JOURNAL ENTRY

LOTS of anticipation! Even a bit of apprehension. But mostly excitement on Day 2 of our journey to Mount Kilimanjaro.

If we called yesterday “Arrival Day”, we will call today “Preparation Day”.

We met 3 of our 4 guides this afternoon. John Simon, Wilfred and Gabriel. They’ve guided THOUSANDS of hikers. Each of them have hiked the mountain 400+ times. And with a 96% success rate of reaching the summit. That is totally unheard of. The average with other guides is closer to 50%.

And… I can already see why. They are fully committed to their job. And to them, it is far more a passion than a job.

I love that they are trained in high level first aid. They advise against taking medicines that may mask the various physical ailments we will experience at high altitudes. The highest I’ve ever been is 13,000 feet. Kilimanjaro is 19,341!

They spent a ton of time going through the mindset required once the going gets tough. Nobody really knows how our bodies will react. After all, we all live below 1500 feet elevation.

The guides then headed to each of our rooms to see what we are packing. They made some critical adjustments in our gear so that each of us is fully prepared.

Laura’s luggage didn’t arrive with the plane. Thankfully, it is here now and they will inspect her gear tomorrow morning so she will be ready to go. That is a huge deal!

I personally almost had to back out. I came down with a terrible case of paroneal tendinitis in my ankle/foot a few days ago. The pain was an “8” and it was hard to walk 20 yards let along 37 miles. Drew’s wife, Melissa, had him toss in some Diclofenac, an anti inflammatory pill perfectly suited for tendinitis. I’m already much better after just 3 days. Moreover, Sarah Grady is on this trip and is a PA at an Orthopedic practice and has treated this injury hundreds of times! Crazy. No backing out now.

We are super excited to get this thing started. I can already tell that this group is solid. Most hikes are somewhat solitary. This one is very much a team effort.

Drew had us go around the table and share our reasons for doing this trip. The answers inspired us all.

It is really neat to see Dana and her son Matt as well as Kim and her daughter Sarah tackling this together. And Laura hiking for the students she teaches. We are also so glad to have Augustin with us from Uganda. He’s got the world’s biggest smile!

Deo led us in a powerful prayer and a message to communicate with the Holy Spirit as the good friend that He is. Thank you Jesus, Praise you Jesus.

I can see now very clearly that this week ahead is much more than a hike.

Years of preparation have come down to this.

Let’s roll!

~ John Coats

Today was a day of rest and preparation at the Mt. Meru Hotel. We were encouraged to sleep in which many of the team did, although sounds of call to prayer and birdsong drifted in the open windows before the sun came up. In preparation, we laid out our hiking gear head to toe for inspection later in the day.

At lunch, a few of us talked about what we were looking forward to (summiting, staying focused on the present, looking for miracles, having this experience with a family member, accomplishing a challenge).

We also said goodbye to Desiree, Channing and Landree Coats as they left for their Paris adventure and hello to Gabriel, John Simon and Wilfred, three of our four guides on the climb. Their Active Kilitop climbing company which partners with Beyond has a 96% success rate in helping climbers summit and has taken a few celebrities to the top of Kili (in addition to our group).

The guides walked us through the Machame route, gave us safety tips, went over basic climb rules - don’t freak out when you feel altitude symptoms, listen to the guides, take it a day at a time, drink water, eat food, go “pole pole” (slowly, slowly), use sunscreen - talked about altitude medicine and OTC pain relievers and the importance of keeping them informed about what we’re taking and then inspected our gear.

As the start of the climb begins tomorrow morning, I’m excited and nervous, even though I’ve been in this place of waiting before.

I’m remembering that when I need help on Kilimanjaro, the guides will be there and also that my help will come from the Lord.

Psalm 121-1-2

A Song of Ascents

I lift up my eyes to the hills.

From where does my help come?

My help comes from the LORD,

who made heaven and earth.

~ Dana Knowles

Day 2: Meeting with Mountain Guides