This was a great day of climbing. It dawned crisp and clear at Shira Camp. Kibo, Kilimanjaro's main peak, was visible in all it's glory. We still couldn't see much out to the west because of clouds and murk, but everything was nice and blue up above. We got walking at 8:30 AM and made good, steady progress climbing toward Kibo. Inevitably, the clouds formed up as we went along, but we still enjoyed dramatic views of the hanging ice fields and steep mountain flanks ahead. We reached the 15,000 ft Lava Tower in early afternoon, and shattered everybody's previous altitude records in the process. Then our long descent into the Barranco Valley began. The good weather held for us and we even had a few sunny moments again as we got into the garden-like surroundings of our camp for the night. We passed under 30 ft high Giant Senecio plants... Seemingly straight out of a Doctor Suess book, and reached camp at 13,000 ft shortly after 3 PM. We are now camped below the Great Barranco Wall, but that of course, doesn't need to be climbed until tomorrow. Best Regards, RMI Guide Dave Hahn

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