Water and Hydration

One of the most frequent suggestions that you hear about dealing with altitude sickness is to keep drinking. Our guide suggested 3 liters a day, plus the liquids that we drank during meals. That much water means that much peeing - four times in one night, and ten times in one day were my personal records. I used a Camelbak combination water system and daypack, and I found it quite effective. It holds 70 oz (about 2 liters) and by sipping on the tube as I hiked, I was easily able to drink 3 liters a day. In addition to carrying the Camelbak water, I carried a 1 liter and a .5 liter bottle, with Tang or Gatorade mix in them. During our breaks I drank the flavored water for a change.

However, I did not use the Camelbak on the summit - our guide had warned me, and I had also read about the tendency of the tube to freeze up. I did not want to be carrying water that I could not access. What we ended up doing was very satisfactory. Our cook heated water and filled the five liter bottles that we had brought along. Each bottle was insulated, either with a heavy sock or a fancier insulation holder, and the guides carried them all. Dave and I each had just a half liter bottle that we carried in a pocket. We would sip as we climbed, and whenever we ran out we would call a break and get replenished from the guides' supplies. The water remained warm throughout the climb, which made it nice to have a warm bottle in your pocket!

As for the purity of the water - we were told that the cook boiled all of our water. We did not observe whether or not he faithfully did, but in any case, we remained healthy and free of any digestive upsets, so it seemed to be a system that worked. We met and talked with other climbers, and no one reported any GI problems, so I feel confident in saying that outfitters have figured out a way to keep the water clean.

Weather and Summit Clothing

Mt Kilimanjaro seems to be perpetually clothed in clouds. The first two days we were in fog and mist much of the time. There were times in camp when you could not see the other tents, it was so foggy. The dampness gets into everything, although we were lucky to have a large vestibule attached to our tent, so all of our gear could remain out of the mist. Once we got to the high camp (Kibo Hut) we were above the clouds, and the sun could be intense at times. However, seldom was the entire mountain out of the clouds - when we had sun, we were often looking down onto a cloud cover of the lowlands. As you can tell from the photo of Dave on the left, it was foggy and misty, but not terribly cold.

The summit was quite cold and windy - I am guessing perhaps -10F. There was a fine mist which had coated the rocks with frost, but the footing was adequate, not too slippery. During the ascent below Gilman's Point there were times when the wind got chilly, and times when I was hiking in a T shirt, long underwear top, light sweater and lightweight long sleeved shirt (in other words, rather lightly dressed). I did not put on my heavy parka until about 3 hours into the climb. At the same time, I removed the sweater and shirt, so I went to the summit with a T shirt, long underwear top and heavy parka. I had a light weight balaclava, a wool stocking hat, and heavy wool mitts. The parka had an excellent hood that I would use intermittently.

Descending, we once again entered the cloud layer and remained there until we left the mountain. We descended on the Marangu trail, so were in cool rain forest for the final day and a half - quite a lovely way to end the trip.

Mweka Descent Route

We learned from our guide that the Mweka descent route has been much improved in the last 5 - 7 years, which means that if you are taking the Machame route, the descent is quite decent. All the information which we had (much of it dated) had suggested that the Mweka descent was a muddy, steep hell. Apparently no longer. Please note, however, that we do not have first hand experience with this route, so double check with a recent trip report from someone else.

Our Route

We followed what we call a modified Rongai Route in climbing the mountain. We took five days to ascend and three days to descend. The guide made a few changes before we started, and one major one after we started. This is our final, actual itinerary:

Rongai Gate - Simba 3+ hours
Simba - Cave 2 4 hours
Cave 2 - Kikelewa 3 hours
Kikelewa - Mawenzi Tarn 3+ hours
Mawenzi Tarn - Kibo Hut 4.5 hours
Kibo Hut - Summit - Horombo 6 hours to Uhuru summit, 3.5 hours back to Kibo, 2.5 hours to Horombo
Horombo - Mandara Hut 4 hours
Mandara - Marangu Gate 2 hours

We had originally planned to spend a second night at Kibo, after summiting, but the guide nixed that, and we later learned that no one is allowed to spend a second night at Kibo. It is a water-less site, which means that porters have to carry all water up from a lower camp. Also, it is a heavily used site, and there is not enough room for parties to linger - there are always new groups arriving. Unfortunately the outfitter led us to believe that a second night was possible, so we had an uncomfortable conversation with our guide after descending from the summit. It turns out that the Marangu trail is well graded and well maintained, so descending was not as hard on our legs and knees as we had expected. Nonetheless, we were not happy to have an unexpected additional 2.5 hours of hiking at the end of a long day.

