Jambo from Karanga Camp,
The great weather continues and we woke up to another cloudless day on Kilimanjaro. Barranco Camp can be a little cold in the morning so we decided to sleep in an extra 1/2 hour to make sure that the sun was hitting our camp by breakfast time. We all slept well and were excited to start climbing the Barranco Wall. You would guess from most people's description of the Barranco Wall that it is a vertical climb of almost 800 feet. Fortunately, this is not the case and it definitely proved to be a highlight of the trip for everyone. Bibiana dedicated this section to Gabriel.
This is the shortest day of hiking on our trip, and once we reached the top of the Barranco Wall, we continued traversing below the south face of Kilimanjaro. The Heim, Kersten, and Decken glaciers were glistening in the sun above us as we approached Karanga Camp. We had a big pasta lunch waiting for us as we walked into camp. After lunch, we spent the rest of the afternoon enjoying our new camp.
Tomorrow we make our move to Barafu Camp, our highest camp on the mountain. We will then be in position to make our summit attempt the following day.
We will check in tomorrow from 15,200 feet.
- The Kili Team (July 25 - 8 August, 2011)
Congratulations on all that you have accomplished thus far. You should all be very proud of yourselves. You are truly on an adventure of a life time. If even just half of what Sarah has told me is true I have no doubt your summit attempt will be successful. I hear you have an outstanding team and the best dam guide in all of Africa!!! Good luck team. Go with a clear mind and a strong heart.
To Sarah aka (THE HONEY BADGER)
Sarah you are the most extraordinary, beautiful, strong, intelligent and determined person I have ever had the pleasure and honor of knowing. Words can not even begin to describe how proud I am of you. I love you with every fiber of my heart. I am the luckiest guy in the world. I’m really starting to doubt you’re so called time line. I might need to speed that up a bit. Take care of your dad…. I hope you haven’t had to pull out the short rope yet….Only kidding Mr. Griner. I know that as long as he has breath in his lungs Rusty Griner will be on the roof of Africa smiling down. Go get it Dick Bass… I am so fortunate and blessed to have you both in my life. I look forward to some amazing pictures and incredible stories…..
-Sean
Posted by: Sean on 8/1/2011 at 12:51 am
So the Barranco wall was a highlight and not an obstacle? You are all definitely in the right frame of mind. Glaciers, I cant wait for those photos Rusty. 15,000ft…...Oh Yeah. I,m sure the rush from the beauty of the mountain alone is energy to push forward. Stay strong, stay happy. Good luck everybody. Once in a lifetime Rusty and Sara.
Gummi Worm Man
Hey, this is Mark Tucker on the summit of Kilimanjaro the 31st of July 7:10 a.m. I'm here with a bunch of my buddies. They would all like to say hi.
Bryce Adams from Houston, Texas.
Vincent Graffagnino from Durham, North Carolina.
James Brennan from Houston, Texas. Ethan and Kimberly, I love you very much. I can't wait to see you.
John Fletcher from Greenville, North Carolina. Hey, I have got to tell you that this has to be the most beautiful mountain in the world.
Paul Stanford from Louisville, Kentucky. Sherry I love you. I can't wait to see you when I get home.
Joey Graffagnino from Durham, North Carolina, this is the best sunrise of the year.
[Mark Tucker] Hey it’s me again. Let’s pass it around.
Carmen Graffagnino Durham, North Carolina. Love you Sharon.
Edward Graffagnino from Durham North Carolina. You rock.
Monica Garhart, Boise, Idaho – Wahoo!!
Everyone did a great job getting up here. We got a wonderful day, couldn't be any better. These guys were great, they performed well. We are going to sign off and start heading down. We still have a bit of time on the mountain today. Thanks to you all for checking in. We will write you up something when we get down to Mweka Camp.
RMI Guide Mark Tucker and the Kilimanjaro Summit Team!
RMI Guide Mark Tucker & team call from the summit of Kilimanjaro!
Jambo from Barranco Camp,
Another cloudless day awaited us as we got out of the tents this morning. The whole upper mountain was in clear view and even Mt. Meru was visible to the south.
It was a bit colder this morning, but warmed right up as the sun hit our tents. Being our third day on the trail, the team was quick to get everything packed up and we were the first team out of camp. The climb up the Shira Plateau is not steep, but is a gradual incline all the way up to Lava Tower, our high point of the day at 15,100'. The group was strong the whole way up, even as we broke the personal altitude records of eight of our team members. After a nice break at Lava Tower camp, we began our descent to Barranco Camp. Since it was such a beautiful day, we stopped often for pictures and to just take in the views. The Barranco Camp has to be one of the best camps on the whole mountain. It is nestled on a flat bench with Kili's southern face rising dramatically right out of camp and dominating the horizon. On the valley floor, we are surrounded by some very unique plants including scenacios and lobelias, creating a landscape that almost looks like a page out of a Dr. Suess book. A pretty amazing place.
We had an early dinner tonight and are now enjoying a beautiful night sky as we get ready for bed. Tomorrow, we tackle the Great Barranco Wall. Even though it looks a bit intimidating from camp, everyone is up for the challenge.
