Kilimanjaro-Summit

It was the last day of our ascent.  We would hike to the summit this night, which was the highlight of the trip.  We hiked to Barafu Camp.  There were hundreds of hikers camping at Barafu Camp. This was base camp for the summit.

However, we had a permit to camp at High Camp.  This was a good thing, because although it meant we had a little bit longer to hike that day, we would be scrambling up some pretty steep rocks in the daylight rather than in the dark that night.  High Camp was at 3950 meters in elevation, which is 12,959 feet. The summit, Uhuru Peak, is 5895 meters in elevation, which is 19,340 feet.

It was very windy and cold at High Camp.  We rested that afternoon, and we tried to get some sleep before we had to wake up at 11:00 pm to be ready to hike at 12:00 midnight.  Because of the wind and the cold temperatures, we were all wearing multiple layers of clothing. I personally had on four layers, including a heated coat. We started out on our hike at midnight. I wish I could say that I hiked to the summit as the sun was rising over the mountain. That was the experience for many of the women in our group. But that is not my story.

I was keeping up just fine for the first part of the hike.  However, after a while, the altitude started to really affect me and I was starting to feel weak.  I tried to choke down some snacks and drink some water, hoping it would help. We resumed the hike.  I started hiking slower than many of the others in the group, but I was still going.  However, as we continued, I remember having trouble making my legs move.  I was literally telling my legs to move, but they were not cooperating.  When I would have to take a step up, it took several tries to actually get my foot to raise up to the next level. I have never had to tell my legs to move!  I worried that the high winds were going to blow me off the side of the mountain.

We were all wearing our headlamps.  Now, my family will tell you, I don’t do well with headlamps.  I can’t seem to figure out how to use them appropriately.  I regularly blind others with my headlamp. I can’t quite seem to position the lamp so that I can look at other people without causing them pain.  As we were hiking, someone patted me on my back.  I turned around to see who it was and the person put her hand up in front of her face. Now, anyone else would have immediately realized that they were blinding her with their headlamp.  I gave her a high five. It seemed to be the right thing to do at the time. But remember, I was kind of out of my head.

I began to lose awareness/memory of periods of time.  My daughter, Ally, was with me, so she filled me in on what exactly happened that night.  At one point, she said she asked me how I was doing.  I replied, “I’m so cold, I can’t feel my arms or legs, and I’m having trouble breathing.” Then I turned around and continued the hike. Ally repeatedly tried to convince me to stop and go back to camp, but I was determined to make it to the top. By this time, we were behind the rest of the group, and a couple of the guides had joined us.  One of the guides kept giving me hot water to drink, which would not be appealing at other times, but it really hit the spot that night.  Ally told me later that one of the guides asked if I was all right.  Ally said, “No, she needs to go back to camp, but she’s being really stubborn.”  The guide said, “I would use the word determined.”  Ally disagreed. 

I didn’t know it, but the guide went ahead to get one of our WHOA leaders, Isabel. I remember seeing her standing above us.  I thought she came down to me, but Ally later told me that I walked up to her. Ally said it took me about 15 minutes to go a very short distance. Ugh. I can just imagine what I looked like-shuffling along, feet barely moving, looking like I was going to collapse any minute.  I had tried so hard to be a badass this whole trip, and now I was walking like I was about 100 years old. So much for my badass image.  I was told that when I reached Isabel, she had to call my name several times before I responded.  When she finally got my attention, she said, “Jill, this is your summit.” That I remember.  I knew then that I was done.  She gave me a hug, and she told me to give Ally a hug.  Apparently, according to Ally, I hugged her and gave her my eulogy.  I have no recollection of this.  But, when the time comes, she will already have my eulogy prepared, so you’re welcome, Ally.  Then two ladies, a guide and a porter, each took one of my arms and one of my hiking poles.  I couldn’t really stand on my own, but that’s ok. My feet weren’t touching the ground anyway. Ally told me that Isabel said, “She’ll be fine. They will take good care of her,” and I disappeared down the side of the mountain. Then my badass daughter and badass Isabel ran up the mountain to catch up with the rest of the group, while I, the meerkat, was whisked down the mountain.  That was a wild ride.  At first, I was not really aware of much, but as we went down in altitude, I started to become more aware of my surroundings.  It may have been better if I had stayed unaware. We were going very fast, and several times I was sure we were headed right off the side of the mountain.  I have no idea how long it took us to get back to base camp.  But when we got there, the ladies helped me take off my boots and my outer layer of clothing, and then told me to go to bed. 

I slept for a couple of hours, and then got up to welcome all of the ladies coming down from the summit.

Everyone rested a while, then we started our descent.  The descent took two days.  When we arrived at the end point the second day, we were given a choice of either a beer or a soda.  A bottle of soda has never tasted so good! We celebrated with pizza and souvenir shopping and then headed to the hotel, where we took our first showers in a week!

To say I was a little disappointed that I did not summit would be a huge understatement.  I went on this trip determined to reach the summit, and that did not happen. But what I have realized is that I didn’t have to summit for this trip to be one of the most meaningful experiences of my life.  I left my little Midwest town and flew to Africa to hike the highest mountain I have attempted to hike so far in my life.  I didn’t know what to expect, and I almost made it to the summit.  I was able to have this awesome experience with my daughters. 

I met some amazing people, and everyday was absolutely a wonderful experience.  I now know that I did not have to summit to be a badass.  Congratulations to all of the women who summited, but, in fact, every woman on this trip is a badass.  Even if they did not make it to base camp because of medical reasons.  Even if they chose not to start out on the hike on summit night, or if they started and quickly realized that this was not for them and they turned around and went back to base camp.  Even if I had to be whisked down the mountain because I was out of my head and could no longer move my legs.  We are all brave, strong, adventurous badass women.

By the way, I have been doing a little research on meerkats. They are more badass than one would think. They can run at 30 mph. They are fiercely protective of their families. They eat scorpions and are immune to venom. While I think I will pass on the scorpions, maybe having a meerkat as my soul animal is not as wimpy as I thought.

Top Tips for Kilimanjaro, Summit

1. It is REALLY cold at the top of Mt. Kilimanjaro. Bring lots of layers.
2. If you have to talk to your legs, telling them to move, you might be having a bad reaction to the altitude.  If you lose chunks of time, you might be having a bad reaction to the altitude.  If you give your eulogy when you are told to give your daughter a hug, you may be having a bad reaction to the altitude.
3. Giving your eulogy to your daughter before you are taken down the mountain may be traumatizing to her at the moment, but it will save her some time later in life.
4. Wearing a headlamp without blinding others appears to be an acquired skill that not everyone has mastered.
5. If you are blinding someone with your headlamp and you give them a high five, your daughters will make fun of you for years to come.
6. Hiking Mount Kilimanjaro makes you a badass, even if you don’t summit.
7. Turns out, meerkats are actually sort of badass.
8. I mentioned them in my first Kilimanjaro story, but for an amazing adventure, check out www.whoatravel.com.  They offer adventures all over the world, including some in the US.