Entries By Dave Hahn
Posted by: Dave Hahn
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Kilimanjaro
This was our Kilimanjaro kickoff day... but it was also our Kili catch-up day. We began our climb by sitting down as a group just after breakfast and strategizing. We went through our itinerary and discussed goals and contingencies. Then we checked each climber's gear and clothing for the trip, finally we packed and weighed each load. We had lunch outside under the patio awning as dik diks (smallest of the antelope family) roamed the grounds and velvet monkeys played in the trees. Afternoon was the "catch-up" portion of the day as we rested and attempted to reset our day/night perceptions to fit our new setting -about nine time zones off -give or take. We'd take trips up the Lodge's observation tower from time to time in order to look for Kili on the horizon. Clouds kept it hidden today though. Tomorrow we'll set out for the mountain just after breakfast and will relay a team picture or two as we progress.
Best Regards,
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
Posted by: Dave Hahn
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Kilimanjaro
We've gotten eleven climbers -and their gear- through an assortment of aircraft and airports to the outskirts of Arusha, Tanzania. What with ample jet lag, it can't be declared with certainty that all are now sleeping at the Arumeru River Lodge, but all are now in residence (at 4 AM). In a few hours, we'll wake up to begin a Kilimanjaro adventure. It will begin with coffee and a velvet monkey or two out in the garden-like patio of the lodge. We'll eat breakfast (if the monkeys don't) and meet finally as one big team to figure out the start of our week-long climb to the highest point in Africa.
Best Regards,
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
Go, Nao! Love you, girl. Sending vibes your way constantly. So proud of you. Hugs, smiles and cheers. cd
Posted by: Claudia on 9/6/2017 at 10:55 pm
Don and Jennifer, I’m in awe. CNt wait to see the photos.
Love,
Tina.
Posted by: Tina Mooney on 9/4/2017 at 4:43 pm
At 7:13 a.m. the Four Day Summit Climb led by RMI Guide Dave Hahn reached Columbia Crest, the highest point on Mt. Rainier. Dave reported perfect conditions today. The team will spend some time on the summit celebrating before beginning their descent. We look forward to seeing them in Ashford this afternoon.
Congratulations climbers!
Congrats Jeff and group from your mom. Have a safe return. Looking forward to pics. Xox
Posted by: Jeannie on 8/28/2017 at 6:49 am
Congratulations Stevenson clan! So exciting!
Posted by: Emma and Todd Brown on 8/27/2017 at 8:20 pm
The Four Day Summit Climb Team for August 20 - 23 were unable to reach the summit of Mt. Rainier today due to route conditions. RMI Guides Dave Hahn and Leon Davis led their teams to the top of Disappointment Cleaver at 12,300' which was their high point today. The teams will descend to Camp Muir and continue to Paradise later this morning.
Hey Team!!! Congratulations for reaching the top of Disappointment Cleaver, 12,300! That’s a wonderful accomplishment. A lot of hard work. I missed being there with you in person, I was there in spirit.
Barbara
Posted by: Barbara on 8/23/2017 at 10:36 am
Posted by: Dave Hahn
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Kilimanjaro
Balloon Camp was the perfect final night in Africa for our team, tranquil and wild in equal measures. There were leopard tracks in the dirt of the driveway this morning. But the big cats stayed away from us in the day. We looked hard for the lions, cheetahs and leopards, scanning every acacia branch and watering hole, but all we saw were beautiful birds and herds. Vultures, eagles, lilac breasted rollers and mongooses, impalas, waterbuck, elan, Zebra, giraffes, elephants, baboons and monkeys. Until we rolled out of the park entrance at 11 AM and reluctantly left Tarangire. Adamson and Makubi piloted the Landcruisers along the dusty, busy two-lane toward Mt. Meru and Arusha. On the outskirts of town, we stopped for a picnic and a perusal of the Cultural Heritage Center. We pulled into our home away from home, the Arumeru River Lodge at 3PM. Showered, repacked and regrouped. We had an early dinner together and chased out to Kilimanjaro Airport as the sun got low. Now we are in 17A and 42K, etc... winging our way to Amsterdam, where we'll split up... but only until the next adventure together. It is too good a team to lose... random reunions in beautiful places are in order.
Thank you for following along.
Best Regards,
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
As always Dave, enjoy following your wonderful adventures. Hope to see you at the St. B in the future.
