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Expedition Imperial Kilimanjaro. Africa’s highest mountain, rising 5895 meters over the Indian Ocean. Situated in Tanzania, close to the Kenyan border. With its close proximity to the equator, it is said to be the highest mountain in the world, measured from the center of the earth, and offers a remarkable experience in climbing through four different climate zones, ranging from tropical rainforest to high alpine glaciers. The climbing itself is not considered difficult (grade III-IV), depending of course on the chosen route. The effect of high altitude is however not to be underestimated. Nearly as tall as Denali, it is wise to treat the mountain with respect. Our approach will be by air to Nairobi and then onwards to Arusha and Tanzania by bus.
- That’s right Martin, it’s time to start going down again. Why’s that? - Because we’ve reached the summit! 5 down, 2 to go. We’ve reached Uhuru Peak at 5 895 meters. It’s eight o’clock in the morning, the sun has just risen above the horizon and for the first time since we stood on the summit of Denali in July 2003, the weather’s perfect and visibility unlimited. It doesn’t get much better than this. Our two friends Dizziness and Headache are making themselves known however and motivate us to keep moving. We have a tough day ahead of us, promises to keep and far to go before we sleep. We’ve carried out a summit push from 4 600 meters, are consequently poorly acclimatized to the current altitude, and would be well advised to minimise the time we spend up here. Our bodies have not had enough time to adapt to the lack of oxygen and we are suffering as a result. Sympathy is not high on the agenda however. “Sucks to be you”, Olof offers when someone bemoans their condition. We are all here on our own accord and have for some unknown reason chosen to once again spend our holidays in the mountains. We are in Africa. Tanzania to be exact. Having flown to Nairobi in Kenya we travelled south by road, crossing the boarder in a wreck of a bus, arriving in the city of Arusha after a five hour trip that left a lot to be desired. Suspension for one. The scenery however is spectacular, with wildlife grazing on both sides of the road. The climbing on Kilimanjaro is a mass industry. More than 20 000 “climbers” annually try their luck, closely followed by large mandatory service teams consisting of guides, assistant guides, cooks and porters. The normal porter-client ratio is a staggering 3:1. Equally tragic is the salary these people earn, which can be as low as 3$ a day. This can be compared to the 150$ a day a “tourist” is expected to pay for a trip up the mountain. What this buys you however, is frankly quite mindboggling. Separate dining tents with standing height inside are carried along and put up in every camp, full length 15 cm thick mattresses are brought to ensure the climbers a good night’s sleep, bottled mineral water is hauled up the mountain, three course meals are cooked every day and fresh water melon is served for dessert (they’re not grown on the mountain). Tragic. Revolting against this exploitation of the people, the mountain and the sport, we duly decided to carry the gear ourselves, mumbling something about mountaineering ethics under the weight of our 35 kg packs. In stark contrast, rumours circulated that an American had recently been driven up to 5 400 meters by jeep, via the “Coca Cola” route, also known to be frequented by prostitutes, or “generous women” as Martin diplomatically likes to put it. The climb itself is thus not especially difficult despite the high altitude, with plenty of ready, willing and able hands available to assist, pull and carry you to the top, if your strength were at some point to fail. The route takes us up from the African savannahs, through rainforests, moorland, alpine deserts and finally glaciated and snow covered high alpine terrain. The distance in between camps is about 800 vertical meters which are travelled in colonial style. That is in row with a long line of porters following the slow progress of their “mzungus” (Caucasians). After a camp is reached tents are swiftly put up and climbers allowed to lie down and rest while the porters run the often very long distances to fetch fresh water. Tea and cookies are served while water is heated to allow the western “athletes” to freshen up ahead of the delicious evening meal. More and more it forces us to question what exactly it is that we are doing. Who is really doing all the work and thus the climbing. And if not climbing, what should this be called? Simply vacationing perhaps? After four days we reach the point where we had planned to establish our BC for the continued climbing up the glaciers and on towards the summit. But something unexpected has happened. The ice is gone. Our climbing guidebook from 2001, describing the routes in detail, appears to have been based on photos taken in the 70s and the results are astounding. The glaciers have melted away. Where ice was once found offering Grade III routes to the summit, only loose and steep rock and the occasional vertical icefalls remain, that is Grade VI. The glaciers have receded about 500 vertical meters in the last 30 years and even the ice around the summit is now threatened. In 15 to 20 years it will be gone altogether and the snow on Kilimanjaro will be no more. Olof mutters something derogatory about global warming as we find ourselves painfully under equipped for the climbing we’re now faced with. Retreating back down we are forced to regroup and traverse left on the mountain. Two days later we are in position for another attempt. Summit day begins at midnight as we grab a quick snack before gearing up, turning on the head lamp and leaving the tent. We have about seven hours of darkness and cold ahead of us until sunrise, and the mountain’s close proximity to the equator notwithstanding, night time temperatures easily fall to 15 below freezing. Eight hours later we reach the summit and the time to perform has finally come. We step into our bindings and begin to make turns down the side of the old volcano. The Southern Icefield quickly turns into the Kersten Glacier and the terrain becomes more difficult. The ice is horrible, gradient about 45 degrees and texture of the little snow we do come across unbelievably bad. We realise that everything we’ve heard about the impossibility of skiing Kilimanjaro is true. We do it anyway. That’s just the kind of guys we are. |
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 Mt. Kilimanjaro, 5895 m above sea level, Tanzania, 2005 Members: Olof, Martin, Petra, Maria
Status: Completed
, Read report Date: August - September, 2005 |
