Jen to the top

We woke up to Alfried and his buddies as per ususal, had a lovely coffee in the tents and started to pack our gear. As we had seen that a lot of the porters didnt have much clothes, we put all our stuff that we didnt need in a big bag and handed over to Abel so he could give to the guys. Our bags were significantly lighter, but it was a nice thing.. We also handed over our tip to them, which was around 100-150USD/person. That will probably give each porter a tip equivalent of a months pay. As the greatest farewell, the porters sang a few songs and danced for us, so great! We celebrated our victory at the gate with a Kilimanjaro beer! Just as it should be.... :) Jan filmed a lot during the climb and see his fab video below!! Kilimanjaro

After the best rest ever at Barafu Camp, we had a late lunch and then started our walk to our last camp site, Mweka. We were all so tired and the lunch was very hard to get down. The appetite was gone and we just wanted to sleep, but Abel wanted us on the move by the latest 2pm so we would reach Mweka before dark. The sun was shining and we set off, the walk was a bit easier even if the legs were tired. After an hour the rain started again and it kept raining for the rest of the walk. It was so quick to go downhill, and the more oxygen we got, the faster we got! Shaun, Jan and Steve had problems with the knees so it wasnt a nice walk for them, and when we reached the rainforest and a camp site, they were so glad! It was just not our camp site.... We were only half way. At 6pm we reached the camp site and it was a tired group that went to have an early dinner before crashing into the tents for the best sleep so far! Now it was just about getting back down... tomorrow.... zzzzzzzzzzzz

Terrified, insecure, excited and hesitating... Tonight is the start of the big climb to the summit! We went for a few hours rest, but it was hard to sleep. After my emotional breakdown earlier I was determined to get a few hours of sleep as it couldn't really get any worse. I was really cracking up and thinking I wouldn't make it. Disappointment mixed with tiredness and nausea, knowing that we all needed each other to make it to the top, the goal of the whole journey, The Roof of Africa. I went to rest next to Jan and tried to be cheerful as I didn't want to spoil the mood for him. I think I prayed to God, Jesus and my gran before getting some rest. When it was time to get up and have a meal before midnight, I got out of the tent and there it was, in its full glory looking down at me. Suddenly I felt better, it didn't feel impossible. It felt DO-ABLE!!! Full with new spirit I went into the dinner tent to the guys and told them, Kili is do-able and we will do it!! I t

06/04/12 Today is the Big Day! Today we are going higher, and the words "Pole Pole" will be heard a lot. They mean "Slowly Slowly" in Swahili, and that is the key to success on Kili.as anything faster will stop you from going on. We start with Barranco Wall and then base camp, before our summit attempt. Barranco Wall We start by climbing the Barranco Wall. This is proper climbing and its steep. We wont use our poles as we need our hands here, and looking down makes you realize why a few people say it could be dangerous after the rain. Its easy to slip if you aren't careful. Pole pole up the wall, and six fascinated faces looking at the porters that climb the wall with big bags on their heads and backs like its an easy walk. Gosh, they are soo cool these guys! After a while we all get up and rest a bit on the top before we are descending again to lower altitude before getting up again towards Barafu Camp, our home for the next 24h. This day we walked throu

05/04/12 Altitude and rain, and it poured...!! Day 3 was about acclimatization and to test our waterproof clothes. The altitude got to us but was fine compared to the clothes.. Most of us were wet through our waterproofs and realized that the monsoon rain wouldn't stop anytime soon and this day that started quite nice wouldn't end as nice. I was wet through all my new waterproof's and I was shivering as it started to get cold. My hero Abel could see that I was miserable and offered his warm proper waterproof clothes, trousers and jacket so I would stay warm. I also got a new shirt as base layer, so I was feeling a lot better. I was terrified that I had gone and got myself a UTI or a proper cold. Lava Tower is on 4600m so we got a proper feel of the altitude. Most of us got short of breath or felt sick, but nothing really bad. Ben, our Superman, he didnt feel anything... Bloody Diamox, I wish I had taken them too!! We went down again after spending a few moments at Lava

Abel, our head guide, is such a great guy! Thanks to him I got to the summit after hours of struggling. What a man! All my love to you! On this particular day, I was his support up the tough Barranco Wall ;) xx

