Sunday, August 1. Kilimanjaro-Ho!!!

Today I hiked the Roof of Africa. Or--at least to the top of the stairs at the second story of Africa.

Honestly, it was probably one of the most difficult and demanding things I've ever done in my life. 3-1/2 hours up the mountain, from the Kilimanjaro National Park gates, following the Marangu Route to Mandara (the first of 3 base camps for climbers attempting to summit). Mandara sits at 2720 meters above sea level, or about 8,000 feet. While the altitude change is only about 1 kilometer, the Marangu Route is approximately 9 kilometers to Mandara. I walked approximately 9 kilometers up Mt. Kilimanjaro. Cool. :-)

They tell you to pack several items for very good reasons (I'm glad I listened):

1. Rain gear. (It rained. The whole way.)
2. An extra T-shirt. (By the time we got to Mandara, I felt like I'd taken a shower in the one I was wearing--I'd sweated completely through it.)
3. An extra sweatshirt. (2720 meters above sea level is COLD. My lips were blue. You need to get as warm and dry as you can, with no heat or fire.)
4. Salty snacks and extra water. (For those of you who don't know what an electrolyte is, you'll still know when you lose a lot of them. It sucks.)

After lunch, it was about a 2-1/2 hour hike back down. Slightly easier than up. Through cold mountain moorland near Mandara, back into mountain rainforest as we descended. I felt like I was in a scene straight out of Avatar (and yes, I did just use a James Cameron reference in my blog. That one's for you, Alex Maki!), trekking through the Pandoran jungle. Instead of 10-foot-tall blue cat-people, we saw colobus monkeys and porters with huge sacks on their heads, full of lazy hikers' shit (juuuuust kidding, those belong to the people who summit... they are the anti-lazy people). The porters were passing us on the trail in either direction. Carrying 50 to 100 pounds on your head, walking up the equivalent of about 19,000 stairs, earns you hardcore status, in my opinion.

It's pretty rad to be able to say I climbed to the almost-halfway point on Kilimanjaro. Someday, after months (years?!) of training and preparation, maybe I'll be back to attempt the summit. But right now, I'm just fine with what I did do. It was hard and painful, and my legs did not thank me a few days later, but not unbearable. Especially since Gorgeous Adam was there.*

*Sidenote about Gorgeous Adam. We did the hike with the same company who took us on safari. In fact, one of the guys who came with us was Hussein, our safari guide... who is quickly becoming a good friend of mine. The other mountain guide was Adam. And he is gorgeous. Perfectly gorgeous. And as nice as he is pretty. Insta-Crush material.

Anyway, at one point, Adam took my hand to help me up a steep couple of meters, and didn't let go for a little while. I know it's totally 5th grade, but it almost didn't matter that all my hair was pulled under a sweaty bandana or that my face was beet red or that I was covered in mud and probably smelled. I hiked Kili with a dreamboat guide and some quickly-getting-to-be-good friends. Self confidence is up 100 points today.

"I hiked Mt. Kilimanjaro."

Absolutely fun to say. :-)