We walked for 7 days in total on the Lemosho Route and tackled 43 miles gate to gate, endured numerous outside wee's, suffered altitude sickness and we sang, danced, laughed and cried. We were with Ahsante Tours, who carried our larger bags, tents, our food, water, but more importantly, lifted our spirits tremendously and got us all up that mountain. We had 57 people altogether taking care of 15 of us, and we wouldn't have made it without them. They sang and danced with us, carried our backpacks if we couldn't carry them anymore, gave words of encouragement constantly, and never gave up on us at our most vulnerable moments. And they did it all with a smile on their face; their energy was infectious, and they had so much of it considering they raced up the mountain whilst we trailed behind like grannies carrying much less. Thank you Ahsante Tours for making us smile even when we didn't feel like it.
THE CALM BEFORE THE STORM
I can be quite the anxious traveller, so I sweating bullets thinking about getting all the way to Heathrow with my huge rucksack I could barely carry, trying to remember if I took all the correct documents with me, or wondering if I'd feel brave enough to strike up a convo with anyone in the group I might spot at the airport. Obviously the answer was a big fat no for a while, although I did eventually speak to a girl also doing the trek, Emma, who was very lovely indeed and we all formed into our group and got to know each other.
Made it to Kilimanjaro International Airport in Tanzania - already regretting my lack of sunhat and wearing layers because it was sweltering. We stayed at the Weru Weru River Lodge on the first and final night of our trip; a place with beautiful grounds, lovely staff and last but certainly not least, camels. I'd never seen a camel in the flesh before and couldn't believe I saw one casually strolling along below where I was staying, it was all very exciting. My room-mate Vicki and I followed said camel and found a small group of them so as you can imagine, the trip was already off to a thrilling start.
We had a briefing, dinner, and re-packed our trek bags to be weighed and all that jazz. Very quickly realised how much stuff I'd forgotten, including enough snacks and toilet roll (for some reason I thought 1 roll would do), dry bags, waterproof trousers, a sun hat, the list goes on... So basically anything of importance. But my bag wasn't overweight so that was a bonus (because I bloody forgot everything), and all that was left to do was to get a good nights sleep, have a good breakfast and to set off for our first day of trekking.
LIFE ON KILI
We were greeted every morning with a wake up call that consisted of a warm bowl of water if we wanted it and a hot drink, followed by a breakfast in the mess tent which was always a treat. We were provided with huge, delicious meals every day, including fresh fruit, plenty of yummy pasta and rice dishes, water and hot drinks (we all must have consumed about 20 mugs of just Milo), and sometimes even pancakes and popcorn and all sorts of delicious snacks. Everything we needed and more to keep our energy up and to make us feel at home.
Every day was a different setting, it felt like we were in a different country each day. Every camp had stunning views, my favourite being Baranco Camp where I had a gorgeous view of Kili right outside my tent. The walk itself isn't too strenuous and is quite enjoyable, which surprised me a lot as I was initially worried that my fitness level wasn't good enough. But it turns out it wasn't about the level of fitness, the fittest person could struggle just as much as someone who maybe finds the physical side of things harder on a normal day. It's really hard to tell how it will affect anyone. Throw in the altitude sickness and the change in weather and the climb itself can end up being the easiest bit.
I was very lucky that I didn't experience altitude sickness in a bad way, apart from the occasional small headache and feeling quite emotional here and there. I saw how it affected other people and how draining and demotivating it can be, and the anxiety I felt wondering if I would suddenly become unwell and not be able to make it to the top. On the morning we set off, a lady told us at breakfast at our lodge that she had to be taken off the mountain on day 2 after suffering with gastroenteritis, which she said was due to getting dust from the mountain on her CamelBak. This worried me for a good while and I think I ended up using more hand sanitiser on the mouth of my water bottle than I did on my actual hands for the majority of the trip. Our wonderful, wonderful doctor, Dr Chris let us know that it was likely she contracted it before getting on the mountain and that we shouldn't worry, but I always had a niggle in the back of my mind that I would get sick and not be able to make it to the summit. So lack of altitude sickness aside, the fear and anxiety I felt were my biggest struggles to begin with, and I am so thankful for Ahsante tours and our team for getting me and everyone else through it.
THE FINAL PUSH
Summit night was without a doubt the hardest part of the climb. We set off around 1 am after a short sleep, still feeling tired from the long climb the day before with little energy. It was a 7.5 hour climb to the summit, and the most difficult thing I have ever done. My hands were ice cubes, nothing I did would warm them up and it was getting increasingly difficult to hold my walking poles and to motivate myself to carry on walking. I could easily have said sorry, this isn't for me, please take me back to camp about 50 times. It was so emotionally strenuous and you felt with every step, you weren't getting any further. In this moment I really did feel as if I couldn't do it, I felt so breathless and like I could fall asleep on the spot. One of the porters held my hand on the approach to Stella Point, which is a small push away from the summit, and I just cried from happiness and sheer exhaustion when I reached it. I have never felt anything like it, I could hardly breathe and had little to no energy or motivation left. The biggest ever thank you goes out to that porter who held my hand and got me up to Stella Point because you really, really helped me.
The approach to the summit from Stella Point felt like it took an age. Our group had split off by this point as we were all at different stages so I did the last leg on my own. I must have stopped about 10 or more times on the way just to catch my breath, I couldn't believe how hard it was considering the last bit was relatively flat, the altitude was just something else. As soon as I saw the Uhuru Peak sign at the summit I just cried and cried until I finally made it there, I just could not believe little old me had actually done it. There were hugs and tears all round with the members of our group who had made it already, and I'm so, so thrilled that every single member of our group made it to the summit. We all had our individual struggles every day, some more severe but we were a strong team and we each conquered that bloody mountain. The best moment of my life was seeing that sign right in front of me and thinking how proud and lucky I was to be there.
This trip couldn't have come at a better time because it was exactly what I needed. This was my 'third time lucky' moment to do the trip, I'd reschedule it twice already and it was really now or never. Now turned out to be perfect because I had the best group in the world, the most incredible team at Ahsante Tours and I've made some really great friends. There's not a single thing I would change about the trip, including the hard bits, because that's what made the best bits even better.
Thank you Kili, Asante Sana.
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