You’re Having A Giraffe……

Miriakamba Hut – 17^th February

International relations restored it was time to get down to the serious business of beginning my African adventure.

 Giraffe, Zebra and Warthog on the plains at  the  base of the mountain

The morning had been blisteringly hot, walking along a dirt track that in any other circumstances would have been relatively uninteresting, so it was something of a relief to reach the shade of the rainforest.

As we made our way into the forest you could hear an immense racket of Colobus monkeys warning each other as we approached and it wasn’t long before we managed catch our first glimpse of their long white tails contrasting against the black fur of their bodies high in the canopy above.

 Colobus Monkey

One landmark I had been looking forward to seeing “in the flesh” was the Fig Arch Tree, a giant specimen of a Strangler Fig which had long ago enveloped its host and subsequently split to straddle the track.

Forming an arch large enough to drive a truck through it certainly lived up to the hype as I craned my neck trying to see up to it’s upper reaches.

 

After a flurry of photographs and a quick decision to carry on a little further before breaking for lunch we moved off and no sooner had I tucked my camera away than my guide Wilfred tapped me on the shoulder and pointed into the forest.

Demonstrating the benefits of walking with others!

Looking hard into a sea of green I could just make out the contrasting colours of a Giraffe, slowly we crept towards it managing to halve the distance between us before he turned his attention to us.

There was just enough time to fire off a few photo’s before he decided enough was enough and lopped off into the forest.

 Let's play spot the giraffe....

 

Elated we returned to the track and continued on our way until we reached the small clearing, complete with waterfall, which marked our spot for lunch.

 Relaxing whilst enjoying the view after some lunch

Well fed and watered we continued on our way and it may have been the steeper gradient, increasing humidity or the previous days travel catching up but the going was getting tougher (and this was still an “easy day”)!

 Making our way through the rainforest

Needless to say I was grateful to reach the high point for the day, safe in the knowledge that there was just a little walk across the plateau and a short descent before a welcome opportunity to drop my rucksack and put my feet up.

Angry Swiss Men……

Miriakamba Hut – 17^th February

After all the planning, training and travelling it’s finally nice to get some dust on my boots and gain some altitude!

 

First view of Mt Meru, doesn't look that big!

But first you need to pay all the park fees for the duration of your trip (you’re charged for each day on the mountain including the respective fees for all your guides, cooks and porters).

Fees, fees, fees.

Thankfully this is all included in the price I had already paid for the trek and the guides sort out the details allowing you to impress all the day trippers with your rugged mountaineer act!

The guys sorting out the details leaving me free to grab some photos.

Having paid your dues you’re allowed to proceed to Momella Gate where there’s a register to sign and an armed ranger to collect before you can start up the mountain.

 The Momella Gate Office, the final checkpoint before we can start!

 But not until you've read the rules!

Upon arrival at the office there was, for want of a better description, an angry Swiss man talking on the phone, obviously unhappy that his trek which he had arranged in Zurich was being paired up with another group.

Poor sod, I thought, thinking some quick witted tour operator must have matched up him and his wife with a much larger group to increase their profit when he yelled down the phone “We’ll just have to meet these OTHER people before deciding what to do”!

As the park ranger came over to introduce himself I felt myself coming under intense scrutiny before hearing a loud exclamation “SO YOU’RE OTHER PEOPLE”!

Having learnt the hard way that a smart mouth isn’t always the best way to win new friends I played dumb and looked slightly confused.

After a quick run through of my mountaineering credentials (which is slightly unnerving when you’re talking to someone who lives within spitting distance of the Alps) I evidently met his criteria and we were ready to go.

Perhaps it’s testament to my winning personality but within half an hour on the trail Reto and Vreni were well on the way to becoming good companions on my Mt Meru adventure!

Arrived……

Ilboru Safari Lodge – 16^th February 2012

 

My thoughts exactly!

Right now it feels as though I have spent an age travelling to get here but here I am sitting in the shade by the pool drinking what I’m sure will be the first of many Kilimanjaro beers for this trip!

 A VERY welcome sight!

On the whole the journey has been good, the flight from Heathrow to Nairobi was one of the quietest I’ve ever been on and was little more than half full and having located the International Transfer Desk at Nairobi Airport I had received a new baggage claim slip confirming my bag had been transferred to the Kilimanjaro flight.

It was on the short flight to Kilimanjaro that the realisation of what I am attempting to achieve finally hit home!

Cruising at about 15,000 above a solid blanket of cloud after about 30 minutes the plane banked to the right as it began its descent approach and suddenly rising out of the clouds, covered in snow and looking somewhat ethereal was the Kibo massif and the summit of Kilimanjaro.

 

 Well it seemed like a good idea at the time....

After several years of dreaming, after all the training and preparation, it’s hard to describe how I felt in that moment when I first glimpsed the mountain I had come to climb but I’m pretty sure the predominant thought was along the lines of “**** it’s BIG!”.

You can probably guess what’s coming but having landed and cleared immigration at Kilimanjaro I spent the next 20 mins waiting fruitlessly at the baggage carousel for my bag to appear!

 Here's the airport, now where's my bag?

Of course I can’t help but feel a little smug that I made the effort to wear/carry my essential kit (even if I did feel a bit of a tit walking around Nairobi airport in a fleece) but it does make me wonder if there was actually any point in packing the bag in the first place.

The chap who met me from the African Walking Company was great, he looked me up and down and seemed relieved to see that I at least had my boots before taking the baggage claim form and reassuring me that they would take care of everything.

Most of the drive to the Ilboru was on a good tarmac road but as we got near we turned off and spent the next 10 mins bumping and bouncing our way up a dirt track or “African Road” as described my my driver!

 "So which one of these is the hotel?"

Trying not to hit my head any more than was absolutely necessary it was hard not to let my concern show as we passed by a myriad of huts and shacks and I began to wonder just how basic my accommodations were going to be.

However soon we turned into a gated driveway and the reassurance of a building resembling what I would recognise as a hotel!

 More than a little bit relieved!

It seems my initial fears couldn’t have been further from the truth, set in beautiful gardens each room is clean and spacious and for the next 16 hours it looks as though my toughest decisions will be what to eat and which of the double four poster beds I’ll be sleeping in tonight!

 

And SLEEP.

Safe and Sound (and successful?)……

I’ve just checked and it’s been a month since I added a new post to my blog!

I’ve got a fairly good excuse given that a fair chunk of that time has been spent trying to climb two mountains but to be honest I was hoping to have added something before now!

Personally I blame the 1,800 photos that I came back with and the time it has taken (so far) to whittle them down into something more manageable.

It’s something I always enjoy doing as going through all the photos in their raw form allows me to relieve the trip on a day by day basis providing an opportunity to absorb and savour the experience.

The good news is that I’m nearly done and as promised I have kept a journal throughout my trip so in the next few weeks I’ll be adding lots of new entries sharing my thoughts and experiences.

In the meantime I’ll try and maintain an element of suspense for anyone who doesn’t yet know whether I made it to the top of Mt Meru & Kilimanjaro.

Kilimanjaro at sunrise, viewed from the Miriakaba Hut on Mt Meru.