Day 6 and 7 (17 and 18/07) - Kili trek

Here we are, at Karanga Camp. One camp away from the summit night. On my side I start feeling a bit anxious, both by not feeling any symptoms of HAS and by not knowing if it’s going to strike me right in the Summit night. the plan is to leave at midnight and arrive at Uhuru Peak by dawn.

It seems impossible we reached this far with no prior physical preparation, not feeling tired and above all without HAS symptoms. So, let’s move onward.

Once again, they woke us up at 6:00AM, and tonight I managed to sleep for a few hours. The routine is always the same: dress up, go to the toilet, and wash myself as good as I can (it’s getting colder and colder), and we pack our bags just in time for breakfast. I am starting to be fed up with breakfast, as I dislike the porridge, it’s became quite monotonous: toasted bread slices with jam and tea. We get our measurements before heading off and everything is good. The heart rate increased a bit (now is 77 BPM) and SO2 95%.

We left the camp at 7:15 AM, later than planned, what doesn’t please Jonas our lead guide at all.

It is a very steep and rocky track: looks like we have landed on the moon. NO leaving creatures around, just rocks and debris probably from an eruption.

I got some small stones on the way, so I can show it to the kids when I get back home. One is a shale flat and mossy stone and the second one is dark shiny black one.

Beside a few porters, we walked most of the time alone, we didn’t see any other tourists. It was so comforting and calming. All that silence.

We arrived Barafu (by the way it means ice in Kiswahili), in 2,5 hours. It was quite fast and as we arrive we realize that most people didn’t leave the camp yet. We are now at 4.600m ASL.

As we walk further inside the camp site, we can see people coming down. It’s overwhelming: most people are overly tired, faces are disfigured because of all the effort, the cold and the altitude. Some people look happy though. SO it’s around 10:00AM and people are still coming down from Uhuru Peak.

After a quick rest for a snack, Jonas mobilizes us for an acclimatization walk (up to 4.920m) and for us to get used to the trek, as we will walk during the night. The trek is extremely steep and the rocks are slippery.

As we go up, hundreds of people come down. We don’t even dare to ask how it was. Some can’t even walk, and they are literally being carried by guides, porters and partners, looking extenuated.

It is a very demanding climb, namely because of all the people crossing us, there is not much safe space left for us to walk on the rocks.

We made it successfully up to 4.920 m and we were coming down when we met the Mexican girls, who is doing it on her own (with no partner), and it felt like we've met an old friend. 

We greeted each other, exchanged points of view and experiences and wished each other best of luck for the following day. Maybe we will meet again sometime.

We got back to the camp site in about 40 minutes and we had a nice rest. In Barafu Camp there is no water, therefore porters need to carry it all the way up from Karanga Camp, that’s why we see porters carrying buckets on their heads all the time, back and forth. It is quite demanding, and we are not allowed to waste any water. All the water is reused: for instance, the water we used to wash ourselves is reused in the toilet.

We are located in a magnificent spot, and we can see Mawenzi peak perfectly.

Paula can see the weather forecast (-2ºC, real feel -1ºC), don’t know how it will be tonight at midnight, as we leave the camp, but by now is cold and misty.

After having our veggie lunch (remember we can not eat meat anymore), is time to check our gear and make tonight’s plans.

I took a walk around the camp looking for a good soul to lend me the phone charging cord, and I met Rudi.

After we are allowed to have a siesta but it is not very comforting as most teams are dismantling the camps, and I can hardly sleep because of all the noise.

 After waking up, I am off again to look for Rudi so I can charge my phone for tonight. On my way I met a family (father and 2 kids), climbing together. I wish I could do it with my kids, but by the time they are old enough to do it there will be no snows or glaciers.

We had a light dinner and went back to bed. It’s 7 PM and I can’t keep my eyes closed, I think it’s anxiety. The tent is also leaning into Paula’s side, and I am constantly sliding towards her and trying not to smash her. She is sleeping like a baby, as always.

Finally, it’s 11 PM, time to rise and shine.

We dress up quickly: 3 layers on the body plus insulated jacket, 2 pairs of socks, 2 pairs of leggings plus the sky pants, 2 pairs of gloves, balaclava, warm hat... I feel like a snow man, overly dressed.

Jonas made the decision yesterday that him and Isaac would carry our backpacks, to make it easier for us.

We leave the camp a bit later than expected (00:18) but we get a beautiful view of the people going up the mountain. It looks like thousands of stars are dancing around, as it’s pitch black up there, you can only see the light from the head lamps. I think it is one of strongest feeling I got from this journey, thousands of fireflies dancing around my eyes.

We walk slowly among many others tourists. As we’re not carrying our backpacks we walk slightly faster than others, plus Jonas is possessed by some kind of inner force, and wants to overtake everyone else. We need to remind him that we just want to arrive to Uhuru peak, we don’t need to be the first to do it.

Some groups are really slow, mainly because people have different paces and determine the group’s pace, also some people feel sick already and make their groups slowing down or even come to a complete stop. Some groups are very large, and have as many as 20 people. Being just the 2 of us is a huge advantage. This should be a selection item, as the bigger the group, the smaller the success rate.

So pole pole we overtake several large groups, but it’s an outstanding work, as we need to forge our way in between the rocks. We get tired quickly.

