Kilamanjaro 2017

[Yukon Ron]

My Beautiful Wife and I have been extended an offer to join a climbing group to summit Kilimanjaro in 2017. Any info would be appreciated. We have done the 14ers, and Mt Blanc.
What is it like?

[Jon Frohlich]

My Beautiful Wife and I have been extended an offer to join a climbing group to summit Kilimanjaro in 2017. Any info would be appreciated. We have done the 14ers, and Mt Blanc.
What is it like?

Do you know which route? The best way I can describe it is something like Elbert. Except 5,000 feet taller. There's nothing technically difficult about it on most of the routes. I did the Machame Route over 6 days in 2005. Plenty of others from here have done Kili as well and there are some detailed trip reports on here. As long as you handle the altitude fine and are in decent climbing shape then you should have a good chance of success.

[ajstack]

cake walk - assuming you are doing standard route. Beautiful, inspiring..enjoy!

[Shooter]

I just got back from Kilimanjaro. It was a blast. We did the Machame route. You get to see alot of the mountain on that route. It was easier than what I was anticipating. You'll have a great time. Kick back on a Safari after the hike. It's well worth it.

[Voshkm]

those of you who have been to kili's please describe the endurance levels required. like elbert <---> long's or whatever you think its like

[Jon Frohlich]

those of you who have been to kili's please describe the endurance levels required. like elbert <---> long's or whatever you think its like

It's hard to do because they are very different. Longs and Elbert are almost always single day efforts. Kilimanjaro is a minimum of 5 days (unless you're a super athlete).

Can you do a few thousand feet of elevation gain for 5-6 days straight? Can you sleep decently at high altitude? Will you acclimatize decently? Will you have a relatively nice summit day (as I did) or wind and snow? For many people it works out just fine and it's not any harder than something like Elbert. The pace is easy and slow. They want you to take your time. The mileage every day isn't terrible. Summit day is definitely the hardest. For many people it's far higher than they've ever been. My summit day was 4,000 feet up and about 10,000 feet down. There's nothing quite like that in Colorado and you're doing it on a few hours of sleep at best.

I'd still say if you're in decent 14er climbing shape you have a more than reasonable chance of climbing Kilimanjaro. Other factors may intervene but you have a better head start than most.

[hmelch]

I am also climbing (hiking?) Kili in 2017 --- see you on the roof of Africa!

[fleetmack]

I have a trip report around here somewhere, probably can find it through my profile. It is too detailed, if anything.

6 years removed from my summit, the things that stand out to me as advice for those going:
1) Take diamox prophylactically, the trip is too long and expensive to risk getting altitude sickness. I had never taken it before and haven't taken it since, but I swallowed my pride and took it to not risk ruining my trip
2) Climb as many 14ers as you can in preparation - not because you need to be in shape (that should be implied by taking on this venture), but to ensure you are used to the altitude. A few days before we left we drove up to Guanella Pass, camped out for the night, and climbed Bierstadt in the morning just to get 15+ hours above 11k feet before the flight. I think that was a good idea.
3) Have fun! It is a rewarding and humbling experience, talk to everyone you meet, you'll remember your conversations and the people you meet more than the climb.

[WarDamnPanic]

Great advice in this thread. Here is my TR. Have fun! Trip of a lifetime

http://www.14ers.com/php14ers/triprepor ... m=tripmine

[Fr3ako]

I've done the Umbwe route in 2009 which is supposedly shorter and steeper but if you can handle 4-5 hours a day at a leisure pace, you'll be absolutely fine even on this route. All routes then join in Barafu Camp unless you're doing the Rongai route.
The summit push from Barafu to the summit in the dark (and back down) is the only "long" day but if you've done Mt Blanc before, it's gonna be a walk in the park unless weather is really really bad.

