Day 8: Climb to summit Uhuru Peak

MOUNTAIN ROUTE OVERVIEW

Summit night & day is tough as it ranges from an 11 to 16 hour day. Climbers go to sleep after an early dinner the night before and are awaken around midnight to prepare for the summit attempt. After a light snack, they will ascend in the darkness, cold and wind. Temperatures will usually range from -4° to 5° Fahrenheit.  Altitude sickness is felt in various forms here on the mountain and climbers should be carrying as little as possible to help ease any symptoms.

They will make their way up a path that is flanked by The Ratzel and Rebman Glaciers, and climb for about six hours before reaching the edge of Kilimanjaro crater, between Stella and Hans Meyer points.  Another hour of climbing will bring them to the summit!

Uhuru stands at 19,340 feet and is the highest point on the continent of Africa.  The track around the edge of the crater is rocky and icy. Once they reach the summit, a short time is spent celebrating and taking photos, before returning to high camp, at Barafu. Here they will eat lunch and regain their strength, before continuing the descent to a much lower camp at Mweka.

The descent is no easier than the ascent. Climbers will be given the opportunity to rest and have some refreshments before continuing on to Mweka Camp for the night. Arriving into camp this evening, you will have trekked a total of around thirteen hours today.

ASCENT CLIMB DATA

  • Begin ~ 15,400 Feet / 4,660 Meters

  • End ~ 19,344 Feet / 5,896 Meters                          

  • Elevation Gain  3,944 Feet

  • Time Average 8-10 Hours

  • Distance Hiked 4 Miles / 7 Km

DESCENT CLIMB DATA

  • Begin ~ 19,344 Feet / 5,896 Meters

  • End ~ 10,200 Feet / 3,100 Meters                          

  • Elevation Loss  9,144 Feet

  • Time Average 7-9 Hours

  • Distance Hiked 8 Miles / 13 Km

DIRECT FROM THE MOUNTAIN

Tonight at 5:00pm EST, Drew and a team of 10 men will make the summit attempt on Kilimanjaro. They will be hiking from base camp at around 15,000 feet to Uhuru Peak at 19,341 feet.

We spoke with Drew briefly on the satellite phone and the team is doing well! There is more snow and ice than usual so please pray for safety, strength, endurance and unity. Pray for the guides and porters who will selflessly serve the team.

The team members are listed here:

Aaron Harris

Ross Harris

Christopher Lueling

Todd Peterson

Zach Peterson

Bennett Stamper

Stewart Stamper

Richard Stamper

Drew Voyles

John Yip

Scott Zimmerman

Thank you for your faithfulness in praying year after year. As many of you know who have climbed, prayers really do make the difference.

Trip 0118BEYOND