Reaching the Summit of Mount Kilimanjaro

Day 6

As we had previous days, we got up and walked towards the edge to watch the sunrise.  It wasn’t as colorful as the day before, but there’s something special about seeing it rise above the clouds.  We had breakfast and the crew packed things up with ease.  Over the next 26 hours, we’d climb up 2000 meters (6562 ft) in altitude to reach the summit of Kilimanjaro.  

 

The path was marked as there were different options for the final ascent.  We headed towards School Hut (4800 m; 15,748 ft) as that meant we’d only have 7 kms (4.3 miles) to the peak.  The route left the vegetation behind and went almost straight up.  We took our time and had several breaks to make sure we were adjusting well.  We passed other hikers and had porters with an incredible amount of things pass us.  The last bit was ash and loose rocks, but we could see the camp in the distance.    

 

 

 

 

After 3 hours of walking for 10 kms (6.2 miles) and reaching a point 1000 meters (3281 ft) higher, we’d reached our home for the next 11 hours.  We had lunch in our tent and then climbed into our sleeping bags to get some rest.  Dinner time came before we knew it and we took a break from eating to watch the sky light up near Mt. Mawenzi.  We’d have 5 hours to get more sleep before the real journey would begin.  

 

 

 

 

Day 7

Our day started just before midnight when we were awoken for tea.  We had 30 minutes to get ready and then left our tent for the freezing (literally) cold and darkness.  The moon had already set so the only light was coming from the sky full of stars.  We could see headlamps already working their way up the mountain and we followed their lead along the Hans Meyer route.

The path went almost straight up at first and we struggled to get good footing as the terrain was loose dirt.  Every few steps we’d slide down a bit and have to regain the steps we’d just lost.  The key was to focus on your breathing the whole time.  Losing your breath meant a setback and it was only going to get worse.  Our steps were extremely slow, but they still left us gasping for air at times.  

Within the first hour, we saw lights coming towards us.  A man was on his way down with a guide.  He thought he’d gotten a virus and had vomited too many times to continue.  Although we were already feeling it, it again made us realize what we were getting ourselves into.  

I had hand and toe warmers in place as I typically have trouble in cold weather, but it wasn’t until we started that Tico asked for his own.  He started with toe warmers and then at the next break asked for some for his hands.  Over the previous days we’d questioned whether it’d be the hike or the cold that did us in.  Up to this point, the cold was winning the battle.  

We’d actually taken some of our clothes off at the first break, but were slowly putting it back on.  Tico’s ears had gotten so cold that he had a headache and my eyebrows were pulsing from the cold wind hitting my face.  As we worked our way up, Tico started getting further behind.  Godfrey offered to take his bag and after the second time, he finally gave in.  

Once we reached the junction with the Marangu route, the zigzags started.  Both of us wanted another break, but there was a large group ahead of us so we kept going.  Once we had a good lead on them, we stopped for a few minutes.  If we stayed still for more than that, the cold really started to get to us.  

As we walked, we passed a girl by herself.  She looked confused and was unaware of the fact that her headlamp wasn’t working.  Godfrey explained that she was studying to be a park ranger and she must reach the summit (without a guide) to graduate.  They splashed water on her face and moved her batteries to get her light to work.  We kept going and I asked if it was okay to leave her alone.  She didn’t make it much further before her light went out and Godfrey gave her new batteries.  Morra, our assistant guide, stayed with her to make she was okay and we continued on.  We found another girl sitting on the ground without a headlamp and tried to help her take a few steps.  She almost fell down and we eventually left her waiting for her struggling companion. 

The zigzags ended by climbing over rocks and had us questioning if we were actually on a path.  As it was complete darkness, we had to trust our guide and follow the way even though at times the route disappeared.  With each step, we grabbed onto the rocks to make sure we didn’t lose our balance.  

We reached Gilman’s Point (5685 m; 18,652 ft) and stopped for ginger tea to try to warm us up a bit.  Tico’s headache wasn’t getting any better even though he’d covered his head more.  Earlier on stopping had helped, but it no longer did.  The incline decreased significantly although we still had to go higher.  The path moved along the crater rim until we reached Stella Point (5756 m; 18,885 ft), where we met groups coming up from Barrafu Camp.

The sun was starting to brighten the sky and we turned off our lights.  We had to turn around to see it, but there was a definite line above the clouds where the show was happening.  Above it, the sky turned orange and blue while the clouds looked like a painter took his brush and marked the rays.  There was a glacier on our left and darkness in the ash crater on our right.  

Tico felt awful by this point and his face showed it.  We moved slowly, but he worked hard to keep up.  He refused to take pictures as it was that much more work.  People started passing us on their way down from the summit and we knew we must be close.  There were more and more glaciers and we could see the sign board in the distance.  

