Climbing Kilimanjaro

In addition to the service project in Kenya, my friend Jason P. from the hospital and I traveled to Northern Tanzania (50 minute flight from Mombasa, Kenya) and conquered Kilimanjaro. It was necessary to make the climbing arrangements several months in advance, however, we had no idea what an under-taking the hike would be. We had two guides (one for back-up, pending mountain sickness), a cook, an assistant cook, a camp manager, and 4 porters for water, food, and bags! The picture sequence that follows takes you through the climb. It was an incredible experience and we both stayed healthy...we made it to the top without any problems.
















Baranko Camp- Day 2
Our first view of Uhuru Peak (South side of Kilimanjaro). This is about 13,500 ft.













Day 2 hiking up to Baranko Hut. Hiking into the clouds, temperature dropped, landscape resembled tundra, continued to gain plenty of elevation.














Uhuru Peak (19,340 ft) at 5:30 am. Bitter cold, I was freezing cold at this point.
















We descended back down to Stella Point (approx. 17,000ft) to watch the sun rise over the blanket of clouds...Unbelievable!













The mad descent! We ran straight down a 2,000ft pitch...it took 20 minutes! We ran into the clouds and were greeted by some snow. This was definitely a highlight of the trip.