Monday, October 23, 2006
Oct 6 and 7
Both days were very similar. We hiked 3 hours in the morning on each day and then another 1 hour climb in the afternoon in order to "hike high, sleep low." The food was similar as was the trail. We were above the tree line now and it was scrubby trees and grasses. These decreased in density as we ascended so by the night of the 7th we were in dirt and rock. The night of the 6th was at 2nd cave campsite and the 7th was at 3rd cave. The weather was mostly sunny. One advantage to the Rongai route is that you are hiking up the whole time and you are constantly facing the mountain. The views of the summit are unobstructed with the exception of the passing clouds. Quite spectacular. Both nights we went right to bed after dinner. The moon was bright.
Oct 8
Today we ascended to the summit's base camp, Kibo hut. It is at the junction of the Marangu and Rongai trails and sits at an elevation of 15,500 ft. It was a 2.5 hour walk from 3rd cave. Tamara was having headaches due to the altitude. The terrain was lunar in appearance. Loose rock and dirt. The summit trail looked almost vertical. We had lunch and talked to others at the camp who had made summit attempts earlier. Some had made it, some had not. We all agreed that we had traveled half way around the world and we were going to make it my shear will. We went to bed after and early dinner and were briefed on the summit attempt by the guide. We were to wake at midnight and leave camp at 12:30 in order to reach the summit for sunrise.
Oct 9
Summit day. We slept OK, but not great. At midnight we had tea in bed and put on our gear. It was cold and we put on everything we had. The moon was so bright (almost a full moon), so we did not need headlamps. The ground was lit by the moon and it gave the night a eery, but spectacular look...even more lunar than before. We started quickly. We passed a couple groups on the trail. The trail was a loose mix of small rock and sand like dirt. Tamara's hands got cold and she was going slow, so we split the group about 3/4 of the way up. She went with one guide, Conor and I with another. The first major mile stone was Gilman's Point. It was on the crater rim, but not the summit of the moutain. Close to the rim, it got very rocky. Conor and I slowed considerably at this point. Conor was really affected by the cold and the altitude. I was still OK. We got to Gilman's at 4:45. We took a quick break and then started the slow walk to the summit. The lack of oxygen at this altitude was noticable. You really could not go that fast without going out of breath. One stop on the way to the summit, we looked back and saw Tamara. She had caught up and we were going to be together for the summit. The last part was not very steep...we were on the rim, but it still took 1.5 hours. As we walked, the sun was starting to come up and the sky and the glaciers reflecting the light changed from black to grey to purple to blue to red. It was neat. The summit was clear, but there were clouds a few thousand feet down. We reached the summit right at sunrise (approx. 6:15). 19,320 ft.!! No snow, just a couple of shrinking glaciers. We took pictures and looked out for 15 min. before heading down. It was really cold and there were a lot of people. Close to 20 or 30 there with us. We hiked back down. Conor was cold and went quick. I stayed back with Tamara because the altitude was affecting her and she was going slower. By 9 we were all back in camp napping. Unfortunately, we had to hike another 3 hours that afternoon to get to the night's camp. It was not bad though because we were on our way back down...away from the altitude and closer to a shower. We took the Marangu route down. It was much more crowded, the trail was wider and there were huts at the camp sites. They even sold beer and soda at the huts. Much more commercial than our route and worse views of the mountain. We were quite glad we had decided on the Rongai route and made it to the top!
Oct 10
Woke up and from the camp we could see out onto the Tanzanian plains and rainforests at the mountain's base. Quite a good view that had been covered in clouds the previous day. We had a 3.5 hour hike down to the gate. The trail started above the tree line and, as we walked, transitioned to scrubby trees, to deciduous to rainforest. Very scenic. Prettier than the first day of hiking on the Rongai. We saw some monkeys along the way too. By noon we were at the gate. We received certificates for reaching the summit and then piled into the minibus back to Arusha. It was a 2 hour drive, but it was nice to be off our feet. We tipped the guides and porters. When we got back to the hotel, we all hit the showers and tried to rinse some of the dust off of our clothes. We were so dirty. I had to wash my hair twice just to get the shampoo suds to stay the same color. After the showers we hit the bar at the hotel (same as before the climb...La Jacarenda) and had some Kilimanjaro beer. We stayed for dinner and went to bed early.