Success!

It is just a few hours since we returned from our eight day climb. The internet connection is slow, so I won't be able to give you many details, but the most important information is that we were both successful in getting to the summit of Mt Kilimanjaro (26 July 2010). It was surprisingly easy, given the hugeness of the mountain. It was easy because we trained well, because we allocated enough days to acclimatize, and because we had a good guide and team supporting us. Edward, our guide, had a deliberate pace that he maintained for the entire time. In demonstrating, day after day, that we were able to meet the anticipated time goals by going at his speed, I came to trust him to lead me up the mountain. So on summit day I just trudged behind his red gaiters, step after step, and listened to my iPod music, and eventually we got there! Fortunately we did not have any serious problems with the altitude, which was a real gift, since many people do. Initially the outfitter had suggested that since we were "old", that we would take longer to get to every stage, but we made the summit in 6 hours, and passed quite a few other groups along the way, so that felt vindicating.

Arrival in Moshi

The skies have been uniformly overcast since we landed in Nairobi on 16 July 2010. Supposedly our bedroom window looks out over Mt Kilimanjaro, but we have to take the manager's word for it. The upside is that it is not too hot. The downside is that it is quite possible that we will labor up the mountain for five days, only to summit in clouds. Oh well, we are not doing this for the views.

Since leaving Colorado earlier in July we have not had many opportunities to exercise - too much driving, flying and riding on buses. Dave is valiantly climbing steps in our hotel, but I lack his dedication. Tomorrow begins our climb - I figure that I will have sufficient opportunities to use my leg muscles on the slow ascent.

We have met with our outfitter, Kessy Brothers, and will meet our climbing team later today. So far everyone seems to be competent and knowledgeable. We have passed their gear inspection, and will be packing up our stuff tonight. We do not have to put everything in one large container - they will take our smaller stuff sacks and gym bags and put them into a larger, waterproof series of bags for the porters. I am glad that we did not bother with backpacks - they would have been superfluous.

We had one recovery day in Nairobi, and two here in Moshi. I am glad that we factored in these extra days - the simultaneous effects of jetlag and adapting to a very new environment have made both of us a little slow and sleepy. Our hotel in Moshi has been wonderful (A&A Hill Street Hotel - sajjad_omar@hotmail.com) - clean, private bathroom, hot water, well ventilated - what more could you ask for?! I have posted reviews on the Thorn Tree forum on the Lonely Planet website, if you want more details.

Photo of the two of us

My wonderful husband and climbing inspiration, Dave Heitke. We celebrated our 30th wedding anniversary last September.

Final Preparations

Our living room is full of piles of gear, waiting for a final sort and packing. Yesterday we were making decisions on expedition weight parkas and sleeping bags - Dave has a selection from previous climbs and trips. Since it was humid and 85 degrees in Minneapolis, the trying on sessions were brief! We have decided to use the outfitter's tent, but take our own parkas and bags, to ensure that we are truly warm the night before the summit climb. Since we will be traveling in East Africa for seven weeks, we have to carefully plan where we will store the gear after the climb, and what else we will need for a budget trip where we may be camping or doing our own cooking at times. I am the detail person, while Dave is the big picture dreamer, so he is keeping in mind the weather conditions that we need to be prepared for, while I am figuring out our cash flow and reservations. We compliment each other!

One of our sons is joining us for two weeks midway through our travels, so these final days also include planning sessions with him, along with phone calls to family members who are wishing us well.

The ultimate test - packing - resulted in two large suitcases that were well below the airline weight limit of 50 lbs, but full nonetheless. The parka and sleeping bag and sleeping mats do not compress a lot. It is hard to travel light when you plan to do both mountaineering and snorkeling!

Selecting an Outfitter

For many years Tanzania has required that all Kilimanjaro climbers use guides and porters. Hence, there is a thriving outfitter industry in Arusha and Moshi, the two towns closest to the mountain. To a lesser extent, there are also some Nairobi based outfitters.

Two sites that I have found useful in garnering reviews of these outfitters is the Lonely Planet Thorn Tree forum (http://www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntree/index.jspa) and the Trip Advisor site (http://www.tripadvisor.com/). Dave has been reading trip reviews on summitpost.org, another good site.

