Kilimanjaro Trek - Group 1

On Friday, August 3, 19 SAC students and three faculty members embarked on a trek to the 'Roof of Africa' - the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro. We hiked through cloud forest on the first day, ascending from 1800 m.a.s.l. to just over 3000 m.a.s.l. The lush vegetation was not what we expected on the mountain, but by Day 2 we left much of it behind as we climbed to 3900 m.a.s.l. at our next campsite. Despite the slow pace of ascent maintained by our guides, the altitude did start to have an effect on some members of the group by the end of Day 2. Fortunately, it was not yet to the point of preventing anyone from continuing on with the group. Our trek for Day 3 was designed to help with acclimatisation. The terrain was rugged in this high altitude desert and our pace was extremely slow; we hiked up to an altitude of 4600 metres before descending to our third site only slightly higher than the previous night. The theory is to climb high and sleep low, but it was a gruelling hike. Part way through this trek was the first time we had to split up as three students felt unable to continue climbing. They chose to take a short cut to the campsite and give up on the hope of reaching the summit. The morning of Day 4 marked the start of the longest 36 hours of most of our lives. We had a 9-hour hike of significant ups and downs before reaching base camp. After tea and dinner, we had about two hours of sleep before the guides woke us at 10:45 pm. We set out for the summit assault at 11:30 pm, part of a long line of trekers wearing head lamps. Six and a half hours of staring at the heals of the person in front of you, dealing with the bitter cold, and fighting the debilitating effects of oxygen depletion at that altitude made for an unbelievably long night. However, the sense of accomplishment when we finally did reach Uhuru Peak at 5895 metres was overwhelming. Watching the sunrise from the highest point in Africa was an unforgettable experience. We are incredibly proud of every member of the group; whether they summited or not, all of them gave their best effort in what might very well be the greatest test of physical and mental endurance they will ever face.