Day 7: The last leg of an amazing journey

Doing it for epilepsy awareness!

Some rest and food is exactly what the doctor called for. I felt much better today. Although my appetite is still not 100 percent back, I was able to eat an egg, a chapata and a second chapata with banana and peanut butter. Nurse Amy was satisfied with my breakfast. She is like our mother hen, looking after her little chicks. 

The three hours hike down to the gate took a little longer, and our guide Raphael held my hand for a good part of the time. I am never going to be good at going down. In my defense, both the ground and rocks were pretty slick with mud for the first half. But finally we arrived at the gate and went to sign in for the last time, only to realize that the permit number we were told would be at the bottom was not there. So we had about an extra hour to hour and a half wait before we could load up and leave. 

It was really hard to leave all these guys. I had such an amazing time, it is one that I will never forget. I really would love to return and conquer that mountain! And who knows, maybe one day I can work at a foreign desk in Arusha. It is so easy to love the people, the music, the dance, the culture. 

Our amazing Mt. Kilimanjaro group. Tembea Africa is the best!

It is hard to believe that my time here is coming to a close. I will be going on safari tomorrow and visiting Nickson’s village, and returning to Arusha on Friday. Then I leave early Saturday morning for the U.S. (NOOOO!) and will be touching down in Chicago around 5:30 p.m. 

I have made some great friends here, and cannot wait to return. There are more than a couple people I would like to see again, and I really hope to return to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro. They really were the best guides and guys I have met. So amazing and fun! 

Day 6: Another day, another stretcher ride

After falling asleep, I got about 6 hours rest. Then it was time to start packing our tent up, have lunch and begin a three hour journey down the mountain to our last camp. If there was any doubt in my mind about whether my decision to not summit was the right one, it was washed away today.

Once again, I needed help when it came to getting down the mountain. Climbing up? No problem. Climbing down on the other hand...

Another guide, Athumani, held my hand and walked me down the mountain. I learned a couple new Swahili words and phrases from him, like dada (sister) and kaka (brother). 

It took longer than normal with me slowly making my way downhill. Instead of 3 hours, it was probably closer to 4. When were were still about an hour away, I was overcome with exhaustion like I have never been before. I collapsed on the ground, to weak to lift my arms or legs, even hold my head up. I’m not sure who, but a couple people moved me to the side. Kaity tried to give me water from her camelback, but while I had strength to bite down on the tube, I did not have enough to suck on the tube to draw the water out. She wound up having to unscrew her water bottle and hold it to my lips. 

The best selfie in the world, in my humble opinion

I cannot adequately describe just how profoundly weak I was. 

The guys were trying to put together a stretcher to get me to the bottom. In the meantime I laid down on a rock to rest, and started to get hypothermia from the cold rock beneath me. Amy and Kaity piled on two emergency blankets, put my heat packs on my face and chest and Kaity even covered me with her coat. She and Amy also took turns laying on me to keep me warm. Eventually they got the stretcher together and strapped me in. I’m not sure, but I think like 6 or 7 guides and porters helped carry me down to the camp. 

Our Nurse Amy kept up with the stretcher behind me, even though her ankle is sprained. 

Originally they were going to take me to the gate, but it was getting dark and they decided to just go to the camp and let me rest.

Day 5: The final camp and attempt at ascent

We are in the home stretch. Kaity, Amy, Tom and I walked about 3 hours and 45 minutes to base camp five, arriving around 2:30 in the afternoon. Of course we had to have our traditional dance party when we arrived. I laid down in the tent for a brief rest, but was awoken for lunch at 3:30. Then it was back to sleep. Next thing I know, Amy is shaking me awake and saying it was time for dinner. I looked at my watch and was in denial. It was 5:30 p.m. I said no, it cannot be dinner. We just had lunch! It was really hard for me to force anything down, but I did my best. Still weary, I climbed back into my tent and was asleep instantly. 

I was woken up at 11 p.m. to get ready to begin the final leg of the journey: the 1,200 meter climb to the summit. We had some biscuits and tea or hot cocoa, then it was time to climb. Our camelbacks froze within one hour of hiking. Luckily, I had a water bottle with electrolytes that did not freeze. The dining times really began to wear on me. After about three hours, I had ABSOLUTELY NO energy. Kaity was a rock for me. She literally pushed me for about 20 minutes. “I will push you to the top if I have to,” she told me. But after a while, I was feeling totally fatigued.

Signing the log book at camp

I had to seriously consider heading back to camp, even though I really wanted to summit. I had to be completely honest with myself. I knew that if I continued on, at some point, whether it was 5, 10, 15 minutes or an hour, my energy would completely wear out and I would collapse. And at that altitude, I would develop hypothermia and freeze to death. There would be no porters with stretchers during this last stretch. 