For the last two months or more I have been reading these sites, looking at the individual outfitter sites, and more recently, directly contacting the outfitters for quotes. The amount of information was becoming so overwhelming that I resorted to creating a spreadsheet to compile the data. The sheet now has over 200 rows!

There are two general dimensions to this process. The first is to select which of the roughly half dozen routes you wish to use. The second is to select an outfitter. I have been gathering information about both dimensions simultaneously.

Additionally, you can modify just about any itinerary offered, to best suit your climbing preferences. A common modification is to add an extra acclimitization day. A less common modification is to add an extra descent day - many of the itineraries involve summit day descents of over 7,000 feet on top of the 4,000 foot ascent to the summit! Finally, there is a third modification, if you have the budget and the time, which involves sleeping the night before your summit attempt on the crater rim (18,500 feet). If you have little experience with high altitudes, this is probably not reasonable, since you might get little sleep and feel lousy, but we have both slept at 18,500 feet or higher, so it was an option for us.

After talking with an informed and experienced acquaintance, we settled on the Rongai Route, which is not the prettiest or fastest, but which seems to fit our abilities and goals. The crater rim option was attractive (due to a short summit day), but significantly more expensive - we were told by one outfitter that a portable toilet is required of all parties who use the rim - a reasonable requirement for the environment, but not for our pocketbook. Another outfitter had a standard additional $500 charge for a night on the crater.

We have identified as many as 20 different outfitters, but have narrowed it down to three finalists. Sounds like a Presidential primary, doesn't it? I will let you know when we get our final plans in place.

Later: After getting a series of quotes, we settled on kessybrotherstours.com as our outfitter. They are one of the big budget outfitters in Moshi, and responded quickly and completely to our inquiries - this is the email address that worked for us: kessyvalency@yahoo.com. We will be paying $1550 per person for the following climb. We are planning on 10 - 20% tips on top of the basic charge, for a total for the two of us of about $3600. Ouch!

We have opted to not use their hotel and transportation arrangements, but rather, get ourselves to Moshi under our own power. We are using the Riverside bus that goes daily from Nairobi to Arusha and Moshi (http://www.riverside-shuttle.com/) - the trip is $40 one way, and reservations can be made online. I will let you know how long the trip actually lasts and what the condition of the roads are in a few days - I have heard that the road is pretty bad, so the advertised trip length of 7 hours may be optimistic. Later: The trip lasted about 10 hours, over rough and dusty roads. See my reviews under the name kris051 on the ThornTree forum of the Lonely Planet website for all the gory details.

We are staying at the A&A Hill Street Hotel in Moshi, for $15 for a double per night. The contact is sajjad_omar@hotmail.com. He has been quick and cordial in his responses. The hotel is recommended as clean and quiet on the Thorn Tree. We will spend three nights in Moshi before beginning our climb, to allow ourselves to be rested and unfrazzled.

This is our climbing itinerary:

Day 1 Rongai Gate - Cave 1 altitude gain = 2,640 feet
Day 2 Cave 1 - Cave 2 altitude gain = 1,980 feet
Day 3 Cave 2 - Kikelewa altitude gain = 1,250 feet
Day 4 Kikelewa - Mawenzi Tarn altitude gain = 2,390 feet
Day 5 Mawenzi Tarn - Kibo altitude gain = 1,320 feet
Day 6 Kibo - Summit - Kibo altitude gain = + 3,779 and -3,779 feet
Day 7 Kibo - Horombo altitude gain = -3,320 feet
Day 8 Horombo - Marangu Gate altitude gain = - 6,295 feet

The ascent should be steady but not outrageous. The descent should also be fine, except for the last day, but by then we will be more rested, with the additional day after the summit.

7 August

I have been slow to finish this particular entry because of mixed feelings about our choice of outfitter. We were very happy with Kessy Brothers, but after the climb we met and talked with folks from the Kilimanjaro Porters Assistance Project, and learned that Kessy Brothers did not have a good record of fair payment to their porters.

Before choosing an outiftter, I would strongly recommend that you read the following websites very carefully: www.kiliporters.org and www.mountkilimanjaroguide.com.

The kiliporters website lists outfitters who have agreed to pay their porters fairly. The guide website gives a good overview of working conditions and issues surrounding the porters.

