Day 8: Climb to Summit Uhuru Peak
MOUNTAIN ROUTE OVERVIEW
Summit is an 11 to 16 hour day. Climbers go to sleep after an early dinner the night before and are woken up around midnight to being their summit attempt. After a light snack, they ascent into darkness, cold, and wind. Temperatures usually range from -4° to 5° fahrenheit. This is where climbers feel the altitude, so they’ll carry as little as possible, hike slowly, and take many rests to ease the symptoms. They’ll make their way up a trail that is flanked by the Ratzel and Rebman Glaciers. After climbing for around six hours, they’ll reach the edge of Kilimanjaro’s crater between Stella and Hans Meyer Points. They’re just an hour from the summit when they get here! After a hot cup of tea and rest, they’ll begin climbing on a rocky and icy trail to the summit, Uhuru Peak, at 19,344 feet which is the highest point on the continent of Africa. Once they reach the summit, they’ll spend a few minutes making sure they touch the sign, celebrating with the group, and taking pictures before descending to Kosovo Camp. Once they reach camp, they’ll eat lunch and take a short nap before continuing their descent to Mweka Camp. Once they arrive at camp, they’ll have dinner and go to bed early after a 13 to 19 hour day of hiking!
MOUNTAIN ROUTE STATS
ASCENT
Starting elevation 16,000 feet
Ending elevation 19,344 feet
Elevation gain 3,344 feet
Distance hiked 4.5 miles
Average hiking time 8 to 10 hours
DESCENT
Starting elevation 19,344 feet
Ending elevation 10,200 feet
Elevation loss 9,144 feet
Distance hiked 8 miles
Average hiking time 7 to 9 hours
“Naenda kupanda Mlima Kilimanjaro.” - I’m going to climb Mount Kilimanjaro
That was what i would repeat to myself for the next 7 hours as I and the rest of the Beyond team ascended through the darkness to summit the tallest free standing mountain in the world.
Wakeup
Starting bright and early at 12:00 am, my dad and I shuffled into our 3+ layers of long johns, fleecewear, and rain/wind proof gear. After that we headed down to the mess tent for a quick breakfast to help fuel us up as much as possible for the climb ahead. This included trays absolutely loaded with ginger cookies and snicker bars. Having been briefed at lunch the day before, there wasn’t a lot of banter at the table…I think people were either tired, nervous or just focused on what came next.
Climb to the Stella Point
As intimidating as the summit looked driving up to Machame Gate on the first day, it had only grown scarier as we approached Kosovo base camp. In fact, John Simon told us that one of the reasons we got up so early to climb in the first place was so we couldn’t definitively see how far we had left to go.
So at about 1am, we began our climb. The only guiding point of reference was a light parade of headlamps zig zagging their way up the mountain side above us, with the exception of the stars. After awhile I realized that some of those stars also happened to move…and then I realized those were headlamps too! That was just how high we would have to go.
Breaks
The climb was to be interspersed with periodic breaks to give us time to catch our breath and recover (mentally and physically). On the 2nd break, the porters broke out tea and hot chocolate! They were so amazing! As welcome as the breaks were, stopping had the disadvantage of allowing the cold to really seep in and the tiredness from the low oxygen made it hard to get going again. But I had my mantra…and I wasn’t going to quit.
More Climbing
The climb really seemed endless. The first hour I tried to keep a strong mental attitude with my mantra. By the end of first hour, I began to realize how much of a challenge it was going to be: being tired, lack of oxygen from altitude, being cold…all just combined to wear me down until all I could think about was to just put one foot in front of the other and know that I was closer to the top than I was 5 minutes ago…that the climb wouldn’t actually last forever!
Sunrise
Around 6:30am the sky started to lighten and we saw an incredible sunrise! The colors were beautiful, but with it came the realization we weren’t as close to the top as we thought. It took about another 30-45 minutes to finally get to the top and see Stella Point.
Final Push to Uhuru
After a very short break, the guides got us back up to make the final push to Uhuru Summit. I think it took about another 45 minutes to climb the last 500 feet around the crater rim, but I barely remember it. We walked past (above) the glaciers we could see from the bottom of the mountain. Then, finally…the end was in sight! What an incredible moment to accomplish such an unbelievably hard thing! I know that I pushed myself to the very limit and came out on the other side a stronger person.
Of course, we couldn’t have done it without the porters because they are amazing, always with a smile, looking out for those who were struggling…this was truly the memory of a lifetime!
Tupo pamoja!!!
~Annalise Hingst
Summit day
Wow!!! It’s hard to describe this day in words, but I’ll try.
The wake up call was 12 midnight, and we heard the tap on our tents from our fearless guides and porters. “Good morning” is what they said as they tapped on our tents to wake us up for a day that will forever live in our memory.
Ethan and I were in a tent together so we sat up after a very short sleep, and got ready for summit day! I just love the words, summit day!
Everyone quickly came out of their tent with joy in their hearts along with many other emotions and the feeling of facing the unknown. Sometimes the unknown is the scariest part of a climb.
