Hakuna Matata - CNSO bassoon player on Kilimanjaro

It started 8 years ago after the departure from Japan where we climbed Mt. Fuji with couple of  friends, during the days off on the concert tour. I told my ten years old son about the volcano and also about other world mountains. One of them was Kilimanjaro, Africa's highest mountain. “Dad, we really gonna go there?” “Sure we are!!”

OK, here we go...
We started in Prague on February 1, 2009 heading for Munich airport.  From there we were flying to Amsterdam and then Nairobi.
 
We bought a complete license for the trek and Safari in Amboseli NP. The BIG TIME SAFARIS LTD. Nairobi agency met all the promised obligations as agreed. www.bigtimesafaris.co.ke & www.bigtimeholidays.com

It's now just get on the bus, put the luggage on the roof and get on the road to Tanzania. Well, the road was terrible, and the driver believed that faster he goes the bus can fly over the potholes . The road was under construction, so the quality varied, but that part of the road which stays in your mind is the worse one, and you can bet that your body's gonna feel it long time after you get off the bus.
 
We stayed over night in Arusha and the guides were waiting for us next morning in their Land Rover together with the cook, and the porter: Max, Ami, Ima a Kibosho. Three hours later we reached Marangu Gate (6.000 ft), starting point of our journey. Max did the paperworks and sorted out our luggage and the other porters as the weight limit is 15kg, and we were ready to go.
 
It's not particularly a tropical rain forest, but rather a green forest full of sounds. We saw monkeys, chameleons and many birds.

There are two main parts of the trek season: January-February and July – October. The rains are very likely during the rest of the year. It's not impossible to climb Kilimanjaro then, but it seems to be much more difficult: all the mud, cold temperatures, windy weather, and the clouds shade the summit. Imagine what a disappointment this must be climbing up the mountain and the only thing you can even hardly find is The Uhuru sign. Nothing can be seen, no glacier,  no sun rise...

On our early evening arrival to Mandara Huts /8.858 ft/ we're lucky again. We got a hut just for ourselves. It's only four young Americans who disturbed our sleep cursing with loud  F....KS. Earplugs worked it out quite reliably. 
 
We got on the trek again just after breakfast. There will be some stops for a piqnique on the way. Ima is an excellent cook, he prepared assorted selection of foods we can hardly eat all of it. 

Halfway to Horombo Huts /11.998 ft/ the forest disappears and here starts the fire blank. Last year the wind blew the fire several miles away and the vegetation burned for another two weeks. Now everyone promises that all will turn green again this year after rain season.
 
Our guides keep advising „pole, pole“ which means slowly, slowly. Max assured us of the bare fact that we can climb up only „pole, pole“!
We slept two nights in Horombo and spent the day by acclimatization trek on the Zebra Rocks /13.451 ft/. My head starts to ache, but it's  a typical symptom in higher altitudes. It would be normal to continue 1.000 ft up each day, but who's gonna pay for that?
And Martin feels absolutely OK.
 
Kili is such a huge massif that for many days you can only guess where the summit is depending on the weather.
 
We got pretty scared as we met an American fellow who fell down twice during the descend and  fairly bruised his elbow and shoulder. As he groaned all through the night he averred we have no chance to reach the top arguing that the journey is very very hard. I helped him bandage the bleeding toe, got him his socks, tied his laces and said Good Luck to him.
 
Again a beautiful weather was on the last but one day on the up-trek.. It became sort of a tradition: we get up early, but get overtaken by  the others later.
 
For many the trek on Kibo Huts ends with disappointment. A lot of them did not simply realize that the fast pace equals to fast end. Headache, bleeding nose, vomiting and diarrhea, all of that dehydrate.
 
Two eleven years old danish boys seemed like heroes to us when we saw them successfully returning from Gilman's.
 
Keep drinking! 4 – 5 liters a day, preferably sweet tea and water. The water from Kilimanjaro streams is the best in Africa.
 
We reached the Kibo camp /15.600 ft/ hopelessly last of all and long time after the dinner. Ami was scared already and set out to search for us.
We did not feel any pain, hakuna matata :-), but all tzhe beds were occupied already so they made our beds in the dining room.  
 
