Day 9: Climb to Mweka Gate

Our climbers are waking up to their last day on the mountain. They’ll have their last breakfast in the mess tent and then start their trek. They’ll descend through the rainforest past towering trees and lush ferns to a hot lunch at Mweka Gate – where they’ll end their adventure on Mount Kilimanjaro.

MOUNTAIN ROUTE STATS

Starting elevation 13,000 feet

Ending elevation 6,000 feet

Elevation gain 7,000 feet

Distance hiked 7 miles

Average hiking time 5 hours

JOURNAL ENTRY

Dear Readers,

The morning came with excitement, as we could feel the conclusion of our seven-day journey day within reach. We all relished in the thought of hot showers and clean clothes awaiting us at the Mount Meru Hotel. However, the sad reality of saying goodbye to our beloved porters and guides quickly sank in. Suddenly, I could hear Alphonse knocking on the door of my tent, asking if Bryan and I would like hot tea or boiled coffee. The 6:30 AM wake-up call had commenced, and our entire team began mobilizing for what was ahead.

Meanwhile, Brett Warthen and four (4) porters were preparing to leave our site at Millennium Camp. Our team’s hero, Brett, who was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2014, fought like a warrior yesterday. Brett climbed total of 11 hours to reach Mount Kilimanjaro’s crater rim summit at Stella Point. We were all inspired by the level of endurance and determination Brett exercised on this 7-day climb. Knowing Brett’s descent would require the proper assistance from our porters, that team departed downhill for the Mweka Gate at 6:45 AM sharp. The rest of us brushed our teeth, packed our bags, and strapped on our hiking boots before walking into the Mess Tent for breakfast.

Inside that tent existed “one last bite” at African porridge, mango, pineapple, breakfast sausage, and fried eggs. Despite the top of Mount Kilimanjaro being clearly visible in the distance, we were all realizing the true purpose of this trip was not to “make it to the top,” but rather to forge deep bonds with our African and American friends on the mountain.

As breakfast wrapped up, I then saw Nazareth, the porter who helped me reach Uhuru Peak and he greeted me with a smile. Yesterday that man showed me the love of Jesus Christ during our “summit morning” climbing experience. I was cold, dehydrated, and dealing with diarrhea. Overall, I was exhausted. Additionally, I was fuming with anger for putting myself into such a physically demanding situation. We had stopped over twelve times from 19,000 feet elevation to 16,000 feet elevation. Nazareth demonstrated incredible patience and provided me with tremendously thoughtful care. There was no way I could have survived Mount Kilimanjaro’s summit alive without Nazareth’s help. Given the meaningful impact of my experience with Nazareth, I then asked Drew Voyles to take our picture with Kilimanjaro’s summit it the background, before the formal “goodbye ceremony” began.

Gabriel, James, and Drew requested everyone’s attention outside the Mess Tent. People gathered in the shape of a circle and Gabriel addressed the crowd. Along with the army of porters, Gabriel thanked us for traveling to Tanzania and climbing the mountain. He emphasized that the Pandemic Recession severely impacted their business in 2020 and 2021. These trips to the top of Mount Kilimanjaro are the primary income generators for Gabriel’s company and employees. Drew then announced to the porters that Beyond will be back in June 2022 with more trips scheduled for the 2022 summer. The army of porters cheered with excitement! Drew then delivered the “tipping envelope” to Gabriel for presentation to the porters. Each “department” was awarded their percentage share of the tips, from janitorial staff to cooks, and from mountain guides to security personnel. It was interesting to see which porters walked forward as their official department of record was called aloud. This provided me with an opportunity to truly notice how many porters were helping our entire team of 20 climbers. It was incredible to realize the amount of sheer people who cared for us along the way. There was no way we could have successfully climbed Mount Kilimanjaro without these men and women. The tipping ceremony ended, and we then entered an opportunity to say thank you. Looking at Innocent with a grin on my face, I shouted “Bila nyie tusingefica kileleni. Ukweli!” which is Swahili for “We could not have climbed to the top without your help. That is for sure!” The porters, not anticipating me to speak a lick of Swahili with confidence, laughed in a roar. Innocent, Colby, and I had planned this “surprise” the evening before while chatting in the kitchen. The plan was successful, and we laughed. People from our Beyond Adventures team thanked the porters corporately and individually as the ceremony concluded with three (3) African songs, followed by a group prayer. We were then officially ready to start the final descent down Mount Kilimanjaro. In my attempt to say farewell and wave goodbye to as many of the porters as I possibly could, I noticed our Beyond team had already started walking away from camp. Rushing into action, I grabbed my backpack and jumped on the trail.

