RMI Expeditions BlogRSS

Entries By jeff martin

Kilimanjaro: Team Simba Sita Completes The Big Five at Tarangire

Posted by: Jeff Martin | February 23, 2012
Categories: *Expedition Dispatches *Kilimanjaro

Hello from Kikoti Camp,

We had a bit more leisurely start to our day today and we were on the road by 9:00 heading to Tarangire National Park. En route there was a huge downpour, but all the rain stopped by the time we reached the entrance gate. From there, we worked our way south, stopping at every opportunity to view the animals. After yesterday, it seemed like we were in a dry spell because nothing can really compare to the amount of animals you see in one day in Ngorongoro Crater. In Tarangire, you have to find them! The usual suspects were all present, but the day was coming close to an end and we had still not seen a leopard. Then our safari driver decided to take a little detour, and 15 minutes later we were stopped in front of a tree with a leopard resting on a branch about 10 feet off the ground. Our viewing of the “Big Five” was complete. The last sighting of the day was a baby elephant, just a week old, with his mother spraying water on the both of them to help cool off in the afternoon sun. It was incredible.

Now we are at the Kikoti Camp, sitting out on the porch, looking out over the African landscape and listening to all the sounds around us. We’re going to take a short hike before dinner and go out and watch the sun set, and take a few customary “sun downers” to enjoy as the sun dips below the horizon.

Unfortunately, this adventure comes to an end tomorrow, and we start to make our way home. It has been a great trip and we have enjoyed it. Thanks to all of you who posted comments and gave your support for us safely reaching the summit of Kilimanjaro.

RMI Guide Jeff Martin & Team Simba Sita

Sign Up For Kilimanjaro 2012 Email Alerts

---

Kilimanjaro: A Visit to the Ngorongoro Crater

Posted by: Jeff Martin | February 22, 2012
Categories: *Expedition Dispatches *Kilimanjaro

Jambo from Plantation Lodge,

When you see Ngorongoro Crater for the first time, it almost leaves you speechless. It is massive; the crater is 26 miles in diameter, and you look down almost 2,000’ to the crater floor. There are countless little black spots scattered throughout the 125 square miles of the crater floor. You can’t really make out what animals they are from this distance, but there are thousands of them, with most estimates claiming 25,000 residents.
We have to drive about 1/2 way around the crater rim before we come to the “descent” road, with impressive views the whole way down.
The luck from yesterday continued today as we saw so many interesting animals. From new born wildebeest and zebras, warthogs, lions and lion cubs, cheetah, cape buffalo, black rhinos, ostrich, elephants, to hippos, and gazelles, we were very fortunate to see them all.
We ended the day with a visit to a Masai village and then headed back to the lodge for a little relaxing time before dinner.
Tomorrow is our last stop on the safari circuit, ending at Tarangire National Park. While not too far away, it is very different from the first two parks we have visited, and should give us our best chance of seeing leopard.

Good night,
RMI Guide Jeff Martin

Sign Up For Kilimanjaro 2012 Email Alerts

---

Kilimanjaro: Tree Climbing Lions on Safari!

Posted by: Jeff Martin | February 21, 2012
Categories: *Expedition Dispatches *Kilimanjaro

Hello from Plantation Lodge,

Today we had to say good bye again to the wonderful Dik Dik Hotel and headed out on our safari. First stop on the safari circuit was Lake Manyara National Park. It’s not talked about as much as some other parks in Tanzania, but it has a lot of game viewing and is the perfect introduction to safari. I have heard for many years that this park is most well known for the tree climbing lions, and after many trips without ever seeing one, I was beginning to think that this was all made up. To my surprise, this would be the day that we saw not just one, but six tree climbing lions. The lions will climb the trees to seek refuge from the hot afternoon sun and they are really hard to spot because only a leg or a tail will be hanging down from the tree branch. It had been over two years since our driver had seen one, so we were definitely lucky.

The entire park sits right below the Great Rift Wall, and as we continued to tour around the park, we saw lots of elephants, impalas, hippos, zebras, wildebeest, and giraffes. We left the park feeling very good about the day’s sightings.

Tomorrow is Ngorongoro Crater with its 25,000 resident animals. It going to be a big day and people are excited to see this natural wonder.