My feet are completely frozen; there is no way they are getting warmer. Hands and body is warm by now, but it’s so cold and I can’t breathe through my balaclava. It gets wet and my nose is dripping so badly, and I don’t have where to clean it anymore. I take the balaclava of and it’s too cold, I put it back and can’t breathe. I look to Paula and I see ice crystals around the place where her mouth is. It’s so interesting.

We stop from time to time to get our strength back and to warm up with some hot tea. Going to the toilet is now harder, as it’s freezing cold and there are hundreds of people everywhere. Jonas dislikes the fact that we want to stop so often, but we need to pull ourselves together.

It’s getting colder, and although I have already opened my jacket and removed one pair of gloves, my feet don’t get any warmer. Suddenly we realize something wrong going on with Jonas. He is trembling, his legs are shaking and he can’t walk straight. Despite our concern, he stands that he he’s fine. We can clearly see that the backpack is far too heavy and it’s causing him pain and feeling unease. Finally, we managed to stop for a hot tea and re-distribute the weight. At this point the wind is so cold, that I need to put my second pair of gloves on and I close my jacket again. Paula is feeling more comfortable than me, but the cold is disturbing me a lot.

Jonas is getting worse and worse, and regardless our suggestions to stop or to exchange backpacks, they keep on moving.

We are now at Stela Point, it’s still pitch black and it’s crazy cold here. As you turn the mountain, the cold wind strikes me and almost throws me on the ground. It doesn’t help being so light and short, it’s been a huge advantage so far, but now I am felling very very uncomfortable. There is no way I can warm my hands and feet up. According with Jonas, we still have 45 minutes to go to reach Uhuru Peak. I am feeling sleepy and frozen, so I ask Isaac to hold my poles, and I put my hands inside my pocket. It gets better, but I need to keep one hand hanging downs to reactivate the blood stream. I wonder if this is normal, or I am a bit hypothermic, and Isaac just says it’s normal…

These last 45 minutes seem to last forever. It’s pure torture to me. I made it easily up to here to find that I can actually give up due to the cold. My face is frozen, I can feel the wind through my insulated jacket… but I keep on going. Finally, we see Uhuru Peak and the glaciers and it’s astoundingly beautiful. I almost cry when I see the sun rising and Uhuru peak in behind. So, I just keep on going. I feel so peaceful now and sure I will make it, that I almost don’t feel cold anymore.

After a while, we join the dozens of people standing around Uhuru peak, trying to get the perfect shot. I can’t believe we made it!

You will stand there 5 min maximum, it’s so cold that you don’t want to stand there. You just take your perfect shot and leave straight to Barafu camp. That’s all you get after 6h walk!

Jonas tells us that it’s -10ºC, I have never been in such a low temperature before in my life. Another record set.

As we start coming back, the sun is rising and it’s warmer than before. Even so, I can’t remove my gloves. We stop here and there to make some pictures and record the moment. Don’t really want to miss it. It was so special.

I can barely believe that I’ve actually made it to Uhuru Peak. After all the sad stories Ia heard, seeing those people coming down yesterday, I never really rely on myself and deep down inside I’ve always thought that this was going to be one of the greatest adventures, even if I didn’t reach the summit. I kept in the back of my mind that I wouldn’t make it, and in the end I did. Maybe it was the absence of expectations that keep me going, knowing that if I didn’t make it, it would be ok as well.

Coming down is a lot easier and warmer. You start to peel out your clothes and can barely stand the heat, thus it is still cold walking under the sun and getting the heat from the stones just keeps you warm.

If I’d known I would have put on leggings so I could remove my insulated pants.

One of the things that shocked me the most was the number of people coming down by alternative paths. People step everywhere, liter wherever, and it has a tremendous environmental impact. I could not stop thinking about that, and even now that I am far from the scene I keep on thinking if I made the right decision when I decided to climb Kili.

It never crossed my mind that this would have such an enormous footprint.                 

On the way down you see people been carried out, people taking oxygen, people waiting to be recued by helicopter. Don’t think it’s a piece of cake, is one of the toughest experiences in your life. For me, coming down was very hard because of the heat, the dust (my god there is so much dust in the air, and last but not the least, I needed to urge to the toilet, and that was hours away.

Anyway, we came down to Barafu (another 4 h walk) and we arrived around 10:30 AM. Honestly, I just wanted to sleep, I was so tired that I barely could keep my eyes opened. They didn’t let us sleep, because we need to come downs as quick as possible to Mweka camp.

We had a light meal and we longed so much for a bath that we decided to come all the way down to Mweka gate, and skip another night in the mountain.

That was the most stupid decision to make. It’s a very long walk, too long in fact. The path is very winding and lots of steps. My legs were so trembling and tired that I couldn’t walk straight. Plus, we had to rush nearly the end because our crew forgot to tell us that we needed to get out of the Park until 6PM at 5:30. This in fact was the most difficult thing I have ever done. Not the 6 days walking plus the night, this endeavor was the craziest of my life, we walked 27 km, for 18 hours in a row. Not easy my friends.

After, I couldn’t step into the car to get us to Arusha… I won’t even mention the following days.

Anyway, it was worth it, every minute and every penny!

