed to pick us up at the pre-arranged time and place. Only the day before another couple had been added onto our trek and that was fine even though we’d booked and paid for a private trek. However it was somewhat annoying to realise that they’d been picked up and we’d been left behind. Eventually got in touch with Bobby Tours and the van returned for us.
Once in the office there was all manner of confusion because everyone thought they’d booked a private tour, then it turned out we were talking about safaris not treks. Lots of misunderstanding and not a good introduction to a couple we were about to embark on a long trek up a very high mountain with. Everyone calmed down and we sorted it all out, shook hands and were ready for the off. Well almost, the guides and porters were still faffing about getting all the gear and supplies we would need. So we popped into a chemist to pick up some Diamox – a pill that lessens the affects of altitude sickness. Goodness knows if we really did get that specific brand or not as we were in the world’s oldest pharmacy and we were simply given some tablets in a plain brown bag! But at 20 dollars they’d better do something.
Finally reached the entrance gate in time to sit down and have our packed lunch! We were amazed at how many people were doing the same while the guides were trying to register every one and sort out the necessary permits. Even more astounding was how many extra people it takes to get 4 trekkers to the top of a mountain. We knew we would have a couple of guides and porters for the tents and food but do 4 people really need a team of 13 helpers?! Very embarrassing and I was stunned on being introduced to our waiter – we were only camping on the side of a mountain for goodness sake! Oh well – we helped to keep a whole host of people in reasonably paid work. Don’t get me wrong these boys don’t earn much for the time and effort they put into their job but they are much better off than people working in agriculture.
The snake of people finally set off but luckily the groups gradually spread out and the bottlenecks were minimal. We were all ashamed at how much the porters were carrying balanced on their heads but all the advice was that we shouldn’t carry any more than 10kg each. It was still very cloudy and as we walked into the cloud layer it became increasingly cold. Plus we still hadn’t seen Kilimanjaro. The forest we were walking through was lovely with its mossy trees. It reminded us of the Cameron Highlands and much of the vegetation was very similar. In the clouds there was almost an eerie feel while walking through the furry trees. Most enjoyable and the path is very well maintained so even though there are hundreds of people using the path daily, erosion is kept to a minimum.
The first campsite was Machame Hut, which was logical since we were doing the walk using the Machame Route. By this point we were at 3000m and had to put on a few more layers while we stood around in the cloud waiting for the guides to appear. Eventually spotted the guide and luckily for us the porters had been ahead of us and had already set up camp. A brew and some biscuits were most welcome. The guide scolded us for going too quickly and instructed us to stay together the next day and go at his speed. The phrase on the mountain is pole pole (pronounced po-lay) and it basically means slow and steady.
The toilet facilities leave something to be desired so it was a fine balance between drinking enough so you didn’t dehydrate (although it was way too cold to sweat!) and not drinking too much and needing the loo in the pitch black night. Snuggled into our sleeping bags at 9 bells and against the odds we both got a good night’s sleep.
Day 2 22nd July 2008
With waking up feeling very refreshed and a decent breakfast inside us we were ready to tackle day 2. A steady but shorter walk was in store today and since you can start feeling the effects of altitude once you’re over 3000m we obeyed the guide and let him set the pace. Luckily the groups had got up at different times so everyone was naturally spread out. In fact I think we were about the last group to leave the camp. I found it a little frustrating to be walking so slowly at first but in the end just took time to admire the scenery and observe the changing vegetation. By the afternoon we were in heather country but these are nothing like the ones you see on the British moors. Not often you see heather 6 feet tall!
Unfortunately it was still very cloudy but underfoot was drier than the previous day. By the time we stopped for lunch we were beginning to get above the cloud and we actually got our first glimpse of snow. Although the vegetation was noticeable thinner a few animals have learnt to take advantage of daft humans. All scraps from the packed lunches were quickly scooped up by the resident white-necked ravens. Rather large they are and you wouldn’t want to learn how strong their beaks are. The 4-striped squirrels running around your feet picking up crumbs were much cuter. Lunch that day was at 3700m and so we had to wait there for an hour as part of the acclimatisation process.