What we learned from our guide was that our porters were not going to be paid very much by the outfitter. As a result, we ended up tipping about 33%, rather than our initial planned 20%. We gave each porter $60, our waiter an additional $10, our tent carriers an additional $5 each, the cook $90, the assistant guide $100 and the guide $140. Since we had 11 porters, the total was $1,010 in tips. There was some question about two of the porters - they were not with us for the entire trip, but the guide insisted that they had done an equal amount of work. It is possible that we were scammed to some extent, and ended up paying for some porters who in fact were not part of our party. The whole thing left a sour taste in our mouths, but at the same time, it was a great trip and someone benefited from our largesse.

As for our itinerary, the ascent went without a hitch - one small adjustment of Simba Camp instead of Camp 1, but that was immaterial. The biggest problem was in the Summit Day. We were led to believe that we could decide whether or not to spend a second night at Kibo Hut. Not true. No one is allowed to spend more than one night at Kibo Hut. So we ended up, after a rest and a meal, descending another 2.5 hours to Horombo on Day 6. On Day 7 we went from Horombo to Mandara, and then on Day 8 we exited the park. It all turned out to be fine, but the conversations were difficult immediately after arriving back at Kibo, expecting that we could then collapse for the night before moving on, and realizing that we had more miles to go before we could sleep.

This is what our final climb looked like:

Day 1 Rongai Gate - Simba 3+ hours
Day 2 Simba - Cave 2 4 hours
Day 3 Cave 2 - Kikelewa 3 hours
Day 4 Kikelewa - Mawenzi Tarn 3+ hours
Day 5 Mawenzi Tarn - Kibo Hut 4.5 hours
Day 6 Kibo - Gilman's Point 4 hours
Gilman's Point - Uhuru 2 hours
Uhuru - Kibo Hut 3.5 hours
Kibo - Horombo 2.5 hours
Day 7 Horombo - Mandara 4 hours
DAy 8 Mandara - Marangu Gate 2 hours

Middle aged foot and leg issues

My feet are the most important part of getting up a mountain. Early this summer, I bruised both big toes to the point that the nails are both turning black and will eventually fall off. I met with a podiatrist, who assured me that nothing serious had occurred, and then I went to a good outdoor store and purchased new, better fitting boots. It turned out that my original boots were too small (middle aged foot spread) and were also wearing out - a boot that is 8 or 9 years old is too old in this era of lightweight materials. Yet another reason to do lots of training hikes before an undertaking like this.

At the end of a day of hiking, my legs often ache - I have found that taking one or two tablets of Aleve (or its generic equivalent) mid way during the descent helps to forestall the discomfort.

Finally, due to varicose veins, I wear thigh-high white support stockings when hiking. They are a little weird looking if I am in shorts, but they keep my circulation healthy and provide extra warmth on the cold mornings. During the long back-to-back airline flights from the US to Europe and then to Nairobi, I plan to wear these stockings to minimize swelling and possible blood clots forming.

All these issues are signs that I am not as young as I used to be, but are not reasons to sit back and vegetate!

Diabetes

In 1993 , seventeen years ago, I was diagnosed with Type II Diabetes. Within six months we took a seven week backpacking trip to Alaska. I quickly learned that managing the increasingly complicated medical regime (now up to three different insulins and assorted oral medications) is quite possible in the context of extended outdoor and international adventures. I try not to let the disease dictate my life's possibilities. Contrary to the manufacturer's advice, I do not worry about keeping the insulin chilled - and so far, my blood glucose numbers have been reasonable.

I hope that others may take heart from my experience, and not give up or close doors when opportunities knock.

10 August 2010 During the climb, especially on summit day, I cut back on my insulin, to avoid any unexpected episodes of low blood glucose. During this entire African trip of seven weeks, I am fairly sure that I have been losing weight, due mostly to the uninteresting food - lots of grease and chicken and rice - and the sanitation issues mean that we choose our food carefully, but do not eat excessively. As a result of less food consumption, I am also cutting back on my insulin. The challenge will be once I return to the US - to maintain whatever weight loss has occurred!

Colorado

June 2010


We are in Colorado, climbing as many mountains over 14,000 feet high as possible in the next five weeks. So far we have climbed one (Mt. Sherman) on June 10 - I am on the summit in the photo on the left - and attempted a second (Belford) on June 12. The attempt was thwarted by heavy snow at 13,000 feet - the photo on the right shows the early snow fog before it really started coming down! We had to turn back when we could no longer see the trail and the rocks were becoming dangerously slippery. Even while camping at 10,000 feet, we regularly are pelted by snow and sleet. Summer comes late to the high mountains!

