Day 2 - Christmas on Kilimanjaro

For months, I trained for Kilimanjaro, but warm-up hikes just can't simulate an all-day climb in the mountains at altitude.

My five-hour journey today took me from rainforest to moorland, a hike I can best describe with the word, "up."

Even in the Himalayas, I never experienced a trail with so few

flat places or downhill sections. What happened to my easy walk?

Fortunately, my guide, Raphael, continues to set the pace. At the beginning of the trip, I told him I wanted to go slowly to give myself the best opportunity of summiting and avoiding altitude sickness. Each day he tells me to stay close, follow his footsteps, and trust him.

At times, it seems as if I'm climbing in slow motion, but I feel strong, and Raphael keeps saying he'll do everything he can to get me to the top.






The weather has been exceptional. So far, we've had just 15 minutes of rain, which is unusual for December. Years ago, my friend Michael also did the hike at Christmas and endured two straight days of non-stop rain.

My life has become quite simple – eat, sleep, and climb. In a normally chaotic world, it's nice to have a single focus – getting to the top of one of the so called seven summits, the name given to the highest mountain on each continent.

I'm now at Horombo Hut located above 12,000 feet. I'll stay here two nights. Tomorrow, I'll do an acclimatization hike, which will take me to just over 13,000 feet. On the route I've chosen, it's possible to make it to the summit in four days, but according to the park service, the chance of summiting is only 27%.  By adding an extra day, my odds increase to 44%, which still isn't great but a lot better than the alternative.

The more time a climber spends on the mountain adjusting to the altitude the greater likelihood he'll get to the top. I'm hoping the extra day makes the difference.

As I climbed today, I felt a lot of positive energy from a lot of people. That might sound silly, but I know it's real, and I appreciate all of your support.

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DAILY TRIP DETAILS

Start:     Mandara Hut -   8,907 feet in elevation (2,715 meters)
Finish:   Horombo Hut  - 12,155 feet in elevation (3,705 meters)
Distance Covered  =  7.2 miles (11.6 kilometres)
Elevation Gain       =  3,248 feet (990 meters)
Time of Hike          =  5 hours, 1 minute
Results of nightly health screening:   Pulse = 72   Oxygen level in the blood = 88% out of 100 (Note: An oxygen saturation reading of 95% or better is considered to be normal. If my level drops below 50%, it's serious, and I'll be asked to discontinue my trip.)  

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Note: These are the exact words I wrote while climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro. After returning from my six-day trip, I transferred my unedited thoughts directly to the blog. In some cases, I added extra information for clarity. You'll find those passages in italics.