Following lunch we climbed up and over a ridge towards Shira camp at 3800m. Finally we got our first proper views of our target and fantastic they were too. However we now knew why it takes 6 days to complete the trek! It looked like an awful long way off but we were ready for the challenge and felt sure we had the energy reserves to get us to the top. The walk so far had not zapped our energy levels at all and it was good to know that all the training we did leading up to this trip was well worth it.
It was great to get to the campsite in daylight, to be dry and actually feel some heat from the sun. We felt we had plenty of time to sort our gear out and go and enjoy the views. We were camped in a vast open area and could walk around to get a range of perspectives of the mountain system. There is actually more than one peak but of course with Kili being the highest that’s the only one people are aware of. Got some lovely photos of the peak we would be walking towards the next morning. It was very windy so we had to shelter in the tent away from the dust and of course once the sun set it was back to being cold. We did have a slight headache by this point but were told that was perfectly normal at 3800m. Apparently it’s this stage of the trek where people start to loose their appetites and we were told to eat as much as possible as we probably wouldn’t want much for the next couple of nights. Dinner was excellent – veggie curry and rice with chapatis. Certainly didn’t expect anything so tasty at such an elevation and in the middle of nowhere.
We got comfy in our sleeping bags very early that night, as it was the only way to keep warm. However before switching off the torch we popped our heads outside the tent to see the most amazing sky. We’ve never seen so many stars before and there is absolutely no light pollution up there. It was too cold to be hanging around looking for shooting stars. Goodnight!
Day 3 23rd July 2008
Again we had a much better night’s sleep than expected and the headaches were gone so we were ready to go again. Day 3 is the extra day we decided to go for as it’s an acclimatisation day and by the end of the day we only attained an extra 150m but during the day we climbed much higher than that. The morning dawned dry again but there was cloud above us so we couldn’t see the top of the mountain. The path steadily climbed and soon enough the vegetation was almost non-existent. The wind was biting and we were glad we’d invested all of that Ringgit in decent outdoor gear.
At one point the clouds cleared and everyone dived into their bags for cameras as we could see the top again. The guide told us we were at 4450m and up until then that was the highest Steve and I had ever stood. We felt suitably chuffed and again were amazed that we weren’t feeling any effects of altitude. We were headed for Kibo peak and the lava stack where we would have lunch at 4600m. This was a very impressive spot and we still weren’t having any lack of appetite problems – the little squirrels were enjoying the crumbs again too. It’s amazing any animals survive up there and I just wonder if they’d have been that high if they hadn’t learnt there was a free meal available every day.
Kilimanjaro is a 365-day mountain and our guide says that although there are quieter times it’s very rare there’s a day when no one is at some stage of one of the many routes. We asked his opinion of the different routes to discover that we’d chosen his favourite route. He reckoned the Machame route, although it is now the most popular, is the best one as it has the acclimatisation day and is the most difficult. Since we were on day 3 and had yet to be really challenged we weren’t sure of his analysis – time would tell. When we were researching the trip we found it difficult to choose which route and which company we should choose. As luck would have it we definitely plumped for the best route and I have to say that Bobby Tours were very good. The organisation of things in the office may have been a bit haphazard but we were very happy with the service we received. Our initial hesitation with signing up with Bobby was the fact that his trek package was half the price of most of the others we looked at. Once on the mountain it was very difficult to see how other groups were getting twice the money’s worth. Granted some of them had newer and probably bigger tents plus it looked like they had quality mattresses. A couple of groups even had a porter for their table and chairs! By the time we’d spent 5 nights eating and sleeping on the floor a chair would have been nice but honestly not worth paying double the money for. One group did have a private toilet tent with port-a-loo and considering how shocking the toilet facilities were at each camp I could see the point in forking out extra for that little luxury. We were happy with our lot and it was all much better organised than we’d expected as we really hadn’t expected the facilities to be up to much. We were more than happy to find a friendly bush or rock or simply wait until it was dark!!