 

 

When we finally reached it, we were flooded with emotions.  Each with our own reasons as Tico had suffered and a goal of mine for years was to reach the peak.  We skipped the photo opportunity and sat down to let it soak in.  As it was clear weather, Godfrey gave us the go-ahead to take our time.  We had another cup of tea and made sure to take deep breaths.  For curiosity sake we’d taken our thermometer with us.  From the outside pocket of my bag, it still read -9°C (16°F).  For a Texan and Guatemalan, it was too cold for us.  We got our turn in front of the sign board before walking around to see the glaciers and crater below.

 

 

 

 

After 30 minutes, we retraced our steps and started the descent.  One thing that left an impression was the amount of people who were being helped up the mountain.  Several were hand-in-hand with a guide being encouraged to make it.  Once we reached Stella Point, we turned right and made our way down towards Barrafu Camp.  It was a steep decline and very loose dirt.  As we hadn’t really seen where we went up, we questioned if it looked the same.  We passed one girl who had both arms held up by guides and she said she felt awful.  We’d both felt the effects of altitude, but seeing it in others made it that much more real.

 

 

Due to the terrain, it was easier to run and with Tico’s headache, Godfrey wanted us down fast.  So we trotted down and passed several people still working their way to the top.  We took a few breaks as now both of our heads were ready to explode.  The camp could be seen in the distance, but it didn’t seem to get any closer.  We thought that maybe part of the headaches was dehydration so we refilled our bottles and kept going.  Once we finally reached the camp, we sat down and opened the snack bags we’d been given.  We asked Godfrey if our headaches were normal and he didn’t seem to be worried.  The camp was at 4680 m (15,354 ft) so we were still high and possibly feeling the effects of the altitude. 

 

 

We had a cup of hot water and then headed down towards High (Millennium) Camp, where we’d have another break.  It was 7.5 kms (4.7 miles) to our tent and even though the path went downhill we were tired.  Our headaches slowly got better and we were glad that it was getting warmer.  By the time we reached High Camp, we took off some of our layers and had more snacks.  There was more and more vegetation and the trees were slowly getting taller.  We’d passed a cloth stretcher further up, but now there was stretcher after stretcher on the side of the path.  They had one large wheel and shocks built for the rocky road.  

 

A little after 1 pm, we reached Mweka Hut Camp (3100 m; 10,171 ft).  Our crew congratulated us and we sat under a tree to have popcorn.  We’d walked for over 13 hours and completed 19.5 kms (12 miles) while going over a kilometer up towards the sky.  Relaxation was what we needed and we barely left the tent the rest of the day.  Although we did walk out to get one last view of the peak and when did, we saw a stretcher in action.  A woman was in a heated sleeping bag with oxygen being pushed down to the gate. 

 

Day 8 

We had an early night so the fact that breakfast would be earlier than it had been the other days didn’t matter.  Everything was taken down one last time and we started the 10 kms (6.2 miles) to Mweka Gate.  We walked through a rainforest that was quite different from where we’d started.  The trees created a canopy and it was much more dense.  We got one last glimpse of the mountain, which happened to be much more snow-covered on this side, before we went beneath the clouds. 

 

 

 

There were colobus monkeys in the trees and we took our time to enjoy our surroundings.  Especially as we’d been in a desert for the past couple days with very little color.  We left the footpath behind and suddenly we heard a noise in the distance.  It was followed by an ambulance racing past us with men hanging off the back.  After roughly 20 minutes, we heard the noise again and packed to the brim the ambulance came flying past us.  Over the course of a few days, we’d seen the rescue fees we’d paid being put to use.  

 

 

We reached the gate and signed out before loading into the van.  They took us back to Moshi and we all got out at the restaurant we’d gone to escape from Gladstone.  And sure enough, Justice, Sam and him were all sitting at a table and enjoying their afternoon beers.  While they came and greeted us, we tried to keep our attention with the group that had been with us the past week.  We all sat down and they presented us with our summit certificates and then we thanked them for all of their hard work.  

After 8 days, we were back where we’d started, but feeling so much more accomplished.  It was one of the hardest, if not the most difficult, physical challenges we’d both experienced in our lives.  Not everyone makes it to the summit, including 17% of the hikers from Barrafu Camp on the day we made it.  Part of this is due to acclimatization and for that reason we were glad we had chosen a longer route.  From the start, everyone said “pole pole,” which translates to slowly slowly and it all made sense now.  In less than 24 hours, we managed to walk 29.5 kms (18.3 miles) and increased our altitude by more than 2 kms (1.2 miles).  It meant for a slow approach, but it worked because the feeling we both got when we saw the signboard brought tears to both of our eyes.

Helpful tips:

• You will have a lot of free time in the afternoons so you may want to bring a book or cards. 
• Take an extra pair of tennis shoes to wear around camp.  It’s too cold for flip flops.
• 63% of our total payment went to Tanzania National Parks.  Keep this in mind when looking at prices.