Blind Summit 2011 Tim and Jacob Gibbins Trek up Kilimanjaro Feb 2011
Who/What/ Where/Why Tim and Jacob Gibbins Treking up the worlds highest freestanding mountain Kilimanjaro,Tanzania,Africa To raise money for the charity RP which supports the disease which is making my dad go blind /
As with most big adventures it started on a plane Sunrise somewhere over Africa
Day one Started off walking up through thick rain forest
...In Other words Dont go
My dad looking pretty hot and tired already and this is only a few hours in full of antisipation for what the week ahead will bring
The Porters are the real heroes of this story carrying loads like this for twelve hours a day for a week or more
This was home for the week Canvas and a sleeping bag
These two people were our mountain guides on the left is Valarien and on the right Nelson If it wasnt for these two people im sure we would have found the trip a LOT harder and some of the people in our group wouldnt have made it Happy and upbeat all the time no matter the weather
The weather up on the mountain was amazing It would go from baking hot sun to mist and cloud in a matter of seconds and then go back to sun just as fast as it had left
My dad doing what he went out there to do Walk With the DIY sweat band I made him out of two socks
Shot of Nelson doing what he seemed to be doing all the time Smiling
Above the forest we came out on to more open moorland which had these huge rocks all the way through it
Yet more mist moving it over the hills
Three photos from sunset one evening All Taken from the same place When the light and place line up this well you have to take more than one photo
The best place I have ever watched the sun set about thirteen thousand feet above the mountains of Africa
One of the few photos with both me and my dad Taken by Nelson the happiest guide in the land Thats my dad second in line and me with the red bag on smiling
My dad and fellow trekker taking a moments rest to look at what lies ahead
One of the Porters taking a little break from the walking to climb a boulder as the rest of the group carries plodding along the path
My dad following Nelson on the path to the top
Treking higher and higher up the mountain
The vastness of the place was one of the most surprising things Nothing for days of walking in any direction
The clouds rolling in over camp at night
The mist that swallowed our camp one evening
The must have group photo with the mountain in the background Nothing to stunning photographicly wise but for me and my dad will bring back amazing memories for the rest of our lives
Camp under the peak Not a bad camp site in terms of veiws really
Me and Nelson both at the top of the Baranco wall A steep scrambling section of the walk He took the one of me and I took the one of him He said he thinks I should go out there and start a photography buisness on the mountain covering peoples trips The man might just have an idea there haha
A funny photo of my dad Just resting sat on a rock with the peak behind him I dont know quite why I framed it like this but I like it
One of the many views we had while walking You think just over that next hill will be camp for the night A chance to rest You get to the top and you see this Long Hard days
Walking along the small ribbon of order in a world of sublime chaos
Leader Nelson my dad then Leader from the UK Dom behind walking on through the striking landscape
Another one of the two in charge with my dad walking and walking O and a bit more walking
A few shots of the one and only Nelson
The group climbing higher and higher above the clouds
Being this high above the world for three or four days is quite amazing it felt a bit strange going down at the end of the trip and having the clouds above me again
Two of the porters heading down the long and winding road to the next camp
The group walking on through the moon like landscape of the high slopes of the mountain
My dad and the rest of the group on the last short steep climb up in to the final camp of the trip before the long nights climb to the summit
On the right the path winding its way back off in to the distance towards Mt Meru On the left one of the Porters taking a break to look at our camp in the clouds
Our camp in the clouds All the camps we stayed in had names First was Big tree Then Shira Two Baranca Karanga Barafu Millenium The camp in the photos to the right is the final camp before we made the summit attempt Barafu at some five thousand meters
A few photos from the last camp the evening before the summit
Mt Mawenzi, as seen from the high slopes ,of Kili
One of the porters climbing the steep upper slopes of the mountain with a huge bag of gear on his head
Another shot of a porter carrying a huge load on his head see the path in the distance he has walked five times that in one day
As we climbed higher up the mountain we saw more and more snow and ice The inner crater on the summit
The outer edge of the summit crater climbing up and over this thing was hard work
Some of the fellow climbers on the summit approach minus twenty degrees and fifty mile an hour winds
Nelson Even in those conditions he cant help but grin
The world from twenty thousant feet And im not in a plane
The tip of one of the glaciers on the summit looking out on to Mt Meru
And this was the best place I have ever watched the sun rise
Here I am on top The reason my dad isnt with me is as he was already a bit lower down He was so exhausted he didnt want to hang about up there any longer than he had to Photo kindly taken by Valerian You can see his shaddow by the people on the left
The summit day was a long one Up at mid night Summit at around sun rise Then spend all day walking down This is sunset at around Three Thousand Meters that evening
This was the breaki lunch and dinner table the meeting room the doctors surgery These tents where what you looked for on the horizon each day
Much of our last day on the mountain was spent walking back down through the forest
The last evening we where in camp all the porters and people had a big sing and dance to celebrate getting to the top Amzing and special moments
Thanks for looking This photo book is free to view online But all we ask is that you consider making a donaton Please visit our just giving page and donate The trip was totaly self-funded so that means All money given goes straight to reaserch in to RP Anyway, these are the highlights of our trip up the worlds highest freestanding mountain in image form Father and son bonding at its best And all the time raising money for a charity that truly and immediatley affects my family