Here’s more from Edyta’s adventures atop Mt. Kilimanjaro…
January 18 (morning) – Everything EVERYTHING is damp and cold feeling this morning. Five degrees outside. But you just pick yourself up, dry your sleeping bag as best as you can and continue on. Little disciplines, routines… Showering with a baby wipe is still… painful.
January 18 (afternoon) – Climbed Barranco Wall through thunder and hail and mist. Cold and windy here. Arrived at the campsite to chicken, coleslaw and fries!!! Tomorrow will be a tough day – hiking at high Camp, sleep until midnight and summoning. Breathing is difficult and the headaches are very distracting. Advil extra strengths are my best friend. Our guide is AMAZING!
January 21 – The day yesterday was one of the toughest of my life. The seven hour hike to the Barafu Camp was like walking on the moon. It got tougher when we – after lunch – were permitted to climb to the high camp an hour further. Few hours rest, dinner, few hours rest, and then at midnight the summit. Nine hours. My altitude sickness and aching bones almost broke me. It took me one hour longer than the fastest one in our group and I summitted last – but yes… And then, when all was done I had to climb down… first to the high camp which took three hours, then to the Millennium Camp – another three hours. I still do not dare to add the hours. My knees felt like they were made of wood… now… have to give myself a bit of time to reflect on what this all means, so much time to introspect. Such a confrontation with one’s limitations. This means much more than a climb. Hmm…
January 22 – After descending to the Millennium Camp I was, in my typically detail in-attentive fashion, under the impression that in the morning we will leisurely get up, take a walk down, look at our plants and enjoy our last hours on the mountain. I missed the fact that this walk would be long, at the beginning with quite steep descending and later on wooden barriers serving as “stairs”. 11.8 km of stairs!!! Leaving the alpine dessert behind, the tropical jungle welcomed us with lush green, monkeys and birds. When at the gates of the park we were greeted, my Pierre was there. We got our official certificates and OBC pins. It’s finished. Done. Now… will be kind to me for a little while…
