Break In Time

Castle Peak - 14,265ft
One week after Mt Bierstadt, on July 3rd, My dad, son, Aunt Jan and Uncle Lloyd and I traveled to Castle Peak which is near Aspen. This area is truly filled with breathtaking views in all directions. We left My Aunt and Uncle's at around 5 in the morning. Anything before 8 a.m. is blurry to me so the time could have been a little later. I had just purchased (thanks Brooke) a new set of climbing/hiking boots and was eager to "break" them in. Well this climb certainly provided a variety of conditions to test them and me, on. From snow fields several hundreds of feet long to scree (very loose gravely rock) crossings and larger rock climbing, all provide unique challenges. I would say my boots and I passed the test.

This was a special climb because of the presence of family members who help make experiences even more memorable and enjoyable. Thank you Uncle Lloyd for making it to the top with me.

Mt. Kili Trek Agenda

Aug 29: Hit the mountain at Machame Gate, climb to Machame camp, 9,900ft.
Aug 30: Shira camp, 12,600ft.
Aug 31: Barranco camp, 15,180ft.
Sept 1: Barranco camp, 15,180ft. Acclimating climb Barranco Wall 16,500 feet.
Sept 2: LavaTower camp, 15,180ft,
Sept 3: Arrow Glacier camp,16,090ft.
Sept 4: Crater camp via Western Breach, 18,750ft.
Sept 5: Summit Uhuru Peak, 19,340ft, then descend to Mweka, 10,010ft.
Sept 6: descend to Mweka Gate

Like I said before, one of my main concerns is the altitude. September 2nd - 5th will be new territory for me, higher than I have been on the ground before. Notice there are 2 listings for the Barranco, one is the VERY important acclimatization day.

Week 1, First climb

June 25, 2005

Mt Bierstadt - 14,060ft

The Journey and beginning

Over one month has passed since I accepted the offer from my brother Don to join him and several others, including my sister Kara, on a trek to Tanzania, Africa to climb Mt Kilimenjaro. I should have actually accepted sooner, but I will go into that later. He has been talking about it for months and planning (at least in his mind) and even asked me a few times if I was interested. I know on several occasions in which I procrastinated in answering and therefore avoiding the blatant "No". I guess fearing that by saying no it would actually close the door on the opportunity, and somehow by not admitting that I could not make it, would seem like a possibility remained even with time running out.

The obstacles.

School and funding. My brother can be persistent with some things and absolutely complaisant and non-action with other things. This was one of the persistent times. We spoke on the phone one Friday afternoon and I explained my issues, but was greatly interested in taking part of the trek to a place where I have always wanted to go and experience even as a child. After all my favorite land animal of all time is the Cheetah. What a rush that would be to see them in their natural habitat on the plain of Africa! Yes, I know. So we continued to chat and he expressed quite briefly as per his usual, that he would really like it if I joined the group. He stated that he could front me some of the funds and that I should check into changing my school schedule. My excitement grew enormously from this enlightening news. Almost as though a weight had been lifted from me and my fearing answer "no" was no longer an option. Who says procrastination does not pay off?

School, I am so nearly finished with my bachelor’s degree that I can taste it. As of the conversation, I only had three classes left to complete. The third and final one was to take place right in the middle of this African trek. That just would not do. I even have the date of my last night circles and highlighted with stars signifying the finally. I think I can safely say that I would not mind extending the finish date for such an occasion, once in a life time opportunity, quite possibly. I have certainly made more than a few people envious when revealing my plans for the journey to them, further strengthening my decision to proceed. I knew that my remaining classes were merely elective courses that were needed to meet the graduation requirements, so I figured that it could be quite possible to adjust the schedule. I contacted my academic counselor to start the process.

The training.

Well I certainly started to dig deep into researching past treks up the tallest mountain on the African continent. I searched for signs and clues that would direct my personal preparation. Scanning the daily agenda of the trek seemed challenging for certain. Two main concerns entered my mind as I searched, the high altitude (19,335ft (5895m)) and weather conditions. I must address both concerns in order to improve my chances at reaching the summit. Seeing as I reside in the Mile High city (5280 ft above sea level), I already have an advantage on the entire group that I am now a part of. Most of the group is from the Houston area and one, being my sister, is from San Francisco all of which are obviously at sea level. I was not content to rely on my altitude advantage to get me by. Colorado is known in the outdoor climbing community as being excellent for having 54 mountains legitimately over 14,000 feet. I have climbed somewhere between 10 and 14 of them in my past. Unfortunately I have not done any documentation to dictate exactly which of them I have been on top of, but I do know several for certain including Mt Elbert and Mt Massive being the tallest and second tallest in Colorado respectively. I set a goal for my two month preparation, 4 more 14ers in 2 months.


More to follow...