Following lunch we descended steeply down towards Barranco Valley where we camped at Barranco Hut at 3950m. I must point out that at this stage in the trek the porters take a slightly different route so they don’t have to do the steep descent with tables, chairs, gas bottles and the like balanced on their noggin. It’s very difficult to give you an idea of scale so we hope the photos help out there. Basically the valleys are very wide and on looking back up towards the lava stack people looked like ants. It was great being able to see how far we’d walked and at this stage it was possible to pick out some of the other routes as many of them converge in Barranco Valley.
The walk down the valley was lovely as we were gradually treated to more plants. There was a stream near the camp so that stretch had much more greenery in it. The most spectacular plants were the huge lobelias with some of them approaching 2m tall. By the time we got to the campsite we were close to the base of the main part of the mountain and it looked very imposing. We could see the trail we would be using the next day and it looked like things were going to start getting tougher. Up until now we felt like we’d just been walking towards the base of Kilimanjaro. The campsite was set in an excellent location with stunning views. Unfortunately we didn’t get to enjoy them for long as the cloud quickly came down and we could no longer see the top of the mountain.
Another early appointment with the sleeping bags and by the way we still hadn’t experienced loss of appetite.
Day 4 24th July 2008
The day dawned very cloudy and once again we were about the last group to be woken for breakfast. So we could already see the line of ants ascending the Barranco Wall. We’d read about this section and expected it to be one of the tougher parts. Since we were already at 3950m it felt like each step was a little harder than it ought to have been. There were a few people obviously starting to suffer a little in the thinner air but luckily we were still feeling healthy. The scrambling up rock faces on volcanoes in Indonesia and hauling our way over root systems in the Malaysian jungles side of the training paid off too. At times we were climbing the Barranco Wall on all fours and all sense of decorum simply flew out of the window! Even though I was the shortest person around there were others finding it much more of a challenge. Once we were on the level again and there was lots of space we quickly passed many groups. We hadn’t really noticed on previous days that even though we were usually the last to set off we normally reached the next camp in good time and ahead of many of the others.
Amazingly the porters were using this route too. How on earth they managed to scale the steep slope with those huge bags and bundles balanced on their heads we’ll never know. We were full of admiration for them at the same time as feeling ashamed for struggling our way up there with a light day pack.
The steep ascent ended at 4250m and just like yesterday the clouds cleared briefly for us to take a couple of photos. This time we got a clear glimpse of the peak we were aiming for and we could clearly see the glaciers. It was all beginning to feel more real and from that angle looked impossible to get to the top. Carrying on we descended in Karanga Valley for lunch and we were dismayed to find that we were 20m lower than when we’d set off that morning. Knowing that night’s camp was at 4600m we knew the afternoon was going to involve more up. The damp, cold lunchtime didn’t help raise many people’s spirits. By this point Marco and Angela (remember the other couple in our group?!) were beginning to loose their appetites and it looked like Marco in particular was going to start feeling the affects of altitude. They had been slightly higher than us previously but not over 5000m and in the past Marco had suffered in the thinner atmosphere. We just hoped we would all be able to make it to the top as we’d enjoyed getting to know them over the last couple of evenings. There is nothing to do once it is dark and you’ve had your dinner so we had plenty of time to share past walking and travel experiences. We all got on well and wanted each other to make it to the top. Up until this point our fitness levels had been very similar so it was easy staying in a group.