RMI Guide Jeff Martin & Team Simba Sita

Sign Up For Kilimanjaro 2012 Email Alerts

---

Kilimanjaro: Team Returns to Arusha

Posted by: Jeff Martin | February 20, 2012
Categories: *Expedition Dispatches *Kilimanjaro

Hello from Arusha,

We are safely off the mountain and back at the Dik Dik hotel. The team did great yesterday and everybody in the group made it to 19,340’, Uhuru Peak. The day started at 11:45 pm and we were walking out of camp by 1:00 am. It was a solid six hours of climbing to reach Stella Point, and at 8:15 am we were standing on the Roof of Africa. Our timing was perfect and we pretty much had the summit to ourselves, a rarity on Kilimanjaro. The Park Service recently replaced the old summit sign with a new larger green and yellow sign. Consensus amongst most climbers is that they like the old sign better, but either way, it marks the spot of the highest free-standing mountain in the world. We took a bunch of summit photos, and then we started our descent back to high camp.

This summit day was a little tougher than the usual. What started out as some light winds, soon turned into a solid 30 mph wind by the time we reached 17,000’. As the eastern horizon turned orange as the sun began to rise, the winds picked up to 40 mph. We slowly climbed onward, but it was soon becoming apparent that we might not even make the summit today. We added our shells, covered up our faces, and decided to keep going for another stretch. An hour passed and without any relief from the wind. Without stopping, we climbed for another hour and fortunately, the winds lessened as we approached the crater rim. By now it was looking a little more optimistic that we would reach the top despite the winds. We were cold and tired, but with the summit in view, we added our down parkas, and made it the last hour to Uhuru peak.

We quickly descended back to HighCamp and were greeted by congratulations and a table loaded with fresh fruit and french toast. Re-fueled and re-packed, we headed down to Mweka Camp for the night. This morning we completed the trek down to the Mweka gate and then back to the Dik Dik Hotel.

Now we get to put our climbing gear away and focus on the next part of our adventure - 4 days on safari. First up, Lake Manyara National Park.

RMI Guide Jeff Martin & Team Simba Sita

Sign Up For Kilimanjaro 2012 Email Alerts

---

Kilimanjaro: 100% of Team Reaches Summit

Posted by: Jeff Martin | February 19, 2012
Categories: *Expedition Dispatches *Kilimanjaro
Elevation: 19,340'

RMI Guide Jeff Martin called from Mweka Camp (10,000’) after the team’s summit day.
The entire team reached the summit of Kilimanjaro today in great style.  They left Barafu Camp after midnight with their headlamps lighting the way and reached the “Roof of Africa” as the day broke over Tanzania.  After a quick celebration on top the team began their descent back to high camp where they were greeted with drinks and breakfast.  They continued down to Mweka Camp and the thick air of 10,000’ tired but in great spirits.

Congratulations to the team!

On The Map

Sign Up For Kilimanjaro 2012 Email Alerts

---

Kilimanjaro: Preparing for Summit Day

Posted by: Jeff Martin | February 18, 2012
Categories: *Expedition Dispatches *Kilimanjaro
Elevation: 15,000'

Jambo from Barafu Camp,

The team did great today on our move up to high camp. The hard work over the last five days has paid off and we are now ready for our summit attempt. Today was our shortest day of hiking so far, and we made it to Barafu Camp in just under 3 hours. Now we have the whole afternoon to rest up and sort through our gear one last time, just to make sure we have everything we need for tomorrow.

You would not be able guess we are at 15,000’ right now. The sun is finally winning out over the clouds and it is warm, especially inside the tents. It won’t last long, but we’ll take it while it does.

An early dinner is the plan for tonight and hopefully we will be horizontal by 6:30 pm. The alarm is already set for 11:45 pm, and hope to be walking by 1:00 am. We should be arriving at the crater rim around sunrise and then one final stretch up to Uhuru Peak, the Roof of Africa.

Our group is really strong and up for the challenge of tomorrow. Thanks the positive comments on the blog.

Will try and check-in from the summit tomorrow, or when we get down to Mweka Camp.

