15th - Kili day 4

As I didn't have time and energy to write any notes this day this post will be done by memory.

Barranco camp (3980 m) – Barafu camp/Base camp (4500 m)

Obviously, a good night’s sleep and decent amounts of re-hydration did Glenna good; she seems more alive than she has for a while. Good for her!

To be honest, Barranco Wall was quite a surprise; after having read all the scaring stories about it I was almost expecting Death looking at me at every corner. That was not the case. Not completely, at least. It was difficult, no doubt about it, but having mentally prepared me for the worst, it actually wasn’t as bad I had feared. With that said, you couldn’t do it without paying full attention at all times. Otherwise it would, and could, go fatally wrong. It was like the situations on the second half of the second day, where a slight step to the wrong side would result in death, but here there were just many more of those, and the error margin was at times much smaller. And it all took 2 hours to get through. At one time we would be standing on a small ledge big enough for only half a boot, and the next spot to step on would be almost a meter away. Between those two points: nothing. Stepping from the first to the second was like stepping into the nothingness, and you just had to rely on that your boots would keep their grip and that the guide would get hold of you at the other end. The two small edges also slanted, so there was nothing reassuring about it.

These two hours was a perfect example of how annoying the porters could be; you would be standing holding on to whatever you could with whatever you had, afraid of losing balance, and while looking for the next place to step/jump to, you would see 2-3 porters go past you, whistling, hands in pockets and 20-25 kgs on their backs/necks/heads moving briskly as if they were going shopping. That made you feel truly pathetic.

After that the day was relatively normal as the others. Just a lot of walking upwards and after a long day we ended up at Base Camp with was covered in mist. Towards the end of the day Glenna began showing signs of altitude sickness again, but she kept fighting and wouldn’t let it get between her and the next camp.

Arriving at the camp we got served an early dinner, and then we quickly went to sleep. The plan was to leave the camp at around midnight to try to reach the peak at sunrise. That meant that we got around 3-4 hours of effective sleep before we had to leave. For the first time I slept with my thermal underwear in the sleeping bag. Not because it was getting cold, but just to be able to get faster out and going when we got woken up. For a short while I considered unzipping the sleeping bag as it quickly became too hot – a nod to the quality of the stuff I’ve been spending money on the last couple of months.

Tomorrow will be Hell.

14th - Kili day 3

Shira camp (3800 m) – Barranco camp (3980 m) via Lava Tower (4600 m)

Woke up with a fabulous view in clear frosty air. Nothing particular happened this morning, an soon we were continuing our walk.

When moving upwards we could look back and see the clouds slowly rise and cover areas we had already been. Fortunately we stayed ahead of the clouds the entire day with the exception of a whiff now and then. The conditions were rock and gravel and very little dust. Happy about most of the dust gone, but the gravel can make it into a living hell to get a decent footing.

Glenna is obviously having problems with the altitude; we are have had quite a few short stops so that she could get her nausea under control. It doesn’t really matter, though – in the long run it’s to our all’s advantage that we are moving slow, as it will make it easier to acclimatize to the lower oxygen levels.

The goal was to reach Lava Tower at app. 4600 meters altitude, and then descend back down to almost the same altitude at where we started today, to prepare the body for the challenges the next couple of days. Because of Glenna’s issues with the altitude se was led by a porter around today’s tall point, staying down at a more manageable altitude. After Lava Tower we descended again, and even though it only lasted app. 1½ hours, I have a feeling that the long descend from the summit will be pure Hell. Just after these 1½ hours my knees and calves weren’t happy.

Closing in on the point where we were to meet Glenna again the clouds caught up with us, and within 10 minutes visibility dropped to app. 100 meters. We reached camp, and due to the weather it took some time for us to find our tents. We had an early dinner, and when we exited our mess tent it had gotten dark and the fog had decreased visibility to below 30 meters.

Tomorrow will be an interesting day. We will start with Breakfast Wall (Barranco Wall) which is an almost 90 degree steep cliff wall we need to get up and over before we can continue. The (informal) name is due to all the breakfasts that have been sacrificed during the ascend. The Wall will probably be our biggest challenge yet – and it isn’t because we haven’t had enough challenges already on the trek. After this we will have a 5-7 hours walk so it’s going to be a long day tomorrow. We will end at around 4500 meters. During dinner we discussed the possibility of Glenna having to get her to our last camp the last night and meet us there instead of continuing with us. But we agreed that we would see in the morning how her condition will be.

My neck is getting itchy. More sunscreen, please!

Technically we have come halfway in our trek (3 days down, 3 to go), but I think that if we look at it difficulty-wise, we won’t be halfway until after tomorrow.

The day after tomorrow will be our summit day. That will be a climb from 4500 meters to the peak at 5895 meters, followed by a descend that will end us at 3100 meters. My legs will file a complaint, of that I am sure. I can already feel a certain amount of fatigue in them, so they might already be rebelling?