Day 5 of 8 (16th July 2010), Kili Trek

Believe it or not, dawn is rising again. It’s 5:45 AM, and we hear the bell ringing and again I didn’t sleep much. My mouth was so dry so I drank lots of water that I had to go to the toilet in the middle of the night (around 00:40), and this is when I fell thankful for having that little tent with a toilet inside. Actually, the toilet is just a seat with 2 deposits: one with clean water and a second one where the waste water is stoked. I can’t stop feeling sorry for Arnold who needs to clean and carry the toilet from camp to camp. Don’t think that he's carrying it behind us while we walk, outside the camps you’re free to choose your own pee-spot.

Getting back to the sleepless nights, I now start getting used to it and apparently, it doesn’t affect my performance. I am feeling good, no symptoms of altitude sickness, I feel physically fit (I mean I hardly get tired or short of breath), and my signals are OK.

The dawn it’s very very cold, I can fell the wind striking through my bones. This morning I put my gloves on to keep our hands warm and a wool beanie, but Jonas doesn’t let us overdress thus when you walk you start warming up and then you need to peel off lots of stuff and carry it.

We have our breakfast at 6:15 and at 6:45 we are ready to leave the Barranco camp. I am still looking at the that big wall and feel a bit uncomfortable about climbing it. As we usually say: quem não arrisca, não petisca (kind of: no guts, no glory). Barranco is a scarp 300 high, around 9 story building: it’s rather impressive to look at it. If others made it before we can do it as well.

Today we leave our trekking poles behind, as Jonas clearly explained we will do mostly “Goat Climbing” and we won’t need them for the Barranco itself.

We were the second group to leave the camp, we were very happy and proud of ourselves. The trekking isn’t that hard, as you walk with your hands and feet on the floor. It’s tiresome e and physically demanding in the sense that you need to support your weight in the hands when you pull yourself and legs when you need to propel. One advice: look where you put your hands!! There is lots of spit and sputum everywhere, it’s disgusting.

We keep on climbing until we reach the “Kissing Stone”. I kissed her good, but I found she is too cold for me, so I just kept on going. Up to this point has been 20 minutes walk, we still have another 40 minutes to go to reach the top of Barranco.

Reaching the top is overwhelming. The view is so beautiful, we are above the clouds and it looks like an endless cotton candy cloth. Here you can have a sparkle of what infinity means.

We stopped for a few minutes for a rest and to admire the scenario, and then we left. Lots of people are now arriving and it’s getting crowded.

From Barranco we descend into a valley and there is a brutal change in the landscape once again: semi-Alpine desert. Some trees here and there, with some spots of lichens, meaning that we still have a good air quality. Unfortunately, going down means we will go high again.

Once again, Jonas picks the garbage other groups left. It’s a noble attitude.

In some places we cross water streams that are still frozen, this is how cold it is today, regardless of the sun.

After 3:40h we reached Karanga Camp and, once again, we were the firsts to arrive to the camp site, according to camp’s records. Perfect timing for a “shower”: wash hands, armpits and feet, and change underwear and socks. That’s all we get, and we are thankful for that.

In this Camp there is plenty of signal, so I can call home and talk with kids and husband.

After some rest, we had a wonder lunch: Celery soup, chicken with fries, sauteed vegetables, lots of different fruit (watermelon, oranges and tangerine) to supply us the required nutrients for us to keep fit for the trek.

Beatus, the cook, makes wonders with the scarce resources available in the mountain and Jonas is very careful when it comes to choose the ingredients and nutrients for our daily meals.

After lunch we can finally have some rest, read some pages of my book and had a nice nap. They never let us sleep too long, as they want us to have a nice rest during the night. I have been having problems to sleep during the nights: the mattress and the cold make it very difficult to find a good position to sleep.

The afternoons are endless…most of the times we arrive early to the camps, after the trek, and we have lots of free time. Just don’t forget to bring your book, your sketch book, whatever keeps you busy.

We gave a nice walk through the camp site expecting to find some familiar faces. Here and there we get to meet some nice people, from all over the globe. It’s incredible how these camps look like a Babel.

By misfortune, my phone cord doesn’t work anymore, what makes go around the camp looking for people who are willing to share their charging cord with a perfect stranger. Luckily enough our neighbors (a father and daughter from Australia traveling together since Rwanda), are willing to lend me their cord, if I allow the girl to use our toilet. Seems a fair trade to me. After some easy talk, we agreed to stick together so they can use our toilet and I can charge my phone. It’s a nice symbiosis.

Today Jonas gave us a small stone, very dark from volcanic origin as a gift and souvenir. I am going to label it so I don’t forget my Kilimanjaro experience.

Dinner was vegetable stew, rice and green peas. Seems like we can’t have meet any longer, as after a certain height our body doesn’t tolerate it anymore.

Our heart rate and SO2 are very good and no symptoms of HAS. I am amazed. Having listened to all the experiences of friends I was expecting to feel some kind of unconformable, like headache or bellyache, but I am feeling surprisingly good.

And here we are, ready for some rest again.

day 4/8, Kili trek

It's already wake up time again. It's 6 AM, and as usual they bring us some hot water to wash ourselves. I won’t lie, but my hair is so dirty and greasy that I can’t remove my beanie anymore. At least my feet aren’t that smelly, but by now I am already missing a good bath. Although I almost didn’t sleep, I know I did it as I dreamed. Can't remember anymore.

