Journey to the roof of AFRICA
P
EERING through the frosted glass of the ‘chill chamber’ in outdoor adventure superstore Adventure HQ at two very excited but apprehensive individuals is a very amusing sight. Only 24 hours earlier I telephoned Fitness First member Johan Lauber and one of our trainers Anita Mazar to inform them that in 19 days they would be off to Tanzania on a trip of a lifetime to climb the world’s highest free standing mountain – Kilimanjaro. The call prompted an equally hysterical outpouring of emotion from each of them and now the two strangers are shivering side by side testing their newly acquired trekking attire ahead of what is to be a magical journey to the Roof of Africa. It all started back in April when I was appointed as Sports & Events Manager for Fitness First Middle East. I was keen to develop a gym event for the members that would not only motivate and encourage regular exercise participation but one that had the potential to quite literally ‘change lives’ and so the ‘Step for the Children of Africa’ concept was born. Members were tasked with making an assimilated climb of Kilimanjaro on a gym stepper during the month of June by climbing 5,895m (the height of the world famous mountain) in 30 days. All entry fees were donated to ‘All as One’, the charity that Fitness First Middle East have supported for over five years which provides much needed support for the orphaned children of Sierra Leone, while participants were also entered into a prize draw for the chance to climb the mountain for real. The event was a huge success with over 1,500 Fitness First members and employees taking part, but for raffle winners Johan and Anita it was only the beginning of what would become a truly life changing experience as they were chosen to join a party of 19 climbing with the Dubai based children’s charity Gulf 4 Good. I’ve been asked to lead the trip having led a previous trip to Kilimanjaro with Gulf 4 Good two years earlier. So when the day finally approaches, with 19 airline tickets in my hand, a wing and prayer, one by one I greet all the challengers at Dubai airport and we head out on our adventure.
Day 1 After spending what seems like an eternity waiting in line at the Marangu Park Gate to sign the official register that will allow us to enter the Kilimanjaro National Park we finally begin the trek, setting out on a four-hour hike through the beautiful rainforests up to our base for the night, Mandara Hut. The altitude rises from 1,900m at the park entrance to 2,740m at the hamlet of small Norwegian wooden chalets where we bed down for a well-earned sleep.
Day 2/3 After the balmy 26 degrees of the first day amidst the rainforest with monkeys quite literally swinging above our heads, day two sees a dramatic change of scenery as we come out of the jungle and enter the Alpine Moorland region, with its abundance of flowers and fauna, on our way to Maundi crater. The pace is reassuringly slow as the group takes inspiration from the bandana each of them is wearing which bears the famous Hare and Tortoise fable, “Slow but steady wins the race.” We continue through the Alpine Meadows and are constantly reminded of the task in hand as Kilimanjaro looms ominously in the distance. However, it is the sight of the lesser known and somewhat lower Mount Mawenzi that greets us first. An aggressive expanse of jagged rock, like the back of a prehistoric dinosaur, Mawenzi is rarely climbed and its overpowering presence of supremacy does nothing to boost our confidence. The second day is certainly more challenging – six-seven hours of trekking with a total ascent of over 1000m from 2740m at Mandara Hut to 3800m at
Horombo Hut where we are to spend the next two nights acclimatising to the high altitude. Climbing any mountain is difficult and each one has its own challenges – with Kilimanjaro it is the very rapid ascent that can see even the fittest individual succumb to altitude sickness and have to bid a hasty retreat. Correct preparation is key and during our stay at Horumbo Hut we take a short four-hour trek to Zebra Rocks at 4,200m among scenery that looks like something out of Jurassic Park to allow our bodies to adjust to the new conditions. The temperature is noticeably cooler at this camp, particularly at night when it drops below zero, which is unfortunate as frequent trips out of our warm sleeping bags to answer the call of nature are required due to a side effect of the anti-altitude sickness tablets we’re taking. Anita and Johan are coping brilliantly with the unfamiliar and demanding environment. Both are well suited to the challenge – physically fit, determined and mentally strong. We’re incredibly lucky that the whole group is good natured and enthusiastic as we are to need every ounce of spirit over the next 48 hours as our journey enters its toughest phase.
Day 4 We leave Horumbo Hut at around 9am and start out across the saddle between Mawenzi and Kilimanjaro – a barren inhospitable landscape referred as ‘high altitude desert’ – up to Kibo Hut at 4,700m. The trek takes around seven hours and by now, with the oxygen levels considerably less, every step becomes physically tougher. For those unaccustomed to the rigours of the journey this is when comfort zones are left behind and the real challenge kicks in. Fortunately for me, these are