We all wish Winsor a very Happy Birthday.
RMI Guide Jeff Martin & the Kili Team.
Hi KATERINA!!!!,
We read the blogs and saw the pics from Jeff and are so amazed and excited about your trip!
We are so proud of you! We are also excited and preparing for our trip to Greece this coming weekend. Hope that u continue to be well. We wish you a fun and safe remaining journey. Love Vicky
Hi Catherine its Jason. It must be really cool climbing a mountain. Did you see any animals? Tell me how it was climbing mount Kilimanjaro. Love Jason
HiCathie its me john i looked at the pictures and it looks awesome to be climbing the tallest mountain in Africa. Are u tired? we miss yo u love john.
Posted by: Vicky, Jason & John on 7/31/2011 at 8:56 am
A special hello to my dear friend Catherine! I’m so proud of you (but not surprised)!!! You are AMAZING. DON’T STOP. KEEP GOING!!!! Love and miss you, Angelica P.S. Many thanks to Jeff for the great blogs and best wishes for continued safe climbing for you and your entire team.
We enjoyed a good night's rest at Karanga Camp and woke to clear skies above Kilimanjaro. The hike from Karanga to our high camp, Barafu Camp at 15,000', took the team just three hours and we arrived to a nice hot lunch and every plate on the table was filled and emptied.
Having a shorter day on the trail allows the team to rest, re-hydrate and re-fuel in preparation for our summit attempt tonight and we took full advantage. Later this afternoon we discussed the details of our summit attempt from time of departure to clothing and rest breaks.
So, with an early dinner tonight we are crawling into our sleeping bags a little earlier than usual and will be donning our headlamps in a few short hours to begin our ascent. Wish us luck!
RMI Guide Mark Tucker & the Kilimanjaro Team.
Hello from New Shira Camp,
We have just had a great day. Everybody slept well last night and we awoke to blue skies and a view of Kilimanjaro above us. Tea was served to us in the tents and followed by a bucket of warm washing water.
We packed up camp in good time and hit the trail at 8:30 a.m.. The first stretch out of camp is fairly steep but we got immediately into a solid pace and climbed right up the first 1,000 feet of the day. A short stretch later and we were on top at a beautiful viewpoint. It is here that the actual size of the mountain can be seen for the first time since we started the trek nearly 6,000 feet below. Since the weather was perfect, we stopped an hour later for a long lunch break and ate until were stuffed.
The elevation gain for the day was done this morning, so after lunch we only had to climb a few hundred vertical feet to gain the Shira Plateau. Then a short descent and we arrived in camp. We just finished our afternoon snack and are hanging out in the dining tent sharing stories of past travels and adventures.
The whole team did great today and are all psyched for tomorrow's push to almost 15,000 feet. We would also like to give a big shout out to Sean. You are missed.
Tomorrow we will check in from Barranco Camp.
RMI Guide Jeff Martin and team
Blue skies and a view of Kilimanjaro?! How magical…and Way, Way, Cool!
Bailey and I are thinking about you, wanted you to know that we are with you!
Posted by: L and Bailey on 7/29/2011 at 7:50 pm
Jeff paints a beautiful picture. So happy to read about your progress everybody. Keep on keepin’ on!
Rusty and Sara make sure you touch the roof of Africa for me when you reach the summit.
Eat, Pray, Climb! Slow down Sara, geez.
Hello from the Karanga Camp at about 13,000 feet. We had a great climb to get here. Right out of camp this morning is the famous Barranco Wall. We left camp at 9 a.m., which put us in a good spot to avoid some traffic on the steep part of the climb. In a few places you use hands and footholds with some exposure below. While climbing carefully and taking advantage of many photo opportunities along the way, the team got back to more level terrain. For the next couple of hours we enjoyed views of the upper mountain and interesting terrain under foot. We arrived here at 1 p.m. and were greeted to a hot lunch of noodles and sauce. Not a scrap was left on any plate after a great day on the trail. Some cloud cover now but no rain.
We are getting busy with preparing food and gear for the move to high camp tomorrow.
RMI Guide Mark Tucker
Greetings from Machame Camp,
We had an early departure from the Dik Dik Hotel this morning and arrived at the Park gate at 10:00 a.m. There were only two other groups registering at the same time, so the process went very quickly and we were walking by 10:30 a.m. We had been skeptical all morning long and thought for sure that we would be walking in the rain, but by the time we put our packs on, it was only misting. And by the time we made it to camp, it was all sunshine. The trail through the cloud forest has seen a lot of work over the last year and trail conditions could not have been better. We also had the trail to ourselves which is a rarity on this popular route. As we ascended through the cloud forest, we spotted some black monkeys in the canopy above.
We made it to camp in 5 hours total today and had plenty of time to enjoy the afternoon sun. After a little rest and some popcorn, we rolled right into dinner. The team is looking and feeling strong tonight. Tomorrow, we head up to our next camp at the Shira Plateau.
