Slow and Steady

Day 8 - True Date 6/13/13

Today was, as anticipated, the shortest day of hiking that we would have this trip. Many of us awoke before was necessary and we were all at various stages of packing when the crew came by to offer us hot drinks. At this point the drinks were becoming increasingly pleasant because the temperature was definitely dropping. The next bit followed the

usual and expected pattern of washing up and completing packing before breakfast. During this time it was fun to watch the sun rise over the peak of the mountain that now stood (seemingly) only just above us as the mountain itself cast a shadow keeping us cool. As soon as the sun crested the mountain's summit there was a distinct increase in temperature and we were all able to shed at least one layer of clothing. Unfortunately, we began to discover that our group was plagued with zipper troubles including tent doors, sleeping bags, etc... all malfunctioning.

Breakfast was ready at about 9:00. It was, in my opinion (since I am the one writing and recording), the worst meal we'd had so far (but the bar is really pretty high). We were served porridge with raisins which was what you would expect and my favorite part of the meal. Then came french toast, regular toast, and a dish of hot dogs (or sausage?) and vegetables. After a relatively quick meal we did our usual final bit of packing and loaded our bags to get on the trail.

We set off from Lava Tower (14,950 ft) along the same path as our acclimatization hike yesterday. While the path might have been the same as what we'd hiked yesterday, many of the views were new, or at the very least, different. The sun was now on a more direct line to the part of the mountain where we were hiking so there were fewer clouds and more light. The glaciers on the mountain gleamed in the sun reminding me of the origins of Kilimanjaro's name. Kilema - meaning mountain and Nkyarro - meaning shiny (in reference to the glaciers).

The hike proceeded as expected. Very steep and the trail was composed of almost entirely pebbles and dust. This part of the hike really returned us to the old saying "pole pole", meaning slowly slowly. For me, the steps everyone took were very small, granting sure footing along the whole route. Every hundred

steps (ish) I'd take a couple more photos and have a couple more sips of water. Pole, pole. Another hundred steps followed by more water and more pictures. Slow and steady we progressed. The steepest part of this hike occurred just before reaching the day's camp. We crossed a relatively deep ravine and the scaling on the far side was nearly all rock. This was the first "scramble" we had on the mountain and required the use of our hands to help find footings and balance.

Just over this ridge we arrived at the Arrow Glacier camp (15,970 ft), our lodgings (location for tents) for the night. We arrived as the porters were still assembling the site. In total the day was only 1.7 miles and we gained just over 1,000 ft of elevation. We did this in 1 hour and 15 minutes bringing our total ascent time to 17 hours and 22 minutes.

After a 15 minute rest we began our day's acclimatization hike. We once again followed the route we would be ascending in the morning up the Western Breach. The hike was more steep than the rest of today (as well as anything else we'd done to this point on the climb) and this potion was less dust and more loos pebbles and rocks. The temperature had made a distinguishable drop and to make matters worse the clouds were again surrounding the summit. I

thought we maintained a relatively brisk pace for this short hike, taking only two breaks (the second of which was where we turned around). Some of the group had the first experiences of altitude sickness, feeling minor headaches, but certainly nothing major. After the second stop we returned the short way back to camp for the afternoon.

Lunch was a very different dish from what we'd had so far. It was our first (I think)

dish that is considered local to the area. Our first course was a "green banana soup". My best description is that it was a tomato cream broth with many vegetable chunks that included bananas (not a vegetable), green beans, potatoes, carrots and others. During lunch we were given the plan for the mornings ascent up to the ash crater as well as suggestions for clothing. After lunch activities included some playing cards, some sleeping bag repairs, writing, packing, etc. At this point the next events were dinner, bed and a 4 am awakening for the climb.

Dinner was ready just before 6:00. The first course was a vegetable soup that I perceived to be made from a chicken broth. Afterwards we were brought mashed potatoes and a vegetable dish. The dish was what I can describe most closely as ratatouille.Together they were quite tasty and extremely filling. After dinner we all prepared for bed and the morning. It seems everyone was trying to "call it a night" around 7:00 to account for the very early wake-up. Given the hour and the altitude we were all expecting it to be the coldest experience of the trip so far and did everything we could to be prepared tonight.

The sunset from this camp was the best yet. From an elevation close to 16,000 ft the view was already angelic. The site looked out over a seemingly endless and flat field of clouds. As the sun set to the west of our camp it dipped just below a ridge and dropped out of view before setting over the horizon. As it fell behind it gave the crest a magnificent orange glow. As your gaze panned left (south) the sky, with only thin and wispy clouds gradually faded from the bright orange to a dark purple. In the midst (and in a way mists from the clouds...) we could still see the peak of Mount Meru in the distance.