Lucas agreed to guide me back to camp. Thank goodness for that because we had passed the “steep” part of the climb and were in the middle of the “steeper” climb. I would have totally tumbled down the mountain without him holding my hand. It was about an hour and a half back to camp. When I finally got there around 5 a.m., I had just enough energy to climb into the tent and eat the other half of Amy’s Cliff bar before climbing into my sleeping bag and passing out.

Even though I did not make it to the top, I am dissapointed. I made it to 5,000 meters, or 16,404 feet, and I did not have a lick of altitude sickness. My muscles were sore, sure, but doable, it was purely the exhaustion that got me. I know now that I am capable of reaching the top, and you better believe that I will be back one day.

Day 4: Danger on the mountain

Yeah, I feel really guilty today. After breakfast, Amy, Karen and I had a little pow wow in the breakfast tent. We were able to clear the air and share our feelings and everything that happened. Of course I had to cry again. But in the end, Karen forgave me and said it is all in the past. I apologized to Kaity as well, as what I said the previous day hurt her as well. As I said I was sorry and hugged her, she said she wished I was her sister. I told her I felt like I was, and she said we would have to get a picture together at the top of the mountain. I cannot describe what, but something kind of came over me, and all of a sudden what I wanted did not really matter so much anymore, and it truly became more about the team and supporting each other. 

I also apologized to Rafael, our lead guide, for any disrespect he or his team may have taken as a result of what I said. Everyone is such a better person than I am, they forgive so easily and freely. I really need to work on that. I do hold so much in, and hold on to pain for a long time.

Kaity Klemp and Amy Martin stop for a Xango break during our climb

Anyway, today’s climb involved a lot of rock climbing. Like probably two straight hours of rock climbing. I was in my element. It totally took me back to college and climbing at Wallcrawlers in Whitewater. Words cannot describe how much I loved it, even this one part where you had to grab onto this rock and step on a ledge, with nothing behind you but open air. Absolutely no fear. I was so comfortable on that mountain, I knew I would not fall. I told Karen about 3 points: always have at least three points of contact when climbing. That is what Leo told me when we climbed at Devil’s Lake for the first time, and it served all of us well. I never took a step until I had tested it twice for grip and solidarity. That is probably why I had such an easy time, I was totally used to everything. 

However, Kaity was a total monkey on the climb. At one point we looked around and wondered where she had gone. Then we realized that she had climbed way ahead. We were all really impressed with the ease and speed she had on the rocks.

Of course after we reached the peak (not the summit), it was time to go back down! Yeah....I am not so good with the going down. I tend to slip on the rocks. I had the same problem yesterday and Lucas held my hand while I went down a slope. Today Justin held my hand as we slowly made our way down. My guess is it took at least 40 minutes to descend. Climbing did not get my pulse racing, but the descent sure did!

Justin and I at the bottom. Whew!

Then as soon as we got to the bottom, it was time to climb up again to reach our fourth base camp. I wish I could say that the fear I felt going down the mountain was the worst of it, but all of that seemed oh so far away and pale in comparison when we arrived at camp.

Today was not easy for one of our members, Drew. A couple hours in he started coughing up liquid, one of the symptoms of altitude sickness. By the end of the day, he needed two guides, one on each side, to get him on the mountain. His O2 levels were deathly low, and he needed oxygen. At the same time, the guides and porters were putting a stretcher together. They borrowed another oxygen tank from another group and went straight down to the gate in 7 hours. Karen made the decision to go down with him, which was a relief, knowing that she was with him. By the time they got down, he was up and walking. It was the most scared I have ever been, and I am really grateful he is OK. 

I know how close he came to not making it down that mountain, and that things could have turned out very differently. Up until this point, it was a jovial and happy climb up the mountain. I think Drew's illness really hit home that what we are doing is not only challenging, but dangerous, and we have to be careful as we continue on our journey. 

This was such a long day. Here is hoping tomorrow will be less eventful.

Day 3: The trek continues

I’ll be honest, this was not one of my better days. I was so exhausted from yesterday that I was running out of energy and was really week. Drew and Tom took off with Justin to check out this Lava Rock area. The rest of us continued on the regular path. When we stopped for lunch, I ate quickly and laid on a rock to sleep. Well, I apparently slept wrong, possibly on my femoral artery because when I woke up, the oxygen got cut off to my left foot, and every step was agonizing pain. It felt like dozens of needles were being simultaneously stabbed into my foot. 

Yup, that's Kili behind me!

Our hike took long enough that some porters came down to take our packs...and I was not happy to have mine carried for me. I’m not going to rehash it, but suffice it to say, I snapped at Karen Klemp. I am not proud of it, but all these little tiny annoyances kind of built up, and I just snapped at her. 