There was no point hanging around after lunch so we set off to climb to Barafu Hut and at least when you’re moving you don’t feel so cold. With it being cloudy and having totally lost all plant life it was simply a case of walking along at the pace set by the guide to the campsite. The mountain was totally shrouded in cloud so we couldn’t see what was in store for us the following morning – a good thing?! Barafu Hut campsite spreads out as best it can down the slopes of the top section of Kilimanjaro. The wind was howling around us and we just hoped there were enough rocks in place to stop the tent from blowing away. The toilet hut was as far away from our tent as you could possibly get and up a very steep slope. No friendly bushes up here and still daylight so we had to trudge our way up there. By this point we could really notice the effects of exerting yourself in thinner air and the headaches had returned. Again we were assured the headaches were perfectly normal and since we didn’t have any other symptoms we didn’t need the Diamox. Marco and Angela were looking a bit pale by this point but they were determined to go on. It was now that we realised why we needed 2 guides. It meant that we could go up at our pace and the others could take their time.
Today was the toughest day yet and although we were only around 700m higher than the previous night we’d ascended about 1000m throughout the day’s walk. Following the guide’s advice and going ‘pole pole’ meant that we were fine and felt we had enough energy reserves to get to the top. The guide didn’t doubt for one second that we would make it and told us we were some of the strongest customers he’d had in a while. He may have just been being kind but it gave us a good boost and doubled our determination.
Dinner was very early that night, as we had to have the earliest of early baths in order to be up at midnight to start the final push to the top. Still hadn’t lost our appetites and since we wouldn’t be camping any higher we now know that it takes more than a bit of thinning of the air to get us to stop stuffing our faces!!
Day 5 25th July 2008 – SUMMIT DAY
Being woken up at midnight wasn’t much fun but since it was VERY cold moving around seemed like a good plan. By this point we’d used pretty much all of the gear we’d invested in but we didn’t need the thermal sleeping bag liners. That was mainly down to the fact that we were wearing all the layers of clothing possible! Emerging from the tent to see it covered in a layer of ice did not help me to feel any warmer. The hint of snow in the air wasn’t helping either! Luckily getting ready only involved putting on boots (we’d slept in all the necessary sock layers) and popping on as many pairs of gloves as humanly possible. Trouble was I couldn’t move my hands or hold my walking poles with 3 layers of gloves on and Steve wouldn’t have been able to hold his brew so we had to settle for the customary 2 pairs each! There was no way Steve was going to be tackling any mountains without a brew inside him. I had to have hot water, as they’d banned coffee once we got over 3500m – something to do with blood pressure.
Although it was extremely cold the starry night sky was lovely and with clear skies we got quite a lot of light from the half moon. We could already see a line of headlights and torches making their way up the slope and felt quite envious that they’d already chalked off some meters. No sense in hanging around as we had to climb 1300m before sunrise. We left our tents at 12.30am and the start of the walk was quite steep. This helped to quickly warm our bodies and I even briefly toyed with the idea of taking off a layer so I could feel the benefit of it later when we were stationary. Luckily Steve pointed out the stupidity of this idea and let’s face it, it is was only going to get colder the higher we climbed.
We soon caught up with the group in front of us so they were obviously going at a slightly slower pace. Once more the guide indicated that we should go round. Now this had been fine on previous days in broad daylight and a healthy oxygen supply. Our guide simply found a parallel path and skipped round the 6 or so people in the group. This sudden increase in speed and hauling ourselves up big steps was a little ambitious and it zapped too much energy at that altitude and so early in the ascent. Luckily the guide took this information on board and we passed subsequent groups at a more reasonable pace. Once we had our own space again we realised that we’d left Marco and Angela behind but we knew they were safe as they had the other guide with them.
We carried on slowly but steadily up the gravel slopes and at times it felt like one step up and a couple of paces slide back down. All a little frustrating when each step felt like 5 as it was! Now we’ve had wobbly legs on getting to the bottom of a steep mountain quickly but never going up. There’s a first for everything and we were extremely pleased we had a pair of trek poles each. The walk was just beginning to feel a little tedious and believe me we would never have given up but Steve came out with an excellent morale booster. Every step that we were taking took us to the highest point on land we’d ever been. I was just about to ask the guide what altitude he thought we were at and how long it would be to the crater rim and Stellar Point (5700m) when he stopped to congratulate us. We were there! Although we were feeling thoroughly exhausted we knew that we’d done the hardest part and would definitely make it to the top.