I need to share with you that the best thing we did was renting our own private toilet. It’s so much more comfortable and hygienic, and I would pay every cent again. I see that the tourist who didn’t rent one don’t use the public toilets, that are shared by hundreds of people, rather they go behind the bushes. Now, this is something you will quickly learn: people don’t respect the Park rules, and you can find toilet paper everywhere. That's not the worse part of it, as toilet paper is biodegradable: you can find old batteries, toiletry items, tea bags, cigarette butts (which aren’t allowed in the park at all), juice pack's, and so on and so forth. All this trash isn't left behind by the crews, but by the tourists themselves and it’s starting to disturb me lot. To see to which extent our presence damages the Park and how big our environmental footprint is, is making me think if i did a good choice by coming here.

Regardless of that, Jonas our leading guide, picks litter from the ground every day. By the end of everyday trek he arrives at the camps with a handful of waste. So let me ask you dear tourist: would you litter in your own country? Can you please behave as if you were in the US or any where else? I know you can do better than this.

 Now that i have pointed it out, it’s time to get back to my diary. 

The dawn isn’t as cold as yesterday, but I can feel the cold getting into my bones. I am wearing a long sleeve shirt, a light fleece and a jacket, and my hands were cold. I had very good socks (my friends take my advice and buy good socks so that your feet don't freeze, burn or hurt your feet), my friend Tiziana amazing boots, so my feet were comfortable all the way through the 8 days.

Unfortunately, we always leave the camp later than planned, and our guide it's starting to be upset with us. He likes to leave early, to walk slowly and arrive early, so we can have proper rest. Our heart rate and SO2 are still quite good.

Today is a very long day: we will do an acclimatization walk for 4 to 5h up to Lava tower (4.600m ASL), and then descend for 2 to 3 h to Barranco Camp at 3.900m ASL. It's one of the longest days, where we will walk approximately 10 km, for 6 to 8 hours. Long, hard day, in an Alpine Desert landscape.

It's exiting to see how the landscape changes, it looks like we've landed on the moon, and it’s full of volcanic rocks and debris. Here and there you will find some proofs that we are in fact in an habitable planet.

 Hundreds of porters cross our way, and as we get a bit closer to Lava Tower, people from Machame route join us. Now we are now a much bigger group than the one coming from Lemosho, number of tourists and porters is impressive. As Lemosho is one of the longest trails, therefore more expensive most people just choose between Machame and Marangu routes. 

There we are ate Lava Tower, and I have a headache that comes and goes, specially when I bend. It can be a mix between altitude sickness, hunger and sleepless nights.

I forgot to mention that both me and Paula we are taking the Diamox, as recommended by both doctors and most of our friends. I didn’t feel much of the effects, except for the tangling in the fingers, which i felt throughout the whole journey. In fact I also recommend you to take it, and don’t forget to start a few days ahead you get in the mountain.

Getting back to Lava Tower. The place is in fact impressive: it’s a huge rock that stands alone in a small plateau. The place is amazing. What i also find astonishing is the amount of people gathered in this small space. All people coming from Machame, Lemosho and Shira routes come together in this point. From now on we will be a lot of people. According to Jonas, last year 50.000 tourists visited the park. knowing that each tourist has in average 4 crew members, this means that in total around 250.000 people climbed the mountain.

The effects of the over-crowded is obvious: lots of garbage everywhere, lots of people walking everywhere (meaning outside the trails), lots of open air toilets... don't imagine just the solid wast, imagine as well the smell you are able to feel.. This is outrageous, and as you pass by Senecio forest you can understand the dimension of the impact. There is not much left of the so called "forest" and lots of the trees are dying, because tourists are overtaking the territory by stepping and depleting the soil, because people want to take some souvenirs home and take parts of the trees, because and because and because. Please, bear in mind this is an unique ecosystem: you won't find it anywhere else. That's why it's a World Heritage Site.

While we pass by Senecio Forest, we cross several stream, the water is freezing by the way, and we have Kibu Point on our left hand side. The weather is cold, and gets colder everyday. 

We finally arrive to Barranco Camp, after 6:02h of trekking, longest trail so far.

After registration and taking the usual photos, we head to our camp site. The weather here isn't as bad as in Shira I but it's very very cloudy, thus you can not warm up at any moment. 

1. 

This is one of the dirtiest camps we been so far. Lots of food leftovers (bones and horrible stuff), tea bags, juice packs, batteries... just pick something, you will find it here.

To enable me to have some rest I decide to have some ipobrufen, and I get much better. 

We walk around the camp, as usual, trying to find some signal. After several trials i can finally reach out to my family and talk to the kids, and i am so much happier.
You don't know how lonely you can feel in the mountain. It can be either bad or good, as you have the chance not to think in anything else, or you can think about everything thus you have lots of free time.
The days are always the same and time goes by so slowly... we had diner at 6:30. It used to be my afternoon tea break time, look at me now. We had some soup with lentil balls, past and minced meet and veggies.
we had our briefing for the next day as we were about to cross the daunting Barranco Wall. as we get some explanation i start to get really anxious and scared. I hear lots of heights and danger and crawling, and start wandering why i decided to do this in first place. I didn't remember anyone mentioning that Barranco wall was that scary and dangerous. Why could that be.
Jonas wants us to be the firsts to leave the camp to avoid getting jammed... You see, lots of technicalities that i wasn't expecting at all.
We explained Jonas that Barranco (written with 2 R) is a Portuguese word, that means exactly ravine, so the word wall is a bit redundant here.
Before getting to sleep we packed our stuff and had some reading. after a short while we shut down the light. this is the end of day 4.