We had a quick bite to eat, our wonderful porters filled our bottles with water and we heard the (in)famous words from Kelvin, “Packs on!”. We lined up and began our ascent up the mountain in the dark. I felt as if our guides were our body guards, and I felt so safe with them there. As we looked up the mountain we saw a line of headlamps zigzagging up the steep incline so we could see our path from those that started the ascent before us. We took one step at a time. After about 30 minutes, a few of us needed to stop because we needed to add layers. It was cold!
Let’s stop a second to discuss a thing I call the struggle bus. While climbing a mountain, everyone will have their weak moment or moment when they are facing adversity. I mean everyone! Right when you think you won’t struggle, something happens and you find your self on the struggle bus! Thirty minutes into our summit hike, I find myself on the struggle bus. My gloves wouldn’t go on my hands!!! It’s summit day, I’m supposed to be the strong one to help my boys up this mountain, and I have an equipment problem. Alfred Wainwright who wrote “There's no such thing as bad weather, only unsuitable clothing.” Well, the gloves fit when I was at home in my T-shirt and they don’t fit now while I’m on the way to the summit! Who comes to the rescue, John Simon. Next thing I know, I have on John Simon’s gloves. Words can’t express how much we appreciate the guides!!!
As we continued up the mountain one small step at a time, the guides were there evaluating our every move to make sure the altitude isn’t affecting us. They are looking for signs of HAPE and HACE. They are our body guards! Somehow they appeared at each turn standing there guarding a steep drop off. Alpha was next to Ethan the entire way with Ethan’s backpack full of snacks and water. Aloha was there even when we didn’t need him. He was like a shadow that appeared and stayed with Ethan the entire climb. He was feeling nauseous from the altitude so John Simon and Alpha slowed us down a little. We fell behind the group. The rest of the group moved forward as they each faced their joyful moments as the sun rose coupled with very challenging moments and the stars you see in your vision as you climb higher in altitude. The stars are a sign that you need to do the pressure breathing to increase your oxygen level.
It was very cold and I was praying for the sun to rise. I looked over and saw a glimpse of orange in the horizon blended with many beautiful shades of blue. I said to Ethan, “I spy with my little eye something orange in the sky.” I’m not sure where this came from. I used to play I spy with Carter and Ethan when they were younger. I have never been so happy to see the sun rise and hope for the temperature to increase.
One small step at a time. Pole, pole.
It took hours to get up to the rim which is called Stella Point. Apparently, if you make it there, you will make it to the summit!
We put our head lamps away because there was now daylight. We’re at Stella Point!!!!
At this moment, Ethan and I were with John Simon, Alpha, Zac and Zara. We sat at Stella Point, had a snack and some water then looked up at the summit! What!?!? We still have to go that far!?!
Well, the rest of the summit push wasn’t hard in terms of steepness but we took it one small step at a time and found ourselves closer to the summit. Every step at 19,000 feet above sea level is hard! Zara and Zac were ahead of us. Ethan saw the summit and got some energy and moved ahead of me, John Simon and Alpha. I looked over at John Simon and gave him the biggest hug with tears of JOY in my eyes. I know we couldn’t have summited without our guides! I gave Alpha a hug with pure gratitude. How do they do it? How are they so helpful and joyful as they guide us up this mountain!
We join the rest of the team on the summit and hug with more tears of joy. This isn’t a jumping up and down kind of hug, it’s a slow hug with deep gratitude for our team! Yes, we will forever remember each other and this moment. We are a team! This group truly defines the saying “There is no I in team.” We did it together, shepherding each other to the summit.
When I saw my older son, Carter, at the top, I was so unbelievably proud of him. We think our children need us there to help them. Carter didn’t need me on one of the headrest days of his life this far. It brings me to think of Mother Theresa’s words, “You Will Teach Them To Fly, But They Will Not Fly Your Flight. You Will Teach Them To Dream, But They Will Not Dream Your Dream. You Will Teach Them To Live, But They Will Not Live Your Life. Nevertheless, In Every Flight, In Every Dream, The Print Of The Way You Taught Will Always Remain.” I’m hoping the print of the way I taught is what helped him get up the mountain. I’m so proud of you, Carter!
There weren’t many discussions at the top because our brains weren’t functioning at 100% due to the altitude. We all got our photos and headed down the mountain for our descent. Once we reached the summit, we were only 50% done with the hike. The most important thing about a hike is getting down safely!
We hiked for 16 hours that day. I am so proud of Carter, Whit, Annalise, Ethan and Zara. They all summited Mt Kilimanjaro as teenagers!!!! This accomplishment can never be take away from them. I am honored to hike next to them and witness their perseverance. I am also so proud of Lindsey and Carter who were such leaders to the teenagers! Your kind and gentle guidance did not go unnoticed. The other children looked up to you so much! To the other parents, Susan, Zac (our fearless leader), Brad and Mike, I am honored to parent next to you. I learned as I watched each of you support your children. This climb was hard! Being a parent on the mountain was a new level of guiding our children. At times, our children helped us, and at times we supported them to the best of our ability. Facing adversity isn’t easy. Fear can hold you back. This team walked right through fear and persevered up the mountain.
The feeling we all have now is pure Joy and is truly unexplainable. We did it!! We did it as a team with our body guards!!!
My heart is humbled and I am so grateful to Beyond Adventures and to Drew for living his dream and creating this wonderful experience.
With love and gratitude (and tears in my eyes),
~Laura Mooney