We were just settling down in the shelter of a rock for a well-earned rest before the final push to the summit when nature played a dastardly trick on me. My bowels needed emptying, and instantly was the message I was receiving but I really didn’t fancy having to expose my bottom at 5700m in the freezing cold. Oh well, no choice and at least it was pitch black so no one would be able to see me. I clambered over the rocks, had a tussle with my gloves and multiple layers of clothing and turned my headlamp off to get down to business. All was fine and then I heard a familiar voice chirping ‘It’s okay Emma it’s only me!’ Steve coming to see if I was okay was very kind but he’d forgotten about his headlamp and put me right in the spotlight!
To be honest the worst part of the whole episode was loosing the feeling in my hand. I’m serious, it was so bad that I couldn’t get my gloves back on and the guide had to put them on for me. We’d carried an energy gel each up and I have to say I’ve always been sceptical as to how good they are. Believe me, they work and we got a much-needed boost of energy to help us to set off again. We’d also dissolved an energy drink in hot water and that tasted just grand. Just as well we’d brought the flasks as the water in the normal plastic bottles had frozen on the way up. I’m not joking it really was that cold.
Ever onwards with only an hour and less than 200m ascent to the top – there was no turning back now and in fact we felt good. The walk along the ridge should have been straightforward but we had to walk over frozen snow. My feet fit into the ruts quite nicely but Steve was slipping and sliding all over the place. With the added bonus of very thin air he looked very drunk!! It’s very difficult to describe how it feels to be in high altitude but I’ll have a go. The best words I can think of are; woozy, disorientated, like you’ve been on a very long haul flight without sleep and almost slightly detached from what is going on around you. You’ll just have to climb up there and find out for yourself!!
There were a lot of people climbing the mountain that day and in fact we later found out that of the 100 that set off to reach the top at the same time as us only around 75 made it. The guides were happy, as 75% is the highest success rate they ever expect. Of the 25 that didn’t make it some will have underestimated their fitness levels and anyone who was seriously affected by altitude sickness will have had to go down. There is only one cure and that it to descend – if you do push yourself and pretend that you’re not suffering you run the risk of serious damage. Thank goodness we were both fine and could get to the top together.
Since we’d steadily passed many groups earlier in the walk by the time we reached the actual summit post we were among the first few to arrive. The atmosphere was lovely with everyone congratulating each other and taking it in turns to have their photo taken under the summit signboard. We were at the top by 6.30am so luckily didn’t have to hang around in the cold too long waiting for the sunrise. The sun was just starting to peek above the clouds so it was time to face the final challenge of the day – getting the camera out to record the event. We’d read that sometimes it’s too cold for digital cameras to work so I’d walked up with spare batteries in the inside pocket of my coat. Although whether or not I was emitting enough heat to keep them warm we’ll never know as the camera worked straight away. There was no wind so it wasn’t as cold as we’d expected. While Steve was sorting out a hot drink and cereal bar – don’t forget we only had a biscuit before setting off and we are people that need our food – I pottered about taking photos. Considering I had no feeling in one hand it’s a miracle that I got as many good shots as I did. On one side the snow laden slopes slid into the cloud and on the other a whole range of spectacular glaciers. Viewing it all as the sun was rising and casting gorgeous colours around us was stunning.
We were on our way back down as many people were still making their way to the top. According to our guide the earliest group set off at 11pm the previous evening to try to get to the top for sunrise. Many groups didn’t make it to the top for sunrise and quite a few didn’t make it to Stellar Point for sunrise either. However that’s not to say they didn’t make it to the top eventually that morning. Trying to pass each other on the glaciers wasn’t easy and since we’d already made it to the top it only seemed fair to let the others stick to the easier path. So more slipping and sliding but we didn’t mind, as we knew we’d reached our target and the air could only get thicker and the temperature higher. We met Angela and Marco and it was great to see they would also make it to the top. Marco wasn’t feeling good at all and he was not enjoying the experience but his sheer determination and the fact that Angela was okay kept him going. Fortunately he wasn’t suffering so much that he had to go back down – not sure if we’d have had as much will power to be honest. It has to be pointed out that Marco refused to wear a woolly hat or gloves during the entire trek!