04/04/12 Machame Hut to Shira Cave Day 2 is mostly about covering altitude, going up 900 meters from first camp. We go through a different scenery and this day involve a bit of rock climbing and we have to put our poles to the side as we need both our hands go forward. After a few hours we had covered quite a bit and finally reached our lunch spot, and we were all happy for that, felt like a great achievement. We found a big rock to sit on with the greatest views of Mt Meru and from the path below where we just had come from.   Me with Mt Meru in the background We noticed that we had a bird stalking us, first waking us up at 6am in the morning at camp and then constantly being around us. Dean named him Alfried, which funny enough ended up being what the porters thought Dean's name was.. Alfried and his mates are clearly used to people and got very close to us. We had a big lunch and both me and Jan felt sick afterwards. This is more than I eat for a big dinner, and how w

03/04/12 At Machame Gate We arrive to our starting point around 9am and we are given our hired gear such as walking poles and head torches that some didn't bring. After filling up our water and going to a "normal" loo for the last time in a week, we start our 6 days walk. The Team at Machame Gate Ben and Shaun walking through the rain forest The first day is quite tough, but luckily we dont know what's ahead of us.. We walk through rain forest and after a nice lunch half way, we arrive at Machame Hut after 5h walk. The porters who are quicker than the wind up the trail have already set up all our tents and have made popcorn for us in our dining tent. Super-service for sure! We are then at 3000m, and I can already feel the altitude when breathing. Going to the loo has started to become a little mission, and it is quite weird to not be able to breath when you have never felt it before. After a great dinner we settle in our tents for a good night sleep. I share with

02/04/12 Project visit at Benjamin William Mkapo School As the whole reason with this challenge event was to raise money for kids in the Kilimanjaro region, we were all very excited to go on a project visit at one of Childreach's schools. When we arrived there, the kids greeted us with singing a welcome song. We were surprised and moved by this as we didnt expect so many kids to be there. We got off and walked with the kids to the school, one in each hand and the rest just trying to get close to us. When we got to the school we got our second surprise; just as many more kids were waiting for us, this lot a bit younger. They started singing too and they were just as excited to see us. It was quite clear that these kids were a happy bunch and that warmed my heart. We were soon to find out why..  This little girl constantly came up to me, very happy and cheerful   Young boys showing their interest for the camera before singing a song for us Charles, the local Childrea

01/04/12 Moshi is the home of Maasai and Chagga tribes, and is located on the lower slopes of Mt Kilimanjaro. It has around 150 000 inhabitants and its is quite lively. As we arrive on a Sunday, the super markets are close, but we find a nice little burger bar where to have our lunch. A cheese burger with chips costs 1500 tanzanian shilling, around £1-2.. And its nice. Mt Kilimanjaro, majestically showing itself outside our hotel.. We walk around a bit, Jan being our guide as he has been here before and knows where things are. Quite soon a guy approaches Dean and wants to show him what he has in his bag, and out comes Tanzanias national football shirt. Exactly what the boys want to get, so the guy is lucky- business is going great even on a Sunday! While they are talking, another man comes up to me and wants to show me his own art, some paintings of Maasai people and the mountain. This guy doesnt give up very easily and ends up walking with us. He gets that I dont want to buy anyt

01/04/12 Nairobi to Moshi We start early in the morning and Abel tells us that the journey will take around 8 hours, even with the new road that has been built not too long ago. We find our seats in the shuttle and start, Im quite excited about whats ahead of us. After driving through Nairobi's outskirts we get into Masai land. I can see the tall men and women dressed in red clothing herding their kettle along the roads or in the bush. It looks dry, but kind of what I would expect. Very exotic. We pass through many villages and what gets me most is that hotels are in the same house as the butchery, and the building is a small shed-like building. We arrive to the border and there are forms to fill in and hand in on both sides and this is a bit time consuming but we are finally through. We continue through Tanzania and we soon arrive to Arusha, a town quite close to our end-destination, Moshi. Arusha is the hometown of Abel and it has more than 1,5 million inhabitants, includi

31/03/12 Arrival to Nairobi After meeting the delegation of five adventurers at Heathrow, we checked in and our journey had started. My fellow team members are: Dean , a lad from Nottingham with his mate Steve from Essex. They soon showed to be two walking comedy shows. Everything that came out of them was pure comedy, its great! They had spent the night drinking and were looking for a pub at 4am at the airport. Just fantastic :) Jan , a tall guy from London who works for the charity. A nice guy who has the lovely job to keep us all together and get us down to Africa.. Oh dear. Shaun , a Scotsman from Dundee and his mate Ben , a Welshman living in Cambridge. Shaun has spent the night at Heathrow and is rather quiet when we meet. Ben looks like a pure outdoory person with his fleece and boots on. Its a quite interesting crowd to say the least. And me. I will travel with 5 boys for the next 10 days, climb a mountain, live close and constantly be in each others faces. But I had a