Kili trek: day 3/8

We follow the same routine everyday: wake up at 6:00 AM, wash yourself, get dressed, pack your bag, head for breakfast (where we had again some porridge, which we couldn’t eat), have a morning briefing, measure your heart rate (67bpm) and SO2 (95%), and leave.

When we woke up this morning everything was frozen, literally frozen: the ground, our tent, it was very very cold. Everything was covered in a white crystal cloth, and we are not even close to the summit.

We took a last glance at Kibu point before leaving, and that gave us the strength to keep on going and face the new day ahead. Although it was a very cold morning, it was splendid. The sky was clear and blue, we were above the clouds and we could see mount Meru above the clouds. As it was so early in the morning, we could still see the moon and some stars bordering Kibu point.

Today we walked from Shira 1 camp to Shira 2 camp, towards Shira Cathedral, through the Shira Plateau. We crossed the small water stream that borders the camp, which barely had any water, and started our course leaving the camp behind. Most trekkers head straight to Shira 2, but Jonas planned an acclimatization walk, meaning we will walk higher (3.872 m), then walk down, and them climb go higher again to Shira II (3.850m ASL). The next 3 days we will have small increase in altitude (from 3.610m in Shira I Camp to 3.900 in Barranco Camp), but will climb higher during the day to have a better acclimatization. While in Shira Plateau we will find Mount Kibu on our felt hand side, for most of the trek. It's beautiful, although you can see there is not much snow left.

The Shira plateau is one of the highest plateaus on Earth, and it is beautiful, it is a combination if moorland and grassland. The Plateau is actually a caldera from what was the smallest of the 3 volcanoes (4.005m) on Kilimanjaro, that collapsed. As we walk, we are stepping on the lava of the last eruption of this extinct volcano and we can see the remaining rims of the caldera.

We were lucky enough to see a Dick Dick, but that was all. Jonas explained us that before we could find herds of elephants, buffaloes, but due to the increasingly human presence in the area they were chased away.

We were walking for a while when we started to see trees and bushes that were ripped off. Jonas explained that these were maintenance works, to keep the road passable for tourists, but it seemed like was being done randomly, without any supervision or planning. Men were working to widen the trek, but we couldn’t find any reason to do so. It’s a small path, that is not taken by many people and it should be left as it is in order to ensure the renovation of the ecosystems. We asked a few of them what were they doing and they didn’t know. It was heartbreaking to see how the mountain is being devastated and ripped off for no reason.

here and there we stop for picture, rest and for fun, as you can see...

We started climbing, and it was steep, till we get to the base of the cathedral. We took a short break for snacks and toilet. Up to now we were alone, but a big group joined us to climb to Shira Cathedral. The place was busy now, and they were much faster than us. As you can see, i didn't take of my light fleece of, plus the base layer and a Tshirt.

For this particular trail the trekking poles were of no use, so Isaac kindly carried ours so we could use our hands and find the balance to climb the rocks till we made it to the top (3.872m ASL). The sight is beautiful, we can clearly see Mount Meru, and the landscape is shaped by big monoliths covered in green. It’s completely different from what we saw until now. After taking the pictures that testify we made it, we started descending, and headed Shira 2 camp.

Here the landscape changes again, is drier with many rocks and fewer greenery and it is warmer than before. We kept Pole Pole, the trail is very rough and after the heliport, I was feeling so hungry and tired due to hungry that I had to ask Jonas to stop.

Sometimes, is hard to deal with the Guides, because they want to stick to their plans and routines, and we have different needs. We had a rest and I ate a snack close to some caves (that worked as toilet and it was disgusting), thus I was feeling stronger we got back on track.

We keep on climbing, and after 6:02h of walking, we arrived to Shira 2 camp where as usual, we made our registration and headed to our campsite for lunch. 

We are in between Mount Meru and Kibu point, and this is one of the most beautiful and scenic camps of all. We can see mount Meru with its cloth made of clouds, and Kibu point with its snows. It’s astounding.

Beatus prepared us a beautiful lunch: chicken with sweet and sour sauce, chips and avocado salad. For dessert we had an ultra-sweet pineapple, that gave us enough sugar to compensate our tiredness. After lunch it’s nap time, and I use it the best I can. I slept until 4PM. We walked around the camp, trying to find a signal spot to call home and to see the sight. We watched a beautiful sunset over Mount Meru and we went for lunch at 6:30 PM. We had a delicious pumpkin soup with croutons, for main we had a meet and vegetable goulash with sautéed potatoes and for desert pineapple again. I can’t recommend enough Beatus and Jonas, they kept us very well fed and were able to keep the diversity. Many others just have potatoes for all the trek. They couldn’t stop surprising me with the quality and diversity of the food.

Jonas came to render us some company, to explain us tomorrow’s trek and measure heart rate (77bpm) and SO2 (93%). Still OK, but we can see it’s slowly changing.

