The clouds blanketed Machame Camp for much of the night and we even had brief periods of rain... all of which made it feel wonderful to wake to crystal clear skies in the morning. We were just on top of thick layers of cloud, but finally we had unobstructed views of Kibo (Kilimanjaro's main peak) above. We ate breakfast and marched out of camp at 8:20, immediately encountering a steep and rocky trail up through a forest of giant heather. There were large numbers of porters -ours and those of neighboring teams- balancing loads on their heads as they wove through the straight up stream of morning traffic. The clouds rose up and swallowed us again for several hours as we steadily gained altitude. Up around 12,000 ft we broke free again and had a better look at the exotic giant scenecios among the heather. 16,000 ft Mount Meru became visible to the west as another island in the cloud sea. We began a traverse along shelves of lava with the boys keeping a sharp eye out for crystals among the ancient flows. The gang easily handled a few steeper steps and we reached a high point of 12,800 ft before dropping down into Shira Camp at 12,500 ft. Then it was an easy and peaceful afternoon of eating napping eating and eating some more. We were treated to a magical evening as the sun dropped into the clouds out beyond the Shira Plateau and the moon and stars took over at entertaining us. Everybody is happy and healthy tonight and getting easily into the rhythms of camp and climbing life. Best Regards RMI Guide Dave Hahn

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