BCITRA Travel

Trekking Mt. Kilimanjaro

Spring 2006

Article by Karl Boerner

(Click on the thumbnails to view a larger image.)

I had studied the climber's routes on the internet and in brochures. The standard route, Marangu, also called the Coca-Cola route, was to be avoided because of over-crowding, dirty toilets, and so on. I picked the Rongai route as the less busy, more scenic route and also because the return from the summit would be via the Marangu route, which would make the trip more interesting.

Mt. Kilimanjaro has an altitude of 5895 m or 19,340 ft. One has to be in half-decent shape to climb it. I was already training for an ascent of either Mt. Baker or Mt. Rainier, both of which I have done more than once, hence in reasonable form. The altitude of course is always a problem. Climbers on the Rongai route spend five nights and six days on the mountain and take a lot of time to get acclimatized.

I arrived at Kilimanjaro airport and was promptly met by a driver who took me to the Moivaro Coffee Plantation, Lodge and Restaurant, not far from Arusha. My trip was arranged by Africa Travel Resource who suggested that I spend two nights at the posh resort to get over my jet lag. At Moivaro I was admiring the stunning flowers in a well watered garden and watched the colourful East African birds, regretting only that I had been too lazy to carry a bird guide. It was also a good spot to meet other climbers and talk to those who had just completed the ascent of Mt. Kilimanjaro or simply Kili.

The lazy life had to come to an end and it was off to the village of Kobi. Like all mountaineers and hikers I stayed at the Kobi Hotel, where I could leave my suitcase, passport, and money without worry. From there on I would carry my pack and stuff my tote bag every morning to let the porters carry it to the next camp where I would unpack it again. The bag was not to be heavier than thirty pounds. It would contain the sleeping bag, therma-rest, extra heavy gear for the summit attempt, and some change of clothing.

The day pack that I had to carry would have in it some food, water, a sweater, a windbreaker, hat, sunglasses, binoculars, etc. There was to be an equipment check at the hotel, but it wasn't done. I had a statement from my doctor about my health, was to have proof of health insurance, which I had forgotten, but luckily nobody checked. We were to carry about 4 liters of water, but I hardly ever carried more than one liter since I never drink much on a trail.

We started to hike at Nalemuru, the trail head, with a group of thirty-six, consisting of two female and nine male hikers ranging from the ages of 78 to 30; the rest were four guides, cooks, and porters. The campsites had only outhouse toilets. Tents, tables, chairs, stoves, pots, pans, you name it, had to be carried in. I was lucky and had a roomy tent to myself. Water was found in the pools left in the dried out river beds. We ate in a mess tent and the food was always good and plentiful. I made sure to drink a lot of tea and to eat many bowls of soup.

The hiking is done at a snail's pace. "Pole pole" in Swahili, "slowly slowly". We started at about 6,500 ft and moved to about 9,000 ft in three to four hours on the first day with a late start. The second day was long, about 8 hours with lots of breaks and took us to almost 12,000 ft. On this stretch the oldest chap had problems with his breathing and was sweating heavily. I must stress that the guides were very good. They kept an eye on the hikers and noticed problems immediately. One of the assistant guides took Bob's pack and from that moment on Bob hiked behind the leader, usually the head guide. At this altitude mornings and nights get colder. Next day we got to about 14,000 ft in five hours. I have to mention that after the arrival at the camp we would find all tents erected, clean up a bit and have a snack, then hike without pack 300 ft higher to get used to the altitude and sleep better. I never had any trouble sleeping. By the way, this camp was on the slopes of Mt. Mawenzi, a rocky and dramatic looking peak of 16,890 ft.

We had been tootling along under cloudy skies on an extremely dusty trail. I had used my short gaiters from day one to keep the dust out of my boots. The next day took us to Kibo hut at 15,420 ft. I could study the crater wall, the almost 4,000 ft of altitude I had to gain on switch backs on loose stones and dust. It was time to get nervous. The afternoon was planned for a rest, the scramble would start at midnight to reach first Gilman's Point at 18,635 ft, then to the Uhuru summit at 19,340 ft and then down to about 12,000 ft at Horombo Huts, all this in 13 to 15 hours.

It was cold at 15,000 ft at midnight. I was wearing a down jacket, heavy pants, a toque, gloves and mitts. I had my headlamp on at first but shut it off since the moonlight and the light from the lamps around me was sufficient. I had an eerie feeling with the strange light, the cold, and the slow pace. My stomach was acting up and when I raised my head I saw way above me the headlights of people who had started earlier. I thought to myself," What are you doing here? 72 years old, you don't need this. Go back." But I kept walking, looking for a place where I could squat in privacy, not easy on a hillside with lots of people passing by with their headlamps on. When I did hide behind some rocks an assistant guide appeared beside me to find out whether I had problems. I felt better after a while and the distance to the crater rim looked shorter and shorter. When I arrived at Gilman's Point I knew I had it made. Hikers who get this far receive a certificate. Bob did not make it to the rim. A young chap in our group walked like a drunken sailor along the trail to the summit and had to be guided down. I thought I could pass everybody on the last stretch but when I stopped gasping for air I knew why they were walking slowly - "pole pole". I reached the peak at 07:15, my certificate says 07:42, that's when the group arrived. Next was the shaking of hands, taking of pictures, snacking and resting.

Then followed something I had been looking forward to; the run downhill. Just an assistant guide and I, no switchbacks, straight down on scree with the dust flying. At 0915 h, I was back at my tent.

Then the usual routine: clean up, pack the tote bag and place it at the collection point, lunch with the group and an easy hike to Horombo Huts at 12,200 ft. There we had tap water, flush toilets, and a marvelous view of the African plains below. On the way down the group had a meeting and decided to each give a tip of $US 55. The money is divided, but not in equal shares, between the head guide, the assistant guides, the cooks, and the porters. Since one US dollar is worth 1000 Tanzanian shillings, it is easier to use the dollar.

The last day on the trail was the hike down to Marangu Gate. We were in the Alpine Desert zone, with clear views towards Mt. Kili and down to the flats. I decided to walk last, enjoy some birding, talk to people coming up, exchange cheerful hellos with some porters going up and others running down, and taking pictures. A chameleon, which a porter had caught on the trail, was riding on the outside of my pack.

The Tanzanians that I met were happy and always willing to help. The people are very poor and many live in deplorable conditions. The women look elegant in brightly coloured dresses with eye-catching patterns. We didn't observe much wildlife on our trek. We heard and spotted monkeys in the Forest Zone and found buffalo droppings in the Moorland Zone but didn't see any. Elephants move into Tanzania from Kenya when they can't find food there. We didn't see any. I ran twice across army ants who were marching under a tunnel formed by soldier ants who were hooked to each other. When I snagged the soldiers with a stick I picked up a whole chain of them. I wasn't alert enough to notice one running up the stick and I couldn't shake it off my finger once it got its jaws into my skin.

The certificate that I climbed to Uhuru peak at 5895m hangs in my study. It is signed by the guide, the Park Warden of Mt. Kilimanjaro National Park, and the Director General of Tanzania National Parks.

If you'd like more information phone me, Karl Boerner, 604-271-1757.