At around 7 PM we went to our tent and try to have some rest. Whereas Paula falls asleep in 3 minutes, I have to role from one side to the other and wait for the tiredness to come. I continue to struggle with sleep. The nights are getting colder and it also contributes to worse resting nights.

Day 2 of 8 - Arriving to Shira 1 camp

We started the 2nd day (13^th July 2019), before the sunrise. Jonas likes to leave early, so we walk slowly (pole pole) and arrive early to the camp.

Today’s journey is long, around 7km long, and we will move from Mti Mkubwa to Shira 1 camp and we will ascend from 2.650 m ASL to 3.610m ASL. Distances and height are never precise, as different people will give you different figures. Just ask you guide, they are a living GPS.

At 6:00 they come to wake you up and bring a small bucket with hot water. That’s all: there are no lavatories or showers. As we say in Portuguese : “banho à gato”, meaning cat baths, just wash where it smells bad. Best thing we did was to rent our own toilet. When we took a walk around the camp, we could feel the smell and we even took a pick to testify it. It’s disgusting. I do encourage you to rent your own, best well spent money ever.

After waking up we you need to pack you stuff  (including the sleeping bag), and finally get into the mess for breakfast. Jonas comes in for tests, and our SO and heart rate are very good. For now, I can’t feel any symptoms of altitude sickness.

For breakfast, we had a maize porridge that we simply couldn’t eat, so we just asked them to give the traditional tea, fruit and toasts. You have to remember that there is nothing on the mountain. No shops, no drinking water… the porters carry everything you need for the 8 days you stay on the mountain. Don’t expect to eat mangoes and tomatoes during the whole trip, food becomes more scarce in variety.

We took of around 7:1AM, and we were one of the first groups to leave the camp, and it was freezing cold (according to Jonas 5ºC). 

For me, it was the hardest trail. The only one where I felt short of breath and tired. At this point, I was already feeling cold, not freezing cold, but cold enough to wear a light fleece during the trekking. After a while I could take off my jacket, but my hand remained cold for a long time.

There are lots of ups and downs, it’s a steep trail, and we were overtaken by lots and lots of porters and some more experienced and well trained trekkers.

Soon we found there are not many porter women, although it is encouraged they say. I think it is really tough, not only for the weight you need to carry, but also concerning the bad shape of the toilets and lack of minimum hygiene conditions during the trek. Worse than that, is that you will not find a women as leading guide during your trek. We saw one junior guide and our guide mentioned a couple of them. But as you can see, they can name them easily, as they are only a few.

The environment changes from Mountain Forest to Mooreland, as you get higher. The landscape is breathtaking and you can perfectly see, for the first time, mount Meru, and even little Meru, surrounded by its clouds cloth. It’s beautiful. We can’t barely see any wild life, except small rats and lizards.it is a very long walk today, so we stop many times along the way for toilet (meaning behind a tree), get some rest and pictures.

There is no signal during the trek, except for one precise place where everyone heads to. You can see the porters rushing into this place and putting the luggage on the floor. It’s also time for a short rest. Jonas doesn’t like to stop very often, but we have our own rhythm, as we are the ones setting the pace. As you stop, and although it is forbidden in Tanzania, you will fell the smell of weed. People seem to smoke it, as they also believe it is good for heights.

We also called home. It’s heartbreaking to hear the voices of our little ones, and it makes me miss them a lot.

The journey is long and rough. The weather is changing and dark clouds cover the sky. There are no chances to perceive Kibu point. Where is it? Besides walking slowly, to allow your body to adapt to the weather, the height, the mountain and the physical strain, you must also drink lots of water and eat your snacks. It is easy to forget to feed yourself, and you can get weak and tired if you don’t it properly.

As we approach Shira 1 camp, we met the one and only park ranger in the whole park. You don’t find them patrolling the park at all, they are all confined in the camp site and It’s a shame.

The final track to Shira one is wonderful and beautiful, thus some rain drops from the sky and it’s a bit chilly, it looks like you’re walking on the Yellow Brick Road. We can see the camp from far.

As we always arrive early (it took us 5,5 h only (against 7 hours as planned)), we proceeded to Kinapa office for registration.

When arriving to the camp were given some hot water to wash ourselves. Again, don’t delude yourself: only enough to wash your feet, your armpits, hands and face… We had a great light lunch: potato soup and pizza (with minced meat). After lunch we are allowed to have a nap, which I did for about 1,5h, and after I was ready for a new start, We had some tea, and went for a walk to a water stream, where porters are charging jerry cans with water to supply the camps. We also filled our own bottles with water and add a little disinfection tab. It was wonderful. Later we were able to see for the first time Kibu point, with what is left of the eternal snow. It was an amazing view, I will never forget it.

We had dinner at 6:30 PM. The time goes by so slowly, we have enough time for everything, not nothing to do. After dinner we went to bed. Again, I had troubles sleeping, seems like I am struggling with the height and with cold.