RMI Guide Jeff Martin and Team Simba Sita

On The Map

Sign Up For Kilimanjaro 2012 Email Alerts

---

Kilimanjaro: Team Ascends the Barranco Wall

Posted by: Jeff Martin | February 17, 2012
Categories: *Expedition Dispatches *Kilimanjaro
Elevation: 14,500'

Hello from Karanga Camp,

The team is doing great and we are happily nestled in at Karanga Camp. The weather has been having a hard time making up it’s mind the last few days, and today was no different. The mornings start out clear, but by mid-afternoon, the clouds roll in and stay around until dinner, and then it clears out again. Fortunately, there has not been much rain and the trail conditions have been great.
This morning when we got up, every trekker in camp was looking up at the Barranco Wall. It would be hard to miss this almost 1,000’ wall rising up towards the sky, but it is when you see the first few porters working their way up the trail is when you really take notice. You can hear the nearby groups talking about the Wall followed by “we have to climb up that”. The vantage point from camp makes the trail appear to be near vertical, but once you start the climb, it is very straightforward trail. In fact, most find it a lot fun and our group cruised right up it.
With most of the elevation gain for the day done while climbing the Barranco Wall, it was easy hiking the rest of the way to camp. We had a spaghetti lunch waiting for us when we arrived and then spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing. Now it’s time for popcorn and tea.
We are all excited to be moving up to our high camp tomorrow and will check in from there.

RMI Guide Jeff Martin & Team Simba Sita

On The Map

Sign Up For Kilimanjaro 2012 Email Alerts

---

Kilimanjaro: Team Checks in from Barranco Camp

Posted by: Jeff Martin | February 16, 2012
Categories: *Expedition Dispatches *Kilimanjaro
Elevation: 12,800'

Jambo from Barranco Camp,

Everybody did extremely well today on our move to Barranco Camp. It was the longest and hardest day so far of the trek, but the team was more than up for the challenge.  We started at 12,500’ this morning, with clear skies and a magnificent view of the mountain. But this was short lived as the clouds soon took over and stuck with us for the rest of the day. We even had a little rain as we approached Lava Tower Camp, our high point for the day at 15,200’. The clouds parted briefly so we could see Lava Tower and a glimpse of the Western Breach Wall. But more important than the view, was the fact the team was strong and handled the altitude well. It was downhill from here and we made great time descending down almost 2,500’, the entire amount of elevation we had spent the better part of our morning climbing up. But that is why today is so important for our acclimatization, and will pay big rewards on our summit day.
Tomorrow we tackle the Barranco Wall, and will check in from Karanga Camp.

A few comments from the Team -

Cal and Grayson - We will not fail.
Pam, Jaiden, and Carson - Miss you and love you.
Susan, Jennifer, and Craig - Still standing

RMI Guide Jeff Martin & Team Simba Sita

On The Map

Sign Up For Kilimanjaro 2012 Email Alerts

---

Kilimanjaro: New Altitude Record for most team members

Posted by: Jeff Martin | February 15, 2012
Categories: *Expedition Dispatches *Kilimanjaro
Elevation: 12,000'

Hello from Shira Camp,

Today the team moved from Machame Camp to Shira Camp for our second night on the mountain. The morning started out with clear blue skies as we continued the climb up and out of the giant heather zone. Within a few hours, most of the climbing for the day was done and we started a long traverse. At the end of the traverse the trail cuts through several sections of lava rock and we finally crested out on the Shira Plateau. This is at almost 12,500 feet, an altitude record for most of the group. We descended a couple hundred feet and walked right into camp. The clouds rolled in shortly after lunch and have been with us since. We are all hanging out in our tents now, resting a bit and working on our appetites for a big dinner.
Tomorrow will be the biggest day of the climb so far and we will be adding another 2,500 feet to those altitude records.
The group remains strong and are all up for the challenge tomorrow.

RMI Guide Jeff Martin & Team Simba Sita

On The Map

Sign Up For Kilimanjaro 2012 Email Alerts

---

Kilimanjaro: The Climb Begins

Posted by: Jeff Martin | February 15, 2012
Categories: *Expedition Dispatches *Kilimanjaro
Elevation: 9,800'

Happy Valentine’s Day from Machame camp.

When we woke up this morning, it was sunny and warm and the perfect day to start our climb.
After a quick breakfast, we loaded up in the vehicle and drove to the park gate, about an 1 1/2 drive from our hotel. With our park registration complete and the porter loads weigh, we were all more than ready to start walking.
With not a cloud in the sky, shorts and t-shirts were all that were needed today. As soon as we started on the trail, we began a steady climb up through the forest zone, the most dense section of forest on the mountain. After we climbed several thousand feet, the forest started to thin and the flanks of Kilimanjaro came into full view. A short stretch later, we were walking into our first night’s camp at 10,000. With our tents already set up and a snack waiting for us, it was a nice ending to our first day on the trail.

The team did great today on the hike and everybody is feeling strong and healthy. Tomorrow we will be checking in from Shira Camp.

Team Sima Sita

On The Map

Sign Up For Kilimanjaro 2012 Email Alerts

---

More Entries