Kilimanjaro/Mt. Kenya 2004
Click here to read about the 2003 trip
Mt. Kenya
Linda, Barb, Kathy, Bill, Kent and Gina comprised a great group of enthusiastic adventurers. We started on Mt Kenya via the Chogoria Route after 2 days of relative rest in Nairobi and enroute. Day 3 we were trekking from the bandas to Lake Ellis, where we all hiked Mugi Hill for a view over the valley. The next night's camp was at Mintos, where Gina's boot was stolen from the vestibule of her tent by a hyena.
The next morning we found her boot, but with the toe chewed through. Thank God for duct tape! We continued up to Austrian Hut the next day, encountering a snow storm at Tooth Col on the way, and getting a view of a the wreckage from a recent plane crash. Everyone was very happy to be staying inside the hut that night, as the snow and cold settled outside. Our cook staff was great the entire trip, and were constantly plying us with warm beverages and soups. The next morning, 31 January, we climbed to the summit of Pt Lenana under sunny skies. We waited until about 0830 to start our climb, in order to let the light covering of snow melt from the rocks. We all reached the summit, and enjoyed spectacular views for an hour before heading down via Simba Col, back to Mintos camp. The hyena visited Gina again, but was chased off before he could do any more damage. The next day we all enjoyed our hot showers in the bandas after 5 days on the mountain, then headed back to Nairobi the next day.
Mt. Kilimanjaro
We drove from Nairobi to the border village of Kimana, just outside of Loitokitok, where we spent the night in a simple but clean guesthouse run by some Masai. The next day we crossed the border into Tanzania, and we were on our way up Kilimanjaro via the Rongai Route. We started in corn fields interspersed with a type of pine tree, then moved up into light scrub and low bushes. This side of the mountain (northeast) is much drier than the southern approaches. Still, it did rain on us all through the first night in the tents. We could see that the upper reaches of the mountain were covered in snow from the saddle to the summit.
We continued from Simba Camp to our second night's camp at Third Cave, and we were now above most vegetation and into the barren rock. The next morning we started hiking in thick fog, which gave the already barren landscape an eerie look and feel. We all arrived at Kibo Hut by mid-afternoon, giving us time to explore the views across to Mawenzi and down towards the town of Moshi. Kibo Hut is at 15,465ft, and we
could all feel the altitude. However, Kibo Hut is lower by about 400 feet than Austrian Hut, so we had all spent a night at an even higher altitude on Mt Kenya. Our original plan was to spend a rest day here at Kibo Hut, but the excellent weather during the night helped us decide to make a summit bid today, as you never know what the weather will do in the mountains. You take the windows when you get them. We saw several of the groups that had come up from the Marangu Route start for the summit around midnight, but we opted to wait until sunrise for our start time. This proved a wise decision, as it was very cold during the night
and by starting at sunrise we minimized our exposure to the cold weather. The route from Kibo Hut to the summit crater at Gilman's Point is quite steep, and it was slow going at the high altitude. Our group split up, allowing each group to proceed at a comfortable pace. Almost everyone reached Gilman's Point at 18,635 feet, and Bill and Kent made it all the way to Uhuru Peak at 19,340 feet. It took us 4 hours from Kibo Hut to Gilman's Point, another hour to Uhuru Peak, and then just over an hour from Uhuru Peak all the way back to Kibo! We were planning to spend the night at Kibo Hut again, but one of the group was not feeling well, so we broke camp and headed down to Horombo hut on the Marangu Route, arriving just after dark. Starting for the summit at dawn; Mawenzi in the background
The next day we hiked down the long but easy Marangu Route all the way to the park gate, picked up our summit certificates and drove to Moshi. As we were now one day ahead of our schedule, we spent two nights in Moshi, one at the very nice Hotel Impala. Group members were able to catch up on post cards, email, souvenir shopping and Tanzanite purchases. With the physical part of the trip now completed, our bodies are finally able to relax. However, 2 weeks of greulling trekking has taken its toll, and most of us sleep several hours througout the day.
Lion with cubs in Masai Mara
Masai Masa Safari
After Kilimanjaro it we had a long drive back to Nairobi, but a very welcome night's stay at our home away from home at the Intercontinental. A bed never felt so good! Good thing, too, as we had an even rougher drive ahead of us getting to our safari camp just outside Masai Mara. We arrived in time to do an afternoon game drive, and saw many animals, including some lions.
The next day we did both an early morning and a late afternoon game drive. During these we saw TONS of animals! Lion, elephant, hippo, zebra, topi, crocodile, impala, eland, baboon, Thomson's gazelle, and dik dik to name a few. One of the elephant groups we sighted included a baby that couldn't have been more than a few weeks old. We were fortunate to view him nurse from his mother even. Our last morning in the park was the most special, however. We came upon a pride of lionesses with 3 young cubs. We were able to observe them for almost 30 minutes undisturbed. An amazing highlight and a great way to end a very successful trip!