Day 0 and 1 - Arriving to Moshi and starting the Trek

On July 10th we arrived to Moshi, by plane.
We arrived in the late evening flight, and the taxi driver was waiting for us. AS we get in the taxi we get the usual tourist conversation, but we quickly told the guy we were residents, living for more than 5 years each in Dar. That wasn't enough, as he kept telling us stories to get money from us. Well, we left the car and made complaint against him.
We arrived to the hotel had dinner and went to bed, we needed to have a good night sleep before getting in the mountain.
Early morning (but not so early for Tanzania), our guide (Jonas) and the company manager (Neema) came to meet us in the hotel, and Jonas briefed us about the itinerary, the challenges, the gear we needed to carry, inspected it all (including our snacks and weight on our bags). Bear in mind that each porter is allowed to carry maximum 20 kg each, and you need to add the sleeping bag and other stuff you may need to rent. We passed the test and left to the renting shop, that looked a set from a Kusturika movie. for me just trekking poles and a good sleeping bag.

(us with Jonas, our Lead Guide)

The store is amazing, you can find anything you need there.
Even more amazing was the crew waiting for us: 12 guys including 1 senior guide (Jonas, of who i will speak about shortly) and Isaac (Guide Assistant), a cook (Beatus), the toilet porter (yes there was one, and his name was Arnold) and unfortunately can't remember the rest, but the waiter was incredible as well. A pretty big team for 2 ladies.
These 12 people are responsible for our safety and well being while in the mountain. Having a good crew is an important feature for the success of your journey.
Off we went to Londorosi gate, where we registered and got the permits for 8 days, 7 nights in Kilimanjaro National Park.

(porters waiting for their turn for weighting the luggage)

All luggage is weighted and porters distribute it among themselves. It's a noisy moment, people stack in lines, tourists are impatiently eating their lunches (which is exactly the same in all lunch boxes, regardless of how high end is your package). When all was set and done, we set off  to Lemosho glades (2.250 m ASL), where we actually started the climbing towards Mti Mkubwa (Big Tree in Kiswahili). We walked for about 2,5 hours through the rain forest. I forgot to mention it before, but one of the reasons we chose this route was because it crosses several different Ecosystems, namely: rain forest, moorland, semi-desert and Alpine desert.
The trek is easy, with some slops but easy, and we made it before schedule to Mti Mkubwa camp (2650m ASL), where our crew set our camp site long before we arrive.
The first real shock for me was not to see any wild life at all, and latter i learnt that given to the increase of humans in the area, the elephants were chase away to Kenya. For now i had only a glance of what this massive tourist attraction means.

We waited in a long line to sign in to the camp, this procedure is done repeatedly every time we reach a new camp. Rangers need to control the number of trekkers at any moment in the camp.

After settling in we had our rewarding tea with popcorn and biscuits. It was really comforting and calming. 

Later we took a walk on the camp, trying to understand the dynamics, how many of us were there, which companies, etc. It was surprising to see so many people, from so many nationalities, specially from the US. Around 100 people in this camp only, knowing that this is one of the least taken routes, imagine how many people we will find in the following days. 

So our camp site, has our tent, the guides tent, the mess and the "kitchen". I soon learnt that the crew sleeps on the mess's and kitchen's floor.

We were ready for diner at 6:30, as the sun sets early and we must adapt to the natural bio-rhythm. Beatus prepared a leeks soup, fried fish and sauteed potatoes, with an avocado salad and vegetable stew. It was simply delicious, I do recommend Beatus as the best cook in the whole camp for sure.

After dinner Jonas met us and briefed us about the following day, what we needed to wear and to pack, what kind of trek we will have, measure the SO2 e heart beat. So far so good, all normal.
We went to bed at 8:00, as we needed to get up at 6:00. I took me a while to fall asleep, but it's normal effect of the altitude.
The second thing that impressed me, was the porters. Regardless of the company, most of them are poorly dressed. Shoes are old and wore off, although it's relatively well paid activity. I was impressed by that and started wondering how they will make it during the coldest days.

It's been quite a long time since i last wrote here. You may find it strange and you're thinking to yourself: why is she writing in English?
I though about it for a long time, but once i am writing about my last adventure in Tanzania: the Kilimajaro Trek, therefore I felt like sharing this ultimate experience with all my friends.
I will be writing about my personal experience in different pieces, just follow the next episodes for more.
It all started last year when we knew that we would definitely leave Tanzania. I was dreaming about it for a while and I couldn't leave Tanzania without making it to the highest African Summit: Uhuru Peak, 5895 m above sea level. Just needed to find the right partner.
I found 4 other partners and we narrowed it down to 2 of us, and me and my dear Paula sat together and started making plans.
Firstly we spoke with friends who done it before, looked online for blogs and expert advice, and we decided the best route for us (totally unexperienced trekkers) was Lemosho Route.
Lemosho is relatively new, but it offers a good acclimatization and has a high success rate (around 97%). As we talked and talked with friends in Dar we were more and more aware of how many people couldn't make it to Summit. It was a bit frustrating as very fit, sportsman/women and people younger than us, didn't make it. It was terrible to hear people's testimonies: vomiting, diarrhea, severe headache, hallucination, exhaustion, extremely severe weather conditions, not bathing, and so on and so on, we though let's do our best, but bear in mind we may not do it.
Fact: as Tanzanian residents we heard a lot about Kili Trek, so we started looking for good companies. By good i mean : reliable, good camping gear, high success rate to Uhuru Peak, good price range, good technical proposal, crew size, good reviews and located in Tanzania. we reached out for a couple of companies and decided by Tanzania Horizon Safaris. And  here's why: they had good reviews, good (and experienced) guides, good camping gear, very responsive to emails and calls, affordable price, and offered 8 days Lemosho route which was exactly what we wanted. One tip: clearly ask about tipping rules and values. It is important to have a notion of how much extra money you need to carry with you)
When selecting a proposal, my advice is to scrutinize the company and clearly ask what kind if camping gear they have (4 season tents, thickness of the mats, sleeping bags), meal routines and menu, provision of oxygen, oxygen measurement twice a day, size of the crew, crew wages and experience of the guide. Also ask how many people will support you on the summit night. Don't be shy, it can make the difference between making it to the summit or not, or most important surviving in the mountain. Please remember that every year climbers and porters die.