Posted by: Bob Iles on 8/13/2017 at 11:38 pm
Posted by: Dave Hahn
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Kilimanjaro
Another long, but amazing day out on the safari circuit for the Taos team. We had a relaxed 9 AM departure from the Plantation Lodge. Adamson and Makubi took us to a Masai village for a brief tour. We danced a little, jumped high, and got inside some small, earthen dwellings to understand how this prominent Tanzanian tribe lives without modern conveniences. Then it was on to Tarangire National Park. Before long we were deep within this immense network of winding dirt roads, baobab trees, twisting river valleys and animals animals animals. We no longer stopped for individual zebras and wildebeest, since we were seeing thousands of them. After the hundredth giraffe and the five hundredth elephant, we started reserving our picture snaps for the babies in the bunch. We covered mile after mile, exploring and watching out for wildcats, water bucks, elan, impalas and gazelles. Lake Manyara and Ngorongoro Crater were each wonderful, but both were discreet areas with natural borders hemming them in. That isn't the case with Tarangire. We could see wildlife spread out to the horizons in all directions... the Africa we'd dreamed of. By day's end, we pulled into Balloon Camp, an excellent "tent" hotel out in the bush with armed guards to escort us from one tent to another. Those guards stood vigilant as we enjoyed an outdoor campfire and sumptuous barbecue buffet under the stars (and clouds). No lions, leopards, or cheetahs intruded on our wonderful dinner but we are still hoping they'll come for breakfast. It will be our last morning of Safari and we are still excited to see just what might be out there.
Best Regards,
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
Posted by: Dave Hahn
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Kilimanjaro
Even on vacation, it was worth getting up early today to get over to Ngorongoro Crater. We left Plantation Lodge at 7 AM and were up on the crater rim just 90 minutes later. It was cold, cloudy and windy, but we figured things would be a little more user friendly down in the "crater". Technically, it is a caldera... not a crater. And animals like a good caldera, apparently.
We got down inside and the weather was indeed better, but it never got exactly "good". We wore jackets and sweaters (which is par for the course at 7000 ft) but we still opened up the top of our Landcruiser and rolled down the windows. Immediately, we encountered zebras, and then more zebras. Wildebeest and then more wildebeest, Cape buffalo by the dozen, Kori bustards and Secretary Birds and ostriches. And then we saw lions. Four big fully maned males lounging about and one female who seemed a bit more restless. We watched hippos doing what hippos do (not much) some more lions, hyenas, jackals, elephants, eagles, vultures and several flavors of gazelle. We saw tons of animals and kept constant watch out for more. We came up empty in our rhino search, but that happens. Not many of them left to see in Tanzania. Adamson and Makubi, our extremely knowledgeable driver/guides took us all over the crater/caldera. We climbed back up the steep walls around 4 PM with most everybody a bit sleepy. Which worked out fine because we were back frolicking in the swimming pool and sipping coldies by 5 at the Plantation Lodge.
We'll be well rested and ready for another deluxe safari day tomorrow.
Best Regards
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
Still enjoying every moment of this marvelous adventure! Thank you for sharing. BIG HUGS
Posted by: Yolanda Deveaux on 8/11/2017 at 6:34 pm
Posted by: Dave Hahn
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Kilimanjaro
A day after the big and arduous week on Kilimanjaro, nobody in our team had the slightest trouble rallying for the Safari departure this morning. We were driving westward just before 8 AM in two souped up and modified Toyota Landcruisers. Rush hour traffic on the outskirts of Arusha fascinated us, but we were plenty happy to leave it behind and break into open country for a couple of hours. Lake Manyara National Park was today's destination. At first, we stopped for every velvet monkey and baboon, but we gradually grew more demanding and Manyara kept delivering. We were in game viewing heaven by midday with Cape Buffalo, hippos, thousands of storks and pelicans, zebras, warthogs and wildebeest roaming the lake's edge. The forest elephants we saw up close and personal delighted us to no end. In late afternoon, just when eyelids were beginning to droop and the cruisers were pointed toward the park exit... we had an impromptu and unexpected encounter with a leopard. Our eyes widened, his/her eyes widened, our cameras clicked and the beautiful cat came toward us and crossed the road in full view for just a magical moment. The big kitty melted into the brush and we went on our way... amazed at our good fortune. We drove up the escarpment of the Great Rift Valley (which we learned runs 10,000 kilometers from Jordan to Mozambique) and found our way to the Plantation Lodge. The perfectly tended gardens, luxurious accommodations, and welcoming staff caused more than one Taoseño to contemplate staying indefinitely in East Africa. We'll tear ourselves away for a day in Ngorongoro Crater tomorrow though... luxury can wait.
Best Regards,
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
Thank for the continued updates! Sounds like Team Taos is having a great time. Cementing great friendships!! Thinking of you all !! Take care!