We are recognizing the frustration of trying to prepare for a 19,000+ foot mountain (Kilimanjaro) in a country where the the highest mountains are only 14,000 feet. But we are doing our best, climbing one day and resting the next two.

Success on June 15! The weather cleared and we summited Belford. We rise at 4 am, start hiking at 5 am, and are done anywhere from 3 to 7 pm. The days get long and sleep feels pretty good!

On June 18 we summited Huron Peak, making it our third fourteener and fourth attempt in 9 days. The weather has cleared and the days are cloud free. The early starts mean that we do a lot of our heavy climbing before the sun becomes too blazing.

On June 21 we backpacked 7 miles into South Pine Creek valley, to attempt to climb Oxford from a seldom used side. The high valley was beautiful, but the trail was almost nonexistent - after 5 hours of thrashing through aspen thickets and scrambling over boulder fields, we turned around. I was quite cranky and scared that we would not be able to find our way back, but my wonderful husband with his strong sense of direction found us a much better descent route that we had in ascending. On June 23 we hiked back out of the valley, with Oxford yet to be climbed.

I am re-examining my commitment to climb Kilimanjaro, given my reaction to the failed Oxford attempt. I am still planning to do Kili, but this has been a good reminder to me that for a goal to be strongest, it has to come from within myself. The Kilimanjaro climb is mostly my husband's dream, not mine. I am welcoming the increased fitness that I am experiencing in preparation for the climb, but if it weren't for Dave, I would not be doing this. We shall see if my motivation is sufficient for me to ultimately summit.

July 2010

I ended up, after six weeks in Colorado, summiting on three mountains (Sherman, Belford and Huron) over 14,000 feet high. Dave summited six mountains. On some of the days when I did not summit, I did significant climbing (on Princeton I went over 3,000 feet), so I feel that I continue to be reasonably ready for Kilimanjaro. However, the novelty of mountains always wears off sooner for me than for my husband, Dave. We slept for most of the six weeks at 8,500 - 10,000 feet, in national forest sites. It's not the 15,520 of the high site at Kibo, but it's not bad for the continental US.

Training for the Climb

I live in Minneapolis, not known for its mountainous terrain. As much as possible, I walk or bike within the city. Using a pedometer, I determined that I often walk about 12,000+ steps a day. I bike between 5 and 7 miles in an average day. In preparing for Kili, I have started stair climbing on an outdoor pedestrian bridge over a railroad track - for one hour nonstop, wearing a Camelbak with about 10 - 15 lbs of combined water and other weight. For much of June we will be climbing some of the 14,000 foot mountains in Colorado.

For the last 12 years or so, I have participated in an aerobics class up to three times a week. Both the teacher, Diane Penn, and all other regular attenders have become an important part of my life. When on the summit, I had a banner that I tried to display, but the wind was pretty fierce, so here are two pictures, one on the summit and one later in our hotel room, with the text more legible!

Previous Experience

In the early 80's we climbed in New Zealand and in Peru. For one memorable night in Peru we tented in a horizontal crevasse at about 18,500 feet. The highest I have ever been is about 20,000 feet. In 2003 we lived and traveled in Ecuador, and although I did not summit any of the volcanoes, I slept for several nights in a high hut at about 5,000 meters (16,500 feet).

The reason that I list all these numbers is to make the point that I have had repeated experiences at higher altitudes, both climbing and sleeping. One of the major problems that people seem to encounter on Kilimanjaro is related to the altitude. Just because I have handled higher altitudes successfully in the past is no guarantee that I will do so in the future, but it is one cause for some optimism about my chances.

Why Kilimanjaro?

My husband, Dave, is an avid mountain climber. I am less so. In 2009 he climbed Aconcagua, the highest mountain in South America. I stayed in the US and felt left out. This time, as he considered the highest mountain in Africa, I decided to join him. It is not a terribly high mountain, as highest peaks go (19,300 feet) and is not a technical mountain (no ropes or crampons required). Plus, we have climbed together in the past, and I am unwilling to concede that my climbing days are over. Consider this venture part "marriage enrichment" and part "personal challenge".