Entries from Kilimanjaro
Our team reached the summit of Kilimanjaro this morning in good style and we have now arrived at Mweka Camp at 10,000 ft for our last night here on Kilimanjaro. This group I have had the pleasure to climb with excelled in all phases while on the mountain. I have a high level of confidence they will be able to handle phase two, our game viewing safari. But for now we will enjoy a well deserved night's rest and tomorrow make our way down the to the trail head.
RMI Guide Mark Tucker
On The Map
Hello everyone and welcome to
RMI's second
Kilimanjaro's trip of the season.
The team arrived late last night after our very long and tiring flights from the U.S. We were greeted by the wonderful staff from the Dik Dik Lodge with warm smiles and a little champagne to toast our arrival.
After a short and quiet ride to our lodge we had a quick dinner then headed off to bed to catch up on some much needed sleep.
The team met this morning at breakfast with fresh fruits, homemade bread and jam, and plenty of good Tanzanian coffee.
We then got together for a formal round of introductions and an overview of the upcoming adventure. We discussed our plan for the climb and made sure everyone has all the necessary gear to keep us safe and warm on
Kilimanjaro.
After a short break some team members took a short stroll on the beautiful grounds hoping to catch sight of some of the monkeys that often visit and some even managed to spot Kilimanjaro in a break in the clouds. The rest of us did a little packing and caught up on a little more sleep to help get adjusted to the big time difference.
We have just wrapped up an amazing five-course meal with great conversations, and everyone is squared away and looking forward to hitting the trail tomorrow as well as stretching the legs a bit.
RMI Guide Casey Grom and crew
Another day of nice weather...YEAH! A few hours of hiking and here we are at
Barafu Camp at 15,000 ft. The team got busy upon arrival preparing for the early morning departure from here toward the summit, sorting through the stay and go gear since we will come back thru this camp on our way down from the summit. We all pooled together our favorite treats and made up some tasty looking lunches. We took a short hike up to get familiar with the start of the climb that will confront us with our alpine start from High Camp to the summit of Kilimanjaro.
It's nap time now before our early dinner then we will take another short rest before starting our summit attempt. The team continues to do well, wish us luck!
RMI Guide
Mark Tucker & Team
On The Map
Can we have a couple more beautiful days please?! I don't like to beg but if we can continue with weather like this we would greatly appreciate it.
A nice lazy start to the day was our plan in order to miss the traffic while climbing the Barranco Wall. The Barranco Wall is a series of rock bands just out of camp that gets your attention and requires your hands from time to time. At the top of the Wall we took some photos and gave each other some high fives before continuing on our way. We then traversed below the upper mountain for a couple hours to end up at
Karanga Camp (13,160') for the night. Camp is situated on a bit of a slope but our staff did a fine job of finding some pretty flat ground for the tents.
We continue to adjust both mentally and physically to this extreme environment; we're meeting the challenges head on. This team did there homework, taking training to heart prior to the climb and the investment is paying off. What a great group to climb with on Kilimanjaro!
RMI Guide Mark Tucker
On The Map
It was a BIG day, but not so enormous for this tough team. We woke up early and put in a solid six hours of climbing in good style. At one point on the trail we reached just under 15,000 ft, our current trip high point. We are now at 13,030 ft at the
Barranco Camp. The plan of climbing high and sleeping low is in place for acclimatization and seems to be working well; everybody is in good shape. The upper mountain towers above us at this camp and the beautiful weather will make for a fantastic sunset tonight.
Tomorrow we tackle the Barranco Wall as we continue our ascent of Kilimanjaro. We will check-in and let you know how that goes.
RMI Guide Mark Tucker
On The Map
Battery recharge accomplished! It is so important to be good at resting when climbing a big mountain; and boy can this team sleep!
How about a perfect weather day? It was tough but that is what we had to deal with today. Fantastic views of the upper mountain got the teams attention as we continued our journey upward on Kilimanjaro. It sure looks like along way up and it is so we are taking it one day, one stretch, and one step at a time. In addition to the jaw dropping views, the team spent today's climb focusing on their fundamental climbing techniques.
We are now settled into our camp at 12,570' on the
Shira Plateau. Adjusting to this kind of altitude is always a challenge but this team is up for it. No headaches, good appetites, and great attitudes confirm that this team is doing well and enjoying the climb.
RMI Guide Mark Tucker
On The Map
Gortex was the outfit of choice when we arrived at the Kilimanjaro National Park Entrance Gate this morning. Lucky for us, the rain stopped and we had nice conditions as we climbed through the rainforest on Kilimanjaro's lower slopes and the giant heather in the Moorland Zone to reach
Machame Camp. The team did well and we're all our tucked in for the night at ~10,000 ft on this beautiful mountain.
Jet lag still prevails and we are looking forward a good night's sleep for our first night on the mountain. We will check in again tomorrow with our progress towards the Roof of Africa.
RMI Guide Mark Tucker
On The Map
The entire team has arrived in
Tanzania. We spent last night at the Dik Dik Hotel in Usa River and have been enjoying the great food and hospitality.
After a leisurely breakfast, part of our team traveled to a local orphanage to pass along some items they brought from the US. It was well received and very much appreciated.
Our equipment checks went smoothly, thanks to the great preparation made by the team. We should be all set for our time on the mountain.
We have experienced a bit of light rain this afternoon and cool temperatures in the lowlands of Usa River at around 4,000'. Unfortunately it wasn't warm enough for anyone to appreciate the beautiful Dik Dik swimming pool.
We will get to bed early tonight to help recover from our long flights and so that we are rested and ready to head into Kilimanjaro National Park tomorrow morning.
Stay tuned,
RMI Guide
Mark Tucker
Hi! It is our last day on safari and we are back in Arusha doing some last minute shopping. Our next stop is the Dik Dik Hotel to repack, shower and then head to the airport. We will of course be squeezing one more fantastic dinner in as well.
Kikoti Camp was a great place to spend our last evening in
Tanzania. The sunset was spectacular and the scenery there is great. This morning we had a nice game drive with tons of elephants playing in the Tarangire River.
I think we are all psyched to head home but it has been a real fun group and everyone has gotten along together amazingly well. All of us will be flying out overnight so for the family and friends following along... See you soon!
RMI Guide Seth Waterfall
Hey this is Seth dropping a quick check in via the satellite phone. We are way out in the bush at
Kikoti Camp. Since I checked in last we have had some really great animal encounters.
Right after I emailed yesterday we spotted several rhinos fairly close to the road. That brought our total rhino count for the day up to 5 which is by far the most I've seen in a single day. Right after that we pulled up to a male lion next to the road. Our drivers got us into a good position and before we knew it he got up and walked to less than 10 feet from the cars! That was a real treat.
Today we spent the morning driving to Tarangire National Park and had an afternoon game drive. The elephants were out in full force and I'd say we saw well over 100. It was a very hot day though and that keeps the cats in the shade. We didn't see any of them. Tomorrow we will spend the morning looking for more cats and then head back to the Dik Dik before we all fly home at night.
RMI Guide
Seth Waterfall and Team
Congratulations to all of you - what a great family outing - much bigger than the usual picnic. Thanks to your dad for making this experience and these memories possible and for bringing all of you along in the great mountaineering tradition he loves. Have a safe trip down. Love, Meg
Posted by: Meg Race on 7/14/2015 at 6:37 am
Woot woot! Congrats guys!
Posted by: Amelia Muller on 7/13/2015 at 7:53 pm
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