Both days were very similar. We hiked 3 hours in the morning on each day and then another 1 hour climb in the afternoon in order to "hike high, sleep low." The food was similar as was the trail. We were above the tree line now and it was scrubby trees and grasses. These decreased in density as we ascended so by the night of the 7th we were in dirt and rock. The night of the 6th was at 2nd cave campsite and the 7th was at 3rd cave. The weather was mostly sunny. One advantage to the Rongai route is that you are hiking up the whole time and you are constantly facing the mountain. The views of the summit are unobstructed with the exception of the passing clouds. Quite spectacular. Both nights we went right to bed after dinner. The moon was bright.
Oct 8
Today we ascended to the summit's base camp, Kibo hut. It is at the junction of the Marangu and Rongai trails and sits at an elevation of 15,500 ft. It was a 2.5 hour walk from 3rd cave. Tamara was having headaches due to the altitude. The terrain was lunar in appearance. Loose rock and dirt. The summit trail looked almost vertical. We had lunch and talked to others at the camp who had made summit attempts earlier. Some had made it, some had not. We all agreed that we had traveled half way around the world and we were going to make it my shear will. We went to bed after and early dinner and were briefed on the summit attempt by the guide. We were to wake at midnight and leave camp at 12:30 in order to reach the summit for sunrise.
Oct 9
Summit day. We slept OK, but not great. At midnight we had tea in bed and put on our gear. It was cold and we put on everything we had. The moon was so bright (almost a full moon), so we did not need headlamps. The ground was lit by the moon and it gave the night a eery, but spectacular look...even more lunar than before. We started quickly. We passed a couple groups on the trail. The trail was a loose mix of small rock and sand like dirt. Tamara's hands got cold and she was going slow, so we split the group about 3/4 of the way up. She went with one guide, Conor and I with another. The first major mile stone was Gilman's Point. It was on the crater rim, but not the summit of the moutain. Close to the rim, it got very rocky. Conor and I slowed considerably at this point. Conor was really affected by the cold and the altitude. I was still OK. We got to Gilman's at 4:45. We took a quick break and then started the slow walk to the summit. The lack of oxygen at this altitude was noticable. You really could not go that fast without going out of breath. One stop on the way to the summit, we looked back and saw Tamara. She had caught up and we were going to be together for the summit. The last part was not very steep...we were on the rim, but it still took 1.5 hours. As we walked, the sun was starting to come up and the sky and the glaciers reflecting the light changed from black to grey to purple to blue to red. It was neat. The summit was clear, but there were clouds a few thousand feet down. We reached the summit right at sunrise (approx. 6:15). 19,320 ft.!! No snow, just a couple of shrinking glaciers. We took pictures and looked out for 15 min. before heading down. It was really cold and there were a lot of people. Close to 20 or 30 there with us. We hiked back down. Conor was cold and went quick. I stayed back with Tamara because the altitude was affecting her and she was going slower. By 9 we were all back in camp napping. Unfortunately, we had to hike another 3 hours that afternoon to get to the night's camp. It was not bad though because we were on our way back down...away from the altitude and closer to a shower. We took the Marangu route down. It was much more crowded, the trail was wider and there were huts at the camp sites. They even sold beer and soda at the huts. Much more commercial than our route and worse views of the mountain. We were quite glad we had decided on the Rongai route and made it to the top!
Oct 10
Woke up and from the camp we could see out onto the Tanzanian plains and rainforests at the mountain's base. Quite a good view that had been covered in clouds the previous day. We had a 3.5 hour hike down to the gate. The trail started above the tree line and, as we walked, transitioned to scrubby trees, to deciduous to rainforest. Very scenic. Prettier than the first day of hiking on the Rongai. We saw some monkeys along the way too. By noon we were at the gate. We received certificates for reaching the summit and then piled into the minibus back to Arusha. It was a 2 hour drive, but it was nice to be off our feet. We tipped the guides and porters. When we got back to the hotel, we all hit the showers and tried to rinse some of the dust off of our clothes. We were so dirty. I had to wash my hair twice just to get the shampoo suds to stay the same color. After the showers we hit the bar at the hotel (same as before the climb...La Jacarenda) and had some Kilimanjaro beer. We stayed for dinner and went to bed early.
# posted by Adam @ 5:45 AM 