While all the others were getting ready for the night trek (much preferable for the frozen scree or snow and so easier to reach the cloudless top until 9 am), we met two Czechs  Ivoš and Tom have just returned from, the top. They took it straight way from Horombo to Kibo  and then to the summit. They made it in 3 and half hours from Kibo to Gilmans and then an hour to Uhuru Peak. It's still wonderful even though fro acclimatization they climbed a technical trek to Mt. Kenya. Moreover, they helped the guides persuade another American to descend while he insisted on„not leaving his hotel room“.
We were preparing our stuff and they were just about to sleep. Oh, well...
 
We started the final at 11 pm. Max brought tea in thermo bottles, some cookies and water.  We got some more warm clothes  and were first again to set out on the trek. Temperature 23°F...Max, Tom, Ami, Milan and Martin. Why the three guides? Because they bet I have only some 50% chance and so they got ready to carry me down. A Japanese and American collapsed just a day before. For all these events they have a special frame made of stainless wires with a motorbike wheel in the middle. The four porters carry it in case each in one corner and it's a real fun for them.
 
It's so easy from the beginning, but Max does not give over his slow pace. We make a stop for the refreshments..and we still have much strength and energy ..It's drizzling, snowing and we walk with no lights. But the „fireworks“ starts to be seen below. Tom has to leave as he suffers a strong head ache at Williams Point /16.404 ft). We are almost last again at Hans Mayer cave /16.900 ft/ (Hans Mayer was the first to climb the Kilimanjaro in 1889) and we see the smiling glow-worms ahead. Few impatient climbers pass along on their unwilling way down.

Now what happened! At the altitude of  18.045 ft I suddenly started to fall asleep,  I saw just the black spots and felt as if before collapse.  I would not even have dared to dream  what happened just a while later. Martin, my son, he gave his poles to one of the guides and started pushing me up. „We can't give it up now, Dad!“ He helped me another altitudinal 330 ft which took almost an hour. Some 2.300 ft higher than Mont Blanc! There are tears in my eyes as I write these words. Martin told me later that the laggards who were passing by were  shining at me with torches in disbelief. But I don't actually know as I was sleeping. But later suddenly I woke up  fresh and full of energy, and with the dawn we were closer to the Gilman's.
 
Max asked timidly: „Shall we go down?“ We both start to laugh. „He's kidding“, Ami  set things right. Uhuru Peak is visible from here, we only have to get round the crater.

This took us two more hours, however!

February 7th, 2009. At 9.15 am we reach the Uhuru Peak 19.341 ft , the peak of our dreams. All the fellows (some 30 people: Japanese, Swiss, Germans, Dutch).  are already here and they're about to leave. The temperature feels good (59°F) and the blue sky, the view of glaciers, all of this is just wonderful. We're taking some more pictures, toasting the success with champagne and think of our relatives.
Max is lighting his cigarette, Martin is taking pictures and we set out on the way back.

It's not very easy to go down. The poles are a necessary equipment and we use them all the way. 

We can rest at Kibo Hut, and then with a night stop at Horombo we aim to Marangu.
I ordered beer (of course, Kilimanjaro label) and the coke (they call this trek Coca-Cola Route) for our team at the local pub.
 
Max did the paperwork again and brought the certificates confirming that we have reached the three summits: Kili, Gilman's, Stella and Uhuru:) what a nice feeling!
 
Now we're heading for another adventure!
The bus is waiting for us and other three fellows (German, Swiss and French) keep us company on the way to National Park Amboseli, Kenya. Scared of lions we slept two nights in the car. They were heard outside, and also elephants' excrements were all around the tent, so we were not really sure... All the others were happy (hakuna matata). But I'm responsible for the child, am I? But it was OK in the car, comfortable and with no insect...
The best views of Kili are those from Amboseli, overlooking the vegetation or animals' backs.
 The skyline of Kilimanjaro is absolutely inspiring, amazing and unrepeatable.
 
Milan Sládek, bassoon player  /published with permission from the management of the orchestra/