[Wandertheworld]

I'm a tour leader with a guiding company in Africa that does Kilimanjaro climbs. I did the Lemosho route over 5 days last September. It's the longest and most scenic of all the route options and in my opinion far exceeds the others, since the two most popular - Machame and Marangu - are very crowded. Regardless, none of the routes are technically difficult. As others have said, the most challenging aspect is the elevation. I combated this by hiking a few 14ers and camping overnight on the summits before going to Kili. It was single-handedly THE BEST THING I could recommend to anyone. It's one thing to go up a 14er, hang out for an hour and go back down; it's another thing to force your body to recover at those elevations, and that's exactly what you'll want. I never had a single issue with the elevation on the mountain, slept like a baby, and felt fantastic on the summit. I know it's all because of the 14er summit camps.

Aside from the elevation, a few more tips that may be helpful:

1. Take care of your feet. The trails are very well maintained, but 5-7 days of hiking still adds up. Sock liners are a gift from god. Bring a needle to drain blisters and relieve pressure, then use a bit of duct tape as a buffer against any hot spots (I just wrap a little around my trekking pole). Personally, I think moleskin is garbage, but some people use it. Also, gators will come in handy for the loose scree on summit day.
If your hands and feet are prone to swelling at high altitudes, you may want to consider wearing shoes/boots a 1/2 size larger than normal. You can always wear sock liners or two pairs of socks the first few days.

2. Walk slowly. It's not a race. A steady pace will let you keep going for hours. This is especially true for summit day since it's long and high, but to be honest Kilimanjaro is a really easy climb.

3. Bring earplugs! All the camps are VERY crowded, so it can be noisy when you're trying to sleep. The monkeys are also pretty talkative in the mornings down in the rainforest.

4. Take malaria medication. You never know.

5. If you're going to take Diamox for the elevation, drink tons of extra water. I brought it just in case but never used it (again, those summit camps were a blessing). However, Diamox works by making you constantly pee, so your body will be going through more water than usual. It's important to replenish what you're losing. Your tour group will also likely have coca tea available, which eases mild symptoms of AMS.

6. The bathrooms are filthy. It's expected, given the heavy traffic on the mountain. Some tour groups bring their own portable toilets, which is nice. Mine doesn't and I couldn't even get near the facilities without gagging, so I just dug holes.

7. It's pretty cold up at Barafu Camp at night. I'm someone who generally runs pretty cold temperature-wise, so I like to bring a silk sleeping bag liner. If your wife is like me, she'll appreciate this. Heat packets work great, too. Stick them between two layers of socks and voila.

8. Take the time to talk to your porters and guides. They are amazing people. It's easy to just stick to hanging out with the other English-speaking clients, but making the effort to get to know the people who are helping you get a successful summit is worth the time. The guides are all trained on local flora and fauna, the different animals you'll encounter, and lots of other fun facts. Ask them to teach you a few Swahili words and phrases to help you communicate with the porters.
Make sure to tip them well - they work very hard!

Lastly, have fun! It's a beautiful mountain and wonderful experience. You'll be just fine!

[Yukon Ron]

My Beautiful Wife and I have been extended an offer to join a climbing group to summit Kilimanjaro in 2017. Any info would be appreciated. We have done the 14ers, and Mt Blanc.
What is it like?

Do you know which route? The best way I can describe it is something like Elbert. Except 5,000 feet taller. There's nothing technically difficult about it on most of the routes. I did the Machame Route over 6 days in 2005. Plenty of others from here have done Kili as well and there are some detailed trip reports on here. As long as you handle the altitude fine and are in decent climbing shape then you should have a good chance of success.

I am considering the Lomosho Route at this time. It has been the one that I have studied for years.

I am just now going through PT for lower leg, ankle and foot surgery. I will be training my backside off in the coming months to get ready.

I have to admit, prior to the surgery, I declared after Mt Blanc, my summit days were over. There were many factors that influenced my decision; age, pre existing injury, potential liability to the team, that might have a negative effect on future attempts. We got caught, in freak weather, that was on us on the descent at 14K plus, of which we had zero warning. I think we were lucky to survive, and others within the group felt the same as well, as did our local guide.

I have thought this attempt, at Kilimanjaro, to be a once in a lifetime event for me. I would like to be able to make this trip in celebration of my new lease on life, with my reconstructive surgery. I do not expect it to be pain free, but I doubt it would be any worse than it was.

Thank you for the feedback.