Baridi (cold)
Kilimanjaro National Park, Tanzania
December 27, 2015
Last night was cold. While I was in my sleeping bag I would get chilly sensation in one area of my back, then it would radiate outward like ripples from a stone tossed into a pond. To combat the cold I wore 3 pairs of socks with hand warmers, two base layers plus one pair of pants, 2 shirts, a fleece, a neck warmer, a balaclava, a thin pair of gloves with hand warmers and my down jacket while inside my sleeping bag and sleeping bag liner (pulled over my head). Brrr!
I woke in the morning to sounds of ravens cawing, campers and porters chatting and singing, and cooking utensils clanging. I slept OK between toilet breaks and took some Immodium to settle my stomach. I had a bit of a headache, but was feeling OK Getting closer.
Our first climb was a bit steep and we stopped for a rest at 4400m. So far we had not been fogged in, the rain has not started and we could see the sun! What a bonus!
The next sections were a gradual climb, then a flat valley. We played leap frog all day with the honeymooners from NYC and their guide, Julius, who was Isaac's brother-in-law.
Earlier in the day Bosco pointed out one of the few female porters. I asked him how the male porters feel about having women around and his long pause before answering spoke volumes.
Although we had a short trek today, I was not feeling 100%. The last big climb before camp was really draining physically and emotionally for me. My hip flexors and calves were particularly sore during the climb today and I knew it was only going to get harder from here on out.
The site is really large and very rocky. The guys selected a cozy little spot among some rocks to keep us sheltered from the wind, and we had an amazing view of Moshi and the summit Last Stop Before the Top.
We arrived in camp before noon and I had a nap before and after lunch. Something has not been agreeing with my stomach for the past day, so I started avoiding the fresh fruit. We also realized that Bill was being conservative with the water purification tablet in our water, so I started increasing the number of tablets that we were using.
After waking up from my nap I noticed that the temperature has dropped significantly. We carbed up at dinner, then headed back to our tent for more sleep before our 23:00 wake up call for our final ascent! At 23:30 I had a bite of tea biscuit and 2 sips of tea before Isaac and Bosco shooed us out of camp and onto the trail. It is cold, but clear and the near full moon is aiding the use of our headlamps. I am amazed by the millions of twinkling stars!