Posted by: Sarah's Mom & Dad on 8/11/2017 at 8:22 am
Posted by: Dave Hahn
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Kilimanjaro
The perfect climb continued in similar fashion. We woke under clear skies at 10,000 ft. Each climber commented on how nice it had been to sleep on level ground and at low altitude. We ate one last fine mountain meal and then met, across a clearing in the forest, with our entire 54 man support staff. Philip spoke for his men, expressing gratitude and satisfaction with a week's worth of hard work on our behalf. I spoke for our gang -attempting to express our amazement and gratitude at their efforts. A few songs were sung and gifts exchanged. We set out down the forest trail and before too long were in thick cloud and eventually rain. There was some discussion later though, as to whether it was actually rain or just a particularly wet cloud we were in. It didn't really matter though, as it didn't get us very wet and it didn't last so long. We picked our way down 4,000 vertical feet of slippery trail without mishap and hit the Mweka Gate of Kilimanjaro National Park. After some handshakes, photographs and documentation, we loaded the bus and cruised downhill. Our staff hosted one last amazing lunch on our return, just above the city of Moshi, and then we hit the highway. Gasps were heard when we finally could look back and see Kilimanjaro towering over the clouds. (We hadn't seen it at all before the climb). It didn't seem possible for a mountain to be so big.
As good as the climb had been, nobody was sad to be back at our comfortable lodge with hot showers and fine food and drink. We relaxed away the afternoon and celebrated away the evening... within limits of course. The Safari awaits.
Best Regards,
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
Last night at 9:30 pm PST Dave Hahn called from the Kilimanjaro summit! Please click the audio button below to listen to his update from the Roof of Africa.
7:48 am PST
By any measure, this was a big day. For one thing, it began yesterday. At 11:30 PM precisely, we woke at 15,200 ft to begin our summit attempt. The moon was brilliant, high clouds and wind were non-existent... It was the perfect night for climbing. Our team assembled in the dining tent at midnight to swill coffee and porridge. By the time we were walking out of camp at 12:30, we'd already sung a few rounds of happy birthday to the 18 year-old twins, Max and Simon. Philip Mbise, our lead guide, brought the team skillfully, politely, and steadily through a hundred potential traffic jams. Everybody was out and on the move, but many were having the normal difficulties with the altitude, the terrain and the cold, so by merely keeping our team at a rock-steady "Pole Pole" pace, Philip passed team after team as we worked higher. Most of us didn't turn our headlights on until just before the crater rim, when we tore through a moon shadow. We hit Stella Point -on the rim- at 5:30 AM, still in darkness, but with an enchanting light show going on between imminent daybreak in the east and moon mania in the west. One hour later... at exactly 6:30, the sun rose and our entire team arrived together at Uhuru... The true summit of Kilimanjaro and Africa. It was cold, we'd been wearing down jackets for the last few hours to the top, but it was an absolutely magical and beautiful moment. There, at 19,340 ft, we celebrated those birthdays, the bonds of family and close friendships, and the wonders of the world. As we watched, a shadow of Kilimanjaro formed in the atmosphere to the West, exactly coinciding with the only landform breaking the surface of the cloud sea, the 16,000-foot pyramid of Mount Meru. As if that weren't enough, the full moon sat just above the twin apexes of ethereal and stone summits in the sky. We took pictures, hugged one another and wandered about wide-eyed and exhilarated. We left the summit at 7:00 and two hours and fifteen minutes later, this strong team was back in high camp. We had a grand feast of a brunch, capped off with a birthday cake which was hand delivered to Barafu from Arusha just yesterday. And then, at 11 AM we skedaddled and headed for Mweka Camp. Walking in pleasant weather, we reached camp at about 10,000 feet by 2:15 -earning a restful afternoon lounging in our forest camp.
The shoutouts today go to our own team... All of whom broke their previous altitude records. Special mention to 14 year-old Ella Green who absolutely crushed the day. To 16 year-old Zach Ginn, who would have gone on for another 5,000 feet if the mountain hadn't abruptly ended at 19,340. To our three 18 year-old brothers... Tyrone Green, Simon and Max Mount each of whom demonstrated uncommon discipline, maturity and good humor on a long tough day.
The loudest of shoutouts to Philip, to Freddy Kileo, to Gama Samvel, to Naiman Metil, to Venance Vicent, and Said Mwanja for flawless guidance.
Best Regards,
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
RMI Guide Dave Hahn calls in from the Kilimanjaro summit!
On The Map
Congratulations! Happy birthday to the twins! Sounds truly amazing! I can’t wait to hear about the details and see the pictures when you return! What a team! I’m so proud of Ella! You guys rock!!
Posted by: Lisa on 8/9/2017 at 4:56 am
Congratulations team Taos!
Fantastic achievement.
Safe journey back down.
Posted by: Deon on 8/9/2017 at 12:19 am
Hi Mom and dad,
I hope you are having a good time! You are defiantly the coolest parents for doing this trek! Don’t worry all is well in Brussels.
Love,
Nora
Posted by: Nora on 9/6/2017 at 5:24 am
Curt, have an awesome adventure and stay safe!
Posted by: Kathy Goodwin on 9/5/2017 at 9:18 am
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