Click here to read about the 2003 trip
Mt. KenyaLinda, Barb, Kathy, Bill, Kent and Gina comprised a great group of enthusiastic adventurers. We started on Mt Kenya via the Chogoria Route after 2 days of relative rest in Nairobi and enroute. Day 3 we were trekking from the bandas to Lake Ellis, where we all hiked Mugi Hill for a view over the valley. The next night's camp was at Mintos, where Gina's boot was stolen from the vestibule of her tent by a hyena.
The next morning we found her boot, but with the toe chewed through. Thank God for duct tape! We continued up to Austrian Hut the next day, encountering a snow storm at Tooth Col on the way, and getting a view of a the wreckage from a recent plane crash. Everyone was very happy to be staying inside the hut that night, as the snow and cold settled outside. Our cook staff was great the entire trip, and were constantly plying us with warm beverages and soups. The next morning, 31 January, we climbed to the summit of Pt Lenana under sunny skies. We waited until about 0830 to start our climb, in order to let the light covering of snow melt from the rocks. We all reached the summit, and enjoyed spectacular views for an hour before heading down via Simba Col, back to Mintos camp. The hyena visited Gina again, but was chased off before he could do any more damage. The next day we all enjoyed our hot showers in the bandas after 5 days on the mountain, then headed back to Nairobi the next day.
Mt. KilimanjaroWe drove from Nairobi to the border village of Kimana, just outside of Loitokitok, where we spent the night in a simple but clean guesthouse run by some Masai. The next day we crossed the border into Tanzania, and we were on our way up Kilimanjaro via the Rongai Route. We started in corn fields interspersed with a type of pine tree, then moved up into light scrub and low bushes. This side of the mountain (northeast) is much drier than the southern approaches. Still, it did rain on us all through the first night in the tents. We could see that the upper reaches of the mountain were covered in snow from the saddle to the summit.
We continued from Simba Camp to our second night's camp at Third Cave, and we were now above most vegetation and into the barren rock. The next morning we started hiking in thick fog, which gave the already barren landscape an eerie look and feel. We all arrived at Kibo Hut by mid-afternoon, giving us time to explore the views across to Mawenzi and down towards the town of Moshi. Kibo Hut is at 15,465ft, and we
could all feel the altitude. However, Kibo Hut is lower by about 400 feet than Austrian Hut, so we had all spent a night at an even higher altitude on Mt Kenya. Our original plan was to spend a rest day here at Kibo Hut, but the excellent weather during the night helped us decide to make a summit bid today, as you never know what the weather will do in the mountains. You take the windows when you get them. We saw several of the groups that had come up from the Marangu Route start for the summit around midnight, but we opted to wait until sunrise for our start time. This proved a wise decision, as it was very cold during the night
and by starting at sunrise we minimized our exposure to the cold weather. The route from Kibo Hut to the summit crater at Gilman's Point is quite steep, and it was slow going at the high altitude. Our group split up, allowing each group to proceed at a comfortable pace. Almost everyone reached Gilman's Point at 18,635 feet, and Bill and Kent made it all the way to Uhuru Peak at 19,340 feet. It took us 4 hours from Kibo Hut to Gilman's Point, another hour to Uhuru Peak, and then just over an hour from Uhuru Peak all the way back to Kibo! We were planning to spend the night at Kibo Hut again, but one of the group was not feeling well, so we broke camp and headed down to Horombo hut on the Marangu Route, arriving just after dark. Starting for the summit at dawn; Mawenzi in the background
The next day we hiked down the long but easy Marangu Route all the way to the park gate, picked up our summit certificates and drove to Moshi. As we were now one day ahead of our schedule, we spent two nights in Moshi, one at the very nice Hotel Impala. Group members were able to catch up on post cards, email, souvenir shopping and Tanzanite purchases. With the physical part of the trip now completed, our bodies are finally able to relax. However, 2 weeks of greulling trekking has taken its toll, and most of us sleep several hours througout the day.
Lion with cubs in Masai Mara
Masai Masa SafariAfter Kilimanjaro it we had a long drive back to Nairobi, but a very welcome night's stay at our home away from home at the Intercontinental. A bed never felt so good! Good thing, too, as we had an even rougher drive ahead of us getting to our safari camp just outside Masai Mara. We arrived in time to do an afternoon game drive, and saw many animals, including some lions.
The next day we did both an early morning and a late afternoon game drive. During these we saw TONS of animals! Lion, elephant, hippo, zebra, topi, crocodile, impala, eland, baboon, Thomson's gazelle, and dik dik to name a few. One of the elephant groups we sighted included a baby that couldn't have been more than a few weeks old. We were fortunate to view him nurse from his mother even. Our last morning in the park was the most special, however. We came upon a pride of lionesses with 3 young cubs. We were able to observe them for almost 30 minutes undisturbed. An amazing highlight and a great way to end a very successful trip!
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