I had to separate myself the rest of the night. I was so angry I did not want to go in the tent to eat. Even though all I wanted to do was sleep, Amy Martin was nice enough to bring me some food in the tent. She has been kind of a safe haven for me on this trip. I can talk to her and vent at night, and she does not judge me. For me, that is huge. I am not used to someone being so understanding and not judging, even when I am at my worst. 

One of the cultural differences here is showing emotions. While our hostess Elisa is not shy about laughing and having a good time, stuff like crying or showing pain is kind of hidden. I was in the tent crying when Cha Cha and Justin came to check on me, and both of them told me to stop crying. They did not seem to understand that is what I needed to do. It was like my soul was hurt and I needed to cry the pain out. Usually some sleep will make me feel better. 

Day 2: A gradual ascent up Mt. Kilimanjaro

Yup, I was right, another long day, nine hours instead of six. The forests were behind us, but there was still green around us. We are also being followed...by birds. They sure have this down. They know hikers come through every day, and bring food. And perhaps they will find some crumbs left over, or a camper with a less than watchful eye on their lunch box. 

I have been asking one of our guides, Justin, to teach me Swahili, and he seems very happy to teach me. What is really nice is he is fluent in English, so it is very easy to converse. He understands everything I am able to say, although he speaks quietly which is sometimes hard to hear. 

With my downhill guide, Lucas

So far I have learned some basic words and greetings, such as Thank you (Asante), goodbye (kwahere), Yes (Dyio), No (Hapana), What’s Up? (Mambo), Cool (Poa), Or (ao, pronounced “ow”), flower (ua), father (baba), mother (mama), and a short list of verbs, along with personal nouns (I, you, we, they, he, she). I am looking forward to learning more words.

I think part of the reason he is so friendly to me is because I am interested in their culture. I want to learn Swahili and as he pointed out yesterday, I wore my scarf like the Tanzanian women. The people do appreciate when you want to learn more. 

The food that we are served is absolutely amazing. You think, what can you get on a mountain, cold cuts? No. For breakfast we have had eggs, porridge, chapata (like Swedish pancakes), and some fresh fruit like pineapple, oranges and bananas.

Queen of the rock

They give us a box lunch to eat in the middle of our hike. So far it has had either bread with butter or a slice of chicken, a juice box, banana, boiled egg and like this cookie bar. I usually eat most of it, and save a couple things for the hike. 

Dinner is absolutely amazing. The soup they have is TO DIE for. I am totally in love with it, it is the best soup I have ever had. I don’t even know what is in it, only that it is heavenly. There is also usually beans or rice, some more fresh fruit and hot water for tea or hot cocoa. It is kind of hard to eat at times. 

Apparently that is because as you get higher in altitude, your body needs more oxygen. If it does not get enough, it steals it from other parts of your body, and the first place is your gut. So you eat less food and feel full. 

The Mt. Kilimanjaro Diaries. Day 1: The Adventure Begins

Note: The Hope 2 Others climb up Mt. Kilimanjaro took place from July 1-7, 2014.

Welcome to Day 1 of our ascent up Mt. Kilimanjaro. Our day got off to a fun start from the moment we got off the bus. Our guides and porters were waiting for us and greeted us with song and dance. It was pretty much the best thing ever. Don’t believe me? Check out the clip at the bottom and see for yourself.

It was about an hour and a half drive from Arusha to the gate of Mt. Kilimanjaro. We had a little waiting to do, but were amused when we spotted some monkeys. We were told to put the lunches we were given away. One guy from another team must not have been listening because his sandwich and juice box got monkey’d away. 

It seemed like a land untouched by time, ethereal and mysterious

If anyone wants to see Mt. Kilimanjaro but not go all the way, I would recommend a day trip. Our first day was AMAZING. There were trees everywhere, tall trees, big trees, trees covered in moss. I was absolutely lost in the beauty of it all. And with the fog setting in, it just gave what seemed like a never-ending forest a beautiful and mysterious atmosphere. It was ethereal in its mystery, like this forest was untouched by time and we were the first explorers to glimpse its natural beauty. With every step, I became more and more enraptured. When we finally arrived at the first camp six hours later, I was disappointed that we were leaving the most heavenly haven I have had the pleasure of visiting.

Upon arriving at the first camp, we were greeted with song and dance from our porters and guides. I know I am going to love this. The excitement is so infectious, I just know this is going to be a great time. Some of the other campers were staring as we were all singing and dancing. I am preeeeety sure they were just jealous that we have the best group. (:

It sounds like tomorrow will be another long day, but I can hardly wait.