Concerning the gear: you need to bring with you everything, except for the tent and sleeping mat. If you need anything you can rent it from the company that is assisting you. Any way, luckily friends provided me good advice and good gear. I was short one some small things which o bought online and my mother kindly brought me.
Bear in mind that you will need extra room in your luggage to accommodate a sleeping bag.

So here short list of what you will need:
- a back pack or a Duffel bag, plus a rain cover.
- day pack (with a rain cover as well)
- good trekking shoes (my friend Tiziana lent me lent me hers. One pair of boot, twice climbed Kili.
- very good trekking socks. I would take light ones for the first 2 days, when it's not so cold, and from then on thermal socks. try to take one pair per day, it's a myth that you will wash them...
- one pair of panties per day. Don't bring sanitary pads, unless you're planning on carrying the all the way.
- 4 pair of base layers. You won't be changing because it's freezing. Just sleep with the one you're wearing
- 1 long sleeves shirt per day. I was down on this item and i regret as i started feeling cold on day 2. Could only wear a Tshir on day one.
- 2 pair of trekking trousers, plus one pair of insulated trekking trousers for the summit night
- 3 polartec fleeces. Make sure they are suitable fro -12ºC, but feels like -20ºC. I wore 2 of them on Summit night. It's freezing cool.
- 1 polartec fleece jacket
- 1 insulated winter jacket (make sure that it's water proof) other wise you will need a light weight rain gear that fits on top of all your layers.
- 1 hard shell jacket
- 2 pair of gloves (one fleeced one an insulated one)
- Sun hat (very very important)
- Bandera or neck gaiter.
- Definitely a good Balaklava
- head lamp and batteries
- warm beanie;
- trekking poles (i rented mine from the tour operator)
- medicines.

Other things you must not forget to take with you:
- a book (i forgot mine and was bored to death)
- 2/3 snacks per day. I carried to many and it's an unnecessary weight in yur back pack.
- 2L water blade (best thing ever invented)
- 1 reusable water bottle (this is very good to have in the camp if you need to take your pils and electrolits)
- sun glasses;
- lip balm;
- vaseline or other hydrating lotion,
- sun block (FPS 50)
- hand sanitizer;
- wet wipes (try to chose some biodegradable)
- electrolites
- legging to wear on top of the thermal layer if you feel to hot and need to take of your insulated trekking trousers (believe me you will feel very hot as you descent from the summit);
- power bank (battery goes fast on the mountain).

Things you should check with your tour operator before hand (you DO NOT WANT TO CARRY ANY EXTRA GRAM ON YOUR BACK PACK)
- toilet paper
- soap
- disinfection tablets

Here is a picture of my climbing gear (besides what i was wearing). Man, it was heavy

A good company will inspect your gear before starting the climb and will advice you either you can wear it or not or if you need to top up with more gear.

Before deciding anything: GO TO SEE A DOCTOR AND SEARCH FOR MEDICAL ADVICE. Share with her/him all the doubts and questions and most: don't hide any symptoms. You will be exposed to extreme altitude (5985m ASL). I went twice: firstly with a very well experienced doctor in climbing mountains in Tanzania. It was extremely helpful.
Secondly, when i was feeling sick, I consulted another doctor who surprisingly also had climbed Kili twice. Couldn't ask for more.

So, I started a laughable routine of walking 30 min twice a week, and some Pilates class. Everyone was emphasizing how hard you need to exercise, to run, swim, walk with a heavy back pack, do this do that. I was so frustrated i couldn't keep up with all those training routines. Closer to the trekking date I had a dry and unstoppable irritant cough and had to take antibiotics while climbing Kilimanjaro. I won't even talk about my friend, who had Dengue and something else which i can't precise. Oh, that's true she went twice to the gym.
So there we were, totally unexperienced and unprepared climbers very excited and ready to climb Kili.

So in a nutshell:
- look for a good tour operator with proven experience;
- go to see a doctor before hand;
- travel light. Take less snacks than everyone advises you to.
- take you medicines and follow doctor advice;
-  bear in mind your entering in a National Park, which is a very weak ecosystem. Just face it: you will leave a huge environmental footprint, depends on you how to minimize it.
- don't bargain about porters and crew: your life depends on them. It will be very unpleasant to you if you have a underpaid crew. They are workers and they deserve every penny they make. They are very brave and responsible workers.
- make a good medical rescue insurance (for very high altitude).
- you will be sharing your tent with someone, make sure you have the right partner;
- rent your own toilet. It worth every penny.

And that's all about preparing to climb Kili.