As we were approaching Stellar Point the guide made a big song and a dance about us negotiating our way around a rock. Now he’d done this on the way up too but we were so focused on getting to the top we didn’t contemplate the significance. Now that it was daylight we could see that if you went the wrong way you were pretty much guaranteed to fall off Kilimanjaro. Up to date 16 people have gone the wrong way and sadly they didn’t live to tell the tale.
We hung around Stellar Point for a while taking photos and letting the queue of people coming up thin out. Marco and Angela spent the bear minimum time on the top so we met up with them again at Stellar Point and Steve was highly delighted to find out that their guide had a cup of tea for him. Probably one of the best brews he’s ever had and I bet he didn’t expect a few years ago to be supping tea at 5700m! Now it really was time to get back down and with full daylight we could see how steep the last part had been. So we were probably right in thinking that it was good that it was cloudy the previous afternoon! As you may remember from previous trekking tales we’re not the best at going down and warned the guide that we would be slow. The first part is loose scree and I had distant memories of running down such a slope years ago in the Lake District. Basically you have to take a step and let yourself slide along a bit. I quickly got into the hang of it but Steve wasn’t looking too happy with events. He got there in the end but I’ve a feeling he didn’t enjoy it as much as me. This was not helped with him sliding over a couple of times but I did too. Mind you seeing the guide down at one point helped to lift his spirits! I managed to land on my recently healed wrist but lucky it didn’t break again. To be honest I was more worried about landing on top of the camera.
By this stage you would have thought we’d have been fed up of camping but we were very happy to see the tent again at about 10.30 am. We were shattered and crawling into the sleeping bags was heaven even though we knew we would only be allowed an hour’s kip. We were woken just before midday and believe me the extra 30mins they gave us was not enough. No use complaining as we knew that was on the agenda and that summit day was going to be by far the toughest and longest. We’d been over 3500m for long enough and the guides wanted to get us back down the mountain that afternoon. Fair enough. A piping hot bowl of soup soon lifted our spirits and revived our flagging energy levels. Time to set off on the four-hour trek to the next, and final campsite.
Before we could set off we had to go and sign out at the ranger’s hut. No problem with the rules and regulations but did they have to put the hut 100m away up a 50m slope? That short trudge was ridiculously hard work and it showed us just how exhausted we were. Following that it was all down hill but the only problem was the walk seemed endless. I think that by now we’d started to loose enthusiasm but of course there was always something around the next bend to cheer us up. This time trees and plants – yes – we were back in the land of greenery and of course Marco was enjoying being able to get a good lung full of oxygen rich air. We also saw some lovely views down the valley as this section of the route was on a different face of the mountain. The final campsite, Mweka, was very similar to the first night’s site with one significant difference - they had Kilimanjaro lager on sale. I’m not kidding, one of the local beers is genuinely called that. Obviously we had to partake even though we hadn’t totally finished the trek. Our first beer since June 22nd and unfortunately it wasn’t very tasty. Still managed to drink it though!
I’m sure you’ll agree that we’d earned it. Since midnight we’d climbed from 4600m to 5896m and then from the top back down to 3100m – all in all 12 hours of walking. No the wonder we felt a bit weary. Although on saying that we didn’t feel anywhere near as exhausted as we’d expected and it was very pleasing to note that we weren’t suffering from any aches and pains. We’ve climbed other mountains in the past, most significantly Mount Kinabalu in Borneo, only to struggle to walk for the next couple of days. None of that nonsense in the Kili game!