13th - Kili day 2

Machame Camp (3000 m) – Shira Camp (3800 m)

Moorland

Ice. Frost. That was the first thing that met my eye when I exited my tent in the morning. Frost everywhere – no wonder I felt so cold when I crawled out from my sleeping bag,

After freezing all my limbs off (luckily they grew out again afterwards!) because of all my now cold clothes, we packed up and continued our trek. Due to the cold the air was crystal clear, and the top of Kili was now visible in the clean air. Despite the chill it was a very nice morning.

One of the porters looks like Morgan Freeman. Glenna argued and thought he more looked like Nelson Mandela, until she realized her image of Mandela was from the movie where Freeman played him.

At around 0830 we left the camp, and I was nervous the cold would keep its hold on us. But as the sun rose and got a grip it got warmer, and we could get rid of the outer layers of our clothing.

The condition yesterday was a wet and slippery dirt path (we were in the rainforest, after all), and today it had turned into moorland with rocks and dust. A lot of dust, and no rain. If something hadn’t been sealed in a air tight container, it would get dirty, no exception. The only thing that affected me was the dust getting in my airways; I didn’t seem to be affected so much by the altitude and thinner air. Not enough to notice, at least. My resting pulse doesn’t even seem to have changed, so I am beginning to have hopes for a successful climb. But the trek is only getting harder. Much harder.

It was pretty steep today; 700 meters was ascended in half the distance of yesterday. The first half was difficult; at times people less than 10 steps ahead would have their feet at the same level as my head, which didn’t really help the “dust into the airways”-issue.

Second half was much less steep, but on the other hand there were times where a single step too far to the left would result in a plummeting and sudden death.

We got some good views of the smaller mountain Meru in the distance. Clouds covered most of the land below us, and it was quite a strange feeling being above the clouds without sitting in a plane.

Every time I blow my nose the result is black.

The camp today is a big open area with a beautiful view of big fluffy clouds and Meru. I can still see the top of Kili. The closer we get the scarier it looks. Despite the open free space there isn’t much wind, and it’s quite warm. Let me correct; was quite warm. The second the sun disappeared it got really cold, and the clouds begun climbing up onto the plateau. I expect it’ll get below freezing again, if it hasn’t already.

I’ve put all the clothes I’m going to wear tomorrow with me in my sleeping bag. Pre-heated clothes are going to be great on a freezing morning. It’s already getting nice and warm.

Tomorrow will be used for acclimatization. We will ascend up to 4600 meters before going down again to only 180 meters above where we are today.

I will need my sleep.

Our guide's name is Temba. Apparently, in Swahili a elephant is tembo. Better be careful with pronunciation.

12th - Kili day 1

Machame Gate (1800 m) – Machame Camp (3000 m)

Rainforest

My group members cancelled their trip, so as I now was alone I was moved over into a group with two Welch nurses; Carys and Glenna.

For practical reasons we were combined with a group with 5 Belgians the first day of the trek.

The walk went well, but I hope my deep breaths were due to the strenuous walk and not from the gradually thinner air. If the air already is affecting me, I will have serious problems later on. We walked for app. 6 hours and during that time we ascended app. 1200 meters. The steepness was indeed to be felt when walking. And obviously we are completely ignoring the general recommendation to not ascend more than 500 meters a day due to an optimal acclimatization.

We arrived at the camp which basically just was bare spots in the vegetation spread out making room for setting up tents. And have no doubt; Kili is a huge turist magnet, so there are a lot of tents.

The three of us where separated into two tents – the two nurses for themselves. I tried protesting against this but to no avail. Pff.

A small tall tent was set up for us – our mess tent. Having room for a table and three small chairs we will have our breakfasts and dinners here. Considering the conditions it works well.

Despite going through a rain forest the entire day we didn’t get a drop of rain. But now – around 2100 – it’s getting really cold, and it’s not gionf to get any warmer until tomorrow. And it’s almost certain that we will be getting rain (and lots of it!) at least one of the next couple of days.

My new sleeping bag is living up to expectations, though, as I am almost completely undressed and I don’t have any problems keeping warm – on the contrary.

We are getting up at 0700 tomorrow morning for a short walk (app. 4 hours) with a 700 meter climb. I have yet to feel any effects by the altitude, but you never know when something might happen…

We have our own waiter. His name is Nicolas (or just Nico)!

11th - Easy rider

Today was an interesting day. A friend who had been here previously set me up with Abraham, a local guy, who showed me around in Moshi and surroundings. He started off by show me a local business that recycled metal (roof plates, oil cans etc.) into bowls. After this we went out outside Moshi to check out the tallest waterfall in Tanzania. It's not mentioned many places and apparently not all tour guides know it. I assume it's because it's hard to reach - a walk of app. ½ hour on a very narrow path with not much room to spare if you stepped too far to one side. But when we arrived it was worth the walk - it was beautiful and was very tranquil, too (except for the noise, off cause).

