Day 4: Climb to Shira Camp
MOUNTAIN ROUTE OVERVIEW
Today is a shorter day that starts with climbing up a steep ridge to a small cliff named Picnic Rock. Climbers will start in the moorland zone which is above the rainforest and clouds. As our climbers hike up the steep ridge, they’ll be rewarded with a sweeping view of Machame Camp and Machame Village. The air will become increasingly thin as they reach the halfway point and vegetation will slowly give way to black lava and sand. The trail continues up and up pst small mountain streams, rocky walls, and deep ravines. Shira Camp is in the middle of the Shira Plateau. Climbers will have views of Mount Meru and Kibo from camp is the weather is good!!
MOUNTAIN ROUTE STATS
Starting elevation 9,900 feet
Ending elevation 12,500 feet
Elevation gain 2,600 feet
Distance hiked 5 miles
Average hiking time 5 to 7 hours
UPDATE FROM THE GROUP
Simply put today was the best day of my life (and I think a lot of others would agree)! We were woken up by porters with coffee and tea in bed and then ate a huge breakfast and 1,000 cups of hot chocolate before we started our day. It felt like we were in the clouds the entire day. We didn’t have a long day but it was definitely a steep one! We walked straight up the rocks all day and learned to trust the traction in our boots. The terrain was so green but also rocky at the same time. It didn’t look like anything I had seen before.
We stopped for lunch before our hike got even steeper! I personally walked directly behind my new best friend (aka our guide, Ahi). At one point we really had to scale a rock wall and we all made sure to do just as the person in front of us had. I’m typically terrified of heights and was so proud of myself for not freaking out. But I think that conquering fears and going out of our comfort zone is why so many of us decided to come on this trip. Every time we get up a big incline or do something intimidating, we have all started to say to each other “you can do hard things!”
The hike today was so fun because we got to use our whole body, see such beautiful views and laugh together. In the afternoon right before we got to camp, we saw a few stacks of rocks. If you didn’t know, a stack of rocks is called an ebenezer- it means “this far the Lord has brought us”. You may recognize it from the song Come Thou Fount… Here I raise my ebenezer, Hither by Thy help I’ve come.... What a sweet reminder that the Lord has been with us every step of the way and continues to be. He has gone before us and behind us. I can’t wait to see what happens as we continue to fix our eyes on Him over the next 6 days.
We were greeted at camp after our climb by all of our porters singing and dancing. They sang to congratulate us on how far we’ve come and encourage us for the rest of the journey. We all joined in with the dancing and celebrating! To top off the night, the clouds parted and we were able to see Kili for the first time from our climb! It looks pretty tall and I’m excited for us ALL to make it to the top!
Okay bye! Love to you all! Especially my parents and brothers and Junie and Ramsey.
***As I wrote this we did watch a man take a SHOWER in the COLD?!? CRAZY! please pray.***
~ Mary Ragan