Day 6 26th July 2008
Got up to experience the usual breakfast routine one last time and no, we didn’t sleep at all well. Hadn’t seen ourselves in a mirror all week so had no idea how shocking we looked. Don’t forget we’d not had a shower all week either – wet wipe washes was the best we could manage. Perhaps the lack of sleep could be put down to getting excited about the prospect of a long hot shower, a sit down in a seat, eating at a table and most importantly some cool beers before sleeping in a bed. I suppose psychologically we were done and dusted but in reality we still had another 4-hour walk down 1600m to the exit gate at Mweka village.
Before setting off we had to go through the rigmarole of tipping everyone involved in the trek. We’d been given advice on how much each different person should get and thought we’d worked it out fairly. To save the embarrassment of giving each individual person their share we pooled the money in envelopes and wrote messages in cards we’d brought with us. See how incredibly organised we were!! To be honest we didn’t even know who most of our porters were so couldn’t have picked them out in the crowd anyway. It turned out it wasn’t enough so we handed over some more and eventually everyone was happy. I’m not saying the boys don’t deserve the tips as they most certainly do but in reality they are not tips, but wage supplements. I dread to think how little the tour companies pay them for them to rely so heavily on tips. We know for a fact that other companies were charging a lot more than we paid so someone somewhere was earning a small fortune. It would be better if the tip rate was standard and there was much more open information. Even better would be that the tour companies ensure they all get decent wages and that tips are the extra bonus we know them to be not wage supplements.
Since everyone was happy and we were about to set off for the last bit of walking it was time for a group photo. We finally found out who had helped us to get to the top of Africa! Up until now we only knew the people we’d had direct contact with namely the guides and our waiter. We were just very grateful each evening that the tents, our bags and all the food and other kit magically appeared. It was good to have the opportunity to thank each one in person and try to convey how much we appreciated their hard work. Bizarrely a third guide appeared and in fact he was the one who directed us down that day. It turned out he was a trainee and that’s why we’d not been introduced earlier.
Finally we set off on the last leg of our adventure and you guessed it we were well and truly the last to set off. It was great though as we had the path to ourselves and could enjoy the furry trees again. We set a very steady pace and it gave us chance to chat on the way down and quiz the guides about how locals view tourists going up Kilimanjaro. Apparently there are very few locals who attempt the climb and the general feeling is that such antics are best left to the daft tourists. They’ve probably got a point but we were extremely pleased that we’d done it and have to thank all of you who helped to spur us on with your generous donations to Unicef. It was good to know that you had faith in us and we’d have been far too embarrassed to have to confess that we didn’t make it to the roof of Africa.
Once back at the gate, we made it there in only two and a half hours by the way, we had to queue to finally sign ourselves off the mountain. In the meantime the main guide had gone to get our well-earned certificates. Just enough time for a last trek team photo and in the van back to Arusha. Not quite – in true Bobby Tours fashion our van was parked another half hour’s walk away. Can you believe they had the cheek to eat into our valuable drinking time?!!
Kilimanjaro was well worth all the training, planning and preparation and we particularly enjoyed days 2, 3 and 4 going through the different vegetation. Yes summit day was tough but the sense of achievement was worth feeling wobbly though lack of oxygen, having blue lips and loosing all sensation in hands and feet. Watching sunrise and admiring the glaciers made you forget all of that. The trek was well organised and the facilities, especially the food, passed our expectations. We were glad we’d been paired up with another couple, as it was good to have someone else to chat to of an evening.
Recommended? YES! Given the right preparation and determination most people could do it.
We arranged our Kili climb and safari tour through Bobby's Tours http://www.bobbytours.com/
They were half the price than all other companies and for us they were great if not the most professional but you get what you pay for and we got everything we needed. Don't reall see what other people got for all the extra money on kili, wow a chair ! you are climbing a mountain you can do without such comfort. The safaris were fantastic and the hotels, guide and jeep were top class so well worth it and again much cheaper.
