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Monday, May 22, 2023 - 10:50 pm PT

We set an early alarm, and peaked our heads out the tent to see what the weather was doing. Surprised to find clear skies above us, we blasted the stoves and got every up for a quick breakfast of oatmeal. After eating a quick breakfast, we loaded up our packs with the group gear, and personal food we wanted to cache and began the first stretch of the climb requiring crampons. Up until now, we have been on a long rope interval, and primarily in snowshoes. From here on out we will be climbing in crampons, and using an ice axe. Just as sun hit camp, we began our way up the steep Motorcycle Hill, around the corner up Motorcycle Hill, through the broken up Polo Field and around Windy Corner. The morning was cold, the wind was howling for the first few stretches but by the time we got to the corner, the wind had died down and we were warming up. We passed the common cache site at 13,500' and made our way up to 14,000 Camp, where we were greeted by other RMI teams. We buried our cache, and then headed back downhill to 11,000' Camp for the night. We made a big dinner of Annie's Mac and Cheese and bacon, and then promptly crawled into our sleeping bags after a long day. The team did great today, setting us up well. We are looking forward to another slow morning, and rest before fully moving to 14 Camp.

RMI Guide Nikki Champion

On The Map

Sunday, August 27, 2023 - 7:56 am PT

Big Day!  And night.  We were awake at 11 PM sharp last night.  Thankfully, it was calm and not too cold at 15,200 ft at that hour.  We geared up, ate a quick “breakfast” and got walking at 12:05 AM.  Everybody else at Barafu Camp did so too.  It was a great parade of headlights converging on the steep start to the route.  Naiman led our team nice and steady through various teams that were stopping and starting to deal with difficulties.  Once we were through the rocky start to the route, the walking got a little easier and one could pay a little attention to the stars and the lights of Moshi and other towns and cities.  The moon was about half full and threw back some useful light for us.  As expected, it got cold as we got a few hours into the climb.  By the halfway point we pretty much had every scrap of clothing on.  Water bottles within our packs were freezing up.  Our main strategy for dealing with the cold was to keep moving.  We hit Stella Point at the crater rim at 6AM.  The walking got easier then… and absolutely beautiful as the light came up.  Sunrise came as we were halfway to Uhuru -the highest point.  We got to Uhuru at 7 AM.  It was a little cold and breezy at 19,341 ft above sea level and so we didn’t stay long.  Long enough for some victorious pics with the big sign board up there.  The breeze/wind motivated us to move down the mountain at a pretty good clip, boot skiing in the scree.  We were back to Barafu at 10:10 AM.  Tosha presented us with a pizza brunch and we had some time for taking care of ourselves and packing up.  Nobody was all that psyched at the prospect of four more hours on our feet to descend 5,000 ft but we got after it anyway.  We made it down to a 10,000 ft camp in the woods by 3:35 PM.  The team is safe and relieved to be back on flat ground (everything at high camp is tilted) and so happy to be breathing oxygen rich air with actual humidity again. 

Best Regards,

RMI Guide Dave Hahn

Aug 7, 2023 1:55PM PT

A sound sleep and much needed recovery was had by the team after our descent to Mweka Gate and the thin air of 6,000'. Negotiating a slick, slippery path down the 4000' to our waiting bus and celebratory lunch proved tricky, but no casualties were had.

We said our goodbyes to our new friends who supported us this week on Kilimanjaro. We all welcomed the showers, dancing, and comfort at our hotel - plus the ability to connect with friends and family.

Tomorrow our safari begins the second half of our adventure. Catch you then!

Brent

Saturday, May 21, 2023 - 10:30 pm PT

Good evening readers,

Today we woke to a wet rain falling on our tents. The plan was for an early start but we postponed our departure by a few hours watching the clouds. After yummy breakfast burritos we began breaking down camp and hit the trail. The team made their way back up Ski Hill on our way to our new home at 11,000' Camp. After walking for a few hours of descent weather we hit a hot pocket that made everyone go into a heat panic. But we persevered and made it to some cooler temps. At our last break the snow flakes got bigger and a chill hit the team but this was short lived and we were back to being hot as we rolled into camp. It was a tough long day with heavy packs but it sure feels good to be here. We made camp, ate dinner and it's off to bed to let the bodies recover. Tomorrow we will back carry down to our cache to be reunited with all our gear and then rest for the majority of the day. Snow falls as we get snuggled in. Frequent taps on tent walls make the snow slide down. We will see how much snow falls through the night.

Good night all,

RMI Guides Hannah, Devin, Erika, and Team

Tuesday, June 22, 2021 - 4:45 pm PT

We "slept in" to a normal hour today; being up at 11,200' we no longer have to be on an alpine start schedule, traveling at night when the glaciers are frozen. The sky was clear above us as I fired the stoves at 6am, and clouds filled the glacial valleys below. After coffee and a Pop Tart, we headed back downhill to retrieve the cache of supplies we buried a couple of days ago. A quick jaunt downhill and forty minutes of climbing back up hill, and we were back at camp with all of ours supplies. We enjoyed a big leisurely brunch of eggs, hash browns, bacon, and, of course, more coffee. Meanwhile the clouds that had been below us earlier had risen up to our level and it began to lightly snow. That was fine by us, as the rest of the day we lounged in our tents, resting, napping, and reading.

If the weather cooperates, we plan to put in a cache up above Windy Corner tomorrow, somewhere above ~13,600'.

We'll be in touch tomorrow and let you you know how it goes.

RMI Guide Mike Walter