Going downhill is faster than hiking uphill, but it is demanding and uses a different set of muscles. You primarily rely on your knees for most of your support. The bad habit of leaning forward with poor posture in uphill climbing (especially when carrying a backpack) is exacerbated when hiking downhill. I had to lengthen my hiking poles and intentionally watch my posture, trying to achieve a more upright position. As we progressed downhill, we entered lower elevation and different climate zones, areas we had not seen since “Day 1” and “Day 2.” The moorland climate zone was gorgeous. The shrubs were slightly above our head, but through gaps in the trail we could see rolling hills in the distance filled with lush green vegetation. Making our way through the moorland climate zone, I could tell our Beyond team was in a much better mood compared to yesterday’s physically traumatic summit climax. For instance, Brandon, Bryan, Nagu, and Faraja were attempting to film cuts of a music video on Brandon’s smart phone. We did have the benefit of a good night’s sleep at 12,000 feet elevation (more oxygen available than compared to the 19,340-foot elevation Uhuru Peak). It felt like we were racing down the mountain while in the moorland climate zone. After two hours, we arrived at the Mweka Camp, which is in the jungle. We took a 15-minute water break, filmed a segment for Brandon’s music video shoot by the Mweka Camp sign, and marched onward.

Compared to “Day 1” it was easier to admire the beauty of the jungle while walking downhill. Kilimanjaro’s jungle reminded me of something I’d only seen before in Hollywood movies. It was stunning. I treasured that final descent through the jungle, enjoying great conversations with Colby, Drew, Brett (Houston…enter last name), Mike, and others. The benefits of Christian based adventure travel are unbelievable. As humans, God created us to be in friendship with one another. Having the opportunity to connect with these men from our Beyond team, while climbing Mount Kilimanjaro and witnessing God’s natural creation across four (4) different climate zones, was an extraordinary privilege. While my knees wished our descent through the jungle would soon be over, my heart did not want the journey to end. However, as we realize on all “vacations,” time flies and trips end. The next milestone we reached was the point where the hiking trail becomes a wider dirt road. Over the past seven (7) days I tried to be as careful as possible to not injure myself on the mountain. Like a scene from a horror film, I noticed a large pile of metal medical stretchers to our right. These metal baskets were equipped with a 1-wheel design for traveling down the mountain while being operated by two (2) porters. That picture caught my attention and I quickly praised God for protecting me from injury while on the mountain. Drew coached us that the end was near, approximately 45 minutes away. The only problem was my knees. They were aching in pain. I side stepped downhill, walked backwards, and even let gravity pull me downhill by walking faster straight ahead. While changing my walking style provided momentary relief, I simply had to endure the aching pain. Brett (last name) kindly offered to carry my backpack, and that was greatly appreciated. We all had to endure aches, pains, and humbling situations on the mountain. This was something the mountain taught us. This is also something that God teaches us. He does not promise life without suffering, but he does provide us with a path home. After what seemed to be the longest 45 minutes of my life, we saw the infamous Mweka Gate! There was a parking lot, welcome center, and manicured green grass with picnic tables. At last! We had made it! Those final steps downhill was met with high fives from our Beyond brothers. I could not believe our seven (7) day hiking journey was over. As we joyously gathered towards our bus, I noticed a beautiful sight; a vendor with ice cold Coca-Colas! For the record, I still owe Mike two (2) U.S. dollars for my glass bottle Coca-Cola. He will be paid. I promise!

The Beyond team jumped into the bus and joined our guide and porters at a nearby restaurant for our climbing reception. The restaurant was an open courtyard with an outdoor kitchen, bar, and indoor shopping area. To our surprise, the porters has been there for hours, preparing for our arrival. As our Beyond team settled into our long lunch table, we began ordering soft drinks and beers to celebrate this phenomenal achievement. John Simon, one of the three lead mountain guides, addressed the crowd with an ice-cold Kilimanjaro brand beer in his hand. Raising his glass, John said “Kilimanjaro! If you can’t climb it, then drink it. However, if you can climb it, then do both!” We all laughed, cheered our drinks together, and enjoyed those ice-cold refreshments after a long day of hiking. John Simon was a character. We had not seen John Simon since he left on “Day 5” to take Joel safely to the bottom of the mountain. I was glad that “General John” was back in action with us. Lunch was served with fried chicken, fruit salad, French fries, and guacamole. As our Beyond team ate lunch, the army of porters slowly bigger and bigger. One large party had started around us. We were all proud of our Mount Kilimanjaro accomplishment together.

As Americans we are privileged to shop with “easy access” to stores like REI, Patagonia, North Face, and others who supply mountain clothing and gear. For those living in the Kilimanjaro area of Tanzania, it’s next to impossible to shop at those stores. Additionally, the price of such goods often makes them extremely unaffordable for many people in East Africa, especially our mountain porters. Beyond Adventures traditionally provides an opportunity for its clients to donate used clothing and gear to the porters. I’m proud to say our Beyond team did an outstanding job being generous to our porters. Afterall, providing them with clothing and gear with the very least we could do in return for the way they loved us on Mount Kilimanjaro. After the lunch reception concluded, we said our goodbyes and jumped into the bus. We waved goodbye. While we looked forward to that hot shower and clean set of clothes at Mount Meru Hotel, I am confident our entire Beyond team was sad we could not have stayed for one more cold beer with our African brothers, the porters. As the bus drove away from the restaurant and made its way down the foothills of the mountain, I sat the very back seat of the bus, watching everyone. Drew connected John Simon’s smart phone to a blue-tooth speaker. All of a sudden, the music of the Beach Boys played aloud, and to me, it was pure bliss.

~ Jack Chapman