We didn't walk all the way; to get from the center of the town we got hold of a couple of bikes and drivers - these are all over the place and function as cheap taxis. Coming from Denmark with all the rules about how you need to dress to be allowed to drive a bike, this felt crazy. You just sat down in the passenger seat, and off we went. And considering how people drive it's amazing that not more accidents happen. Not being used to the concept, you need a certain level of disregard of danger. I don't know if I felt terrified or extremely entertained when the trip was finally over. According to law here, only íf the driver doesn't wear helmet/seat belt, the police will fine him. Think about that for a moment.

When we went home we took one of the busses. Also here it doesn't quite work as at home; Abraham insisted that we sat on the front seats, and after the first few stops I understood why; they don't stop coming into the bus just because there are as many passengers as seats. Think human tetris and you get the idea.

We finished the day with some African Saussage. Yeah, yeah - stop the giggling. There is a small café in Moshi that makes some great saussages. Dipped in chili sauce it was a great final to a just a great day.

Came back to Springlands hotel we had the introductory meeting with the group, the trip manager and the tour guide. When I say "we" and "the group", I mean "me", as the rest won't show up until tonight. We will only be four people (tourists) in the group in total, so the group will be small and managable. The meeting didn't tell me much I didn't already know; the guide made sure I had the right equipment, and the manager listed the times we have to keep an eye on tomorrow morning before we leave. Breakfast, checkout etc. As the climb starts tomorrow, it will be a whole until I can write here again.

Abraham is a very pleasent guy. If anyone plans to come by Moshi some day, let me know, and I can hook you up with him. He'll give you a tour of the town and surroundings, but basically it's up to you and what you want.

11th - Night of arrival

There isn’t much to say after leaving Denmark and arriving at Kilimanjaro airport. Arriving in Amsterdam I chose to upgrade my ticket to be able to sit at the emergency exit, which gave me 2 meters leg room. 30 euro was worth it, no doubt. A long flight of app. 10 hours, but I shouldn’t be complaining after having completed a trip to Australia (without the extra leg room). I arrived at 2030, and after queuing for some time in immigration I could go in and directly pick up my bag that was just lying there waiting for me. That must be the first time that the luggage arrives before me when arriving an airport – but that probably says more of the small size of the airport than anything else.

When going through customs I entered into a forest of signs with travel agencies and tourists’ names. I quickly found mine, and apparently there were quite a lot of people who knew exactly who I was, whereas I had no idea of what was going on around me – being groggy from the trip didn’t make it any easier.

The trip to the hotel was pretty eventless except from the fact that everyone apparently has an addiction to using the long lights and trying to see how far down the speeder could go.

The hotel – Springlands Hotel – is a pretty large facility with rooms spread out in several buildings. I have taken a walk around on the premises (it’s limited how much walking around can be done, as the entire areas is fenced in) and it seems nice, despite its pretty worn state. Not much else to do tonight, and considering breakfast is served early it looks as if I’m going to bed early. I really need it too; not much sleep on the plane, and after my stunt at home where the presence of decent sleep was close to non-existent my body is craving for rest.

10th - And there was light...

... no, there wasn't. Not yet, anyway. It's only a little past 0500 here at CPH and as we are in the middle of September, it's pretty dark outside.

The first day (night, morning) of my new trip. This is going to be great. At least it can only get better:

The plan was that my parents would pick me up at the airport as they are also leaving for a vacation (they are going with an orchestra in which they play) on Corfu (and their plane is leaving 20 minutes before mine (0625 and 0645)), and they were to pick me up at around 0315-0330. I had set my alarmclock to 0200, which gave me less than 2 hours sleep, as I have been stressing all day yesterday with packing, unpacking and packing again to make sure I had everything and getting nervous about the bulk and weight of my luggage. So the plan was that after I woke up I'd get the last small details sorted before my parents arrived, which meant that I had let some of my stuff be spread out in my living room before going to bed.

Everything went as planned; the alarm rang at 0200, I snoozed it, and... Well... The next thing I registered was my parents calling at 0308 saying they were 2 minutes away.

thgfhgthxxuhghgblargh

I bolted out of bed, a quick visit to the bathroom, grabbed (hopefully) all the toiletries on my way back to the living room and forced it down in the bag. While getting dressed I then took almost everything in my living room not bolted to the floor and tossed it into the bag, closed it and rushed down to the car. Well - rush and rush; it's limited how much a b-person can rush at shit o'clock in the morning with 24+ kg luggage.

But to be honest I actually think that departure was the best - I didn't have time to once again second-guess the luggage and getting stressed over the luggauge-issue again, so as far as I haven't forgotten anything important I think I'll do fine - despite it all. I do have my passport and money, the two really necessary things on a trip, so I think I'll manage.

I just hope that I have turned off the iron and fed the cat. I don't have an iron and I don't have a cat, but I'll be depressedf if I return to my apartment in three weeks and find a dead cat on the floor.