RMI Guide Jeff Martin
I hope you and Sarah are having a wonderful time ascending the mountain. Be safe and enjoy every minute of this amazing once in a lifetime experience. I can’t wait to see your photos and hear all about your wonderful travels.
Posted by: Nancy Guntly on 7/29/2011 at 1:07 pm
I think you all know how fortunate you are to be ascending Kili. My admiration of Kili grew out of my friends Rusty and Sara’s planned climb. Having learned so much I feel I should be climbing with you all. I wish you all great health and great strength!. Soak up every inch, scent and sound. Let the mountain pull you up with its amazing beauty. Eat,Pray,Climb!
Gummi Worm Man
Another great day here on Killimanjaro. We had about 12 hours in the tents last night. The team used them well, for a strong group of climbers met the challenge to our new camp at 13,000 ft Baranco camp. We did have to climb up to a high point at 14,700', an altitude record for a lot of the group, to get here. No rain today which was very nice and everybody is resting and enjoying peanuts and popcorn in the dining tent.
The groups performance is all I could hope for. If we keep this up, with a little luck, we will soon be standing on the roof of Africa.
RMI Guide Mark Tucker
Jambo,
After the long day of travel, we decided to take full advantage of sleeping in this morning. We sat down for breakfast around 9:00 am, and then started in with our first team meeting of the trip. The last member of the team arrived this morning, which makes a total of eleven in our group. For most, this will be their first climb. For everybody, this climb will break all previous trip altitude records.
We spent much of the morning going over the details of our Kilimanjaro climb, covering the route, distances, and elevations of the camps, how to best pack all of the gear needed for the mountain, and the daily routines that we will need to use in order to climb efficiently at altitude. We ended the meeting with a thorough equipment check for each climber just to make sure we have everything needed for the next seven days.
We headed into Arusha after lunch and spent several hours exploring the main market, with its many vendors selling everything from Maasai medicines to some of the biggest avocados one has ever seen. Then we made our way to the tourist part of town to buy some small souvenirs and local handicrafts.
By the time we got back to the hotel, it was already dinner time and we sat down to a wonderful 5 course meal. It's early to bed tonight as we have an early wake up call in the morning. Our hope is to be driving to the Machame Gate at 7:30 and walking the first stretch of trail by 10:30.
We'll check in tomorrow from Machame Camp.
RMI Guide Jeff Martin
Jambo!
We had a great first day and night on Kilimanjaro. We awoke this morning to perfect climbing conditions. After our team breakfast we packed our bags and set out for our next camp on the Shira Plateau.
We ascended to 12,000' traveling through the "Giant Heather" zone to our camp over looking the majestic Great Rift Valley. Before reaching camp the afternoon rains began so we grabbed our rain gear and continued on. With our dining tent and all our sleeping tents set up by our great mountain staff when the team reached camp, we have remained dry throughout the afternoon and evening. We will have a nice team dinner before retiring to our tents for the evening.
The weather already looks like it is starting to clear so we'll hope for clear skies by morning when we set out on the trial again.
We will check in again soon!
RMI Guide Mark Tucker
Dr. Fletcher…everyone at work is asking about you and if I’ve heard from you. I’ve shared the info on this blog and we’re ALL SO EXCITED! Can’t wait to hear all about it when you return. Go Tucker & Team and GO PIRATES!!
Posted by: Sandy Nobles on 7/28/2011 at 8:47 am
...sounds like you are having a great climb so far…shout out from middle tennessee to dr fletcher…:o)...
Hello Team Kili
Congratulations on all that you have accomplished thus far. You should all be very proud of yourselves. You are truly on an adventure of a life time. If even just half of what Sarah has told me is true I have no doubt your summit attempt will be successful. I hear you have an outstanding team and the best dam guide in all of Africa!!! Good luck team. Go with a clear mind and a strong heart.
To Sarah aka (THE HONEY BADGER)
Sarah you are the most extraordinary, beautiful, strong, intelligent and determined person I have ever had the pleasure and honor of knowing. Words can not even begin to describe how proud I am of you. I love you with every fiber of my heart. I am the luckiest guy in the world. I’m really starting to doubt you’re so called time line. I might need to speed that up a bit. Take care of your dad…. I hope you haven’t had to pull out the short rope yet….Only kidding Mr. Griner. I know that as long as he has breath in his lungs Rusty Griner will be on the roof of Africa smiling down. Go get it Dick Bass… I am so fortunate and blessed to have you both in my life. I look forward to some amazing pictures and incredible stories…..
-Sean
Posted by: Sean on 8/1/2011 at 12:51 am
So the Barranco wall was a highlight and not an obstacle? You are all definitely in the right frame of mind. Glaciers, I cant wait for those photos Rusty. 15,000ft…...Oh Yeah. I,m sure the rush from the beauty of the mountain alone is energy to push forward. Stay strong, stay happy. Good luck everybody. Once in a lifetime Rusty and Sara.
Gummi Worm Man
Posted by: Gummi Worm Man on 7/31/2011 at 1:11 pm
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