Run with the Pack!

So I ran to work today, first, to try to get back to the habit of running, and second (and equally important) to try to get a feel for running with a back-pack (essential if this Marathon des Sables attempt is to be at all realistic.) Fortunately, my run to work is short, less than half-an-hour (though fairly tough and hilly.)

The good news: I felt strong, if a bit fatigued. The bad news: the pack, small as it was, made a significant difference to the run. I managed to fill it completely with my clothes and shoes for the working day, as well as a towel and shampoo. The little pack was bulging at the seams. More concerning, my running experience was quite a lot changed. I could feel the weight of it on my back, and my running gait felt a lot more awkward. I could also feel a much greater pressure on the quads. Fortunately, this pack sits very nicely on the back, and once the various straps are cinched, there is very little movement. However, the 30 minute run to work felt significantly more difficult with the back-pack. (Although, I ran home again this evening, so the pack is manageable.) It'll be interesting to see, though, how I adapt on longer, more challenging runs.

First Preparation Run

I've taken a first baby step - a seven-mile run to the Presidio and back. A very small step, but on a warm San Francisco day, I felt very comfortable (despite not having done any real running for some time.) I credit it to my experiment with Bikram Yoga in the past couple of weeks. I really feel that, in a short space of time, my breathing has improved, and my core is strengthened, and it has made my running easier. (Still - baby steps. Let's see how the next few runs go.)

More preparation: I have purchased my first "running" backpack (a pack dedicated to trail running. Apparently, it sits tight on the back, no jiggling, and no sweat on the back. We shall see...)

So, next week, the plan is to do some slightly more ambitious runs, to/from work, using said back-pack. A good test...

Marathon des Sables

I am now actively trying to get entry into the Marathon des Sables. (Not an easy thing, as the race is usually booked up a few years in advance.) However, I have managed to get onto a waiting list -- I am 12th in line! - and there is apparently a very good chance that I'll make the race, as there are typically a lot of late cancellations.

So, what started as a whim and a fairly fantastical idea is becoming more of a reality. Though, what it does mean is that I need to start running! The race happens in early April '10, so I still have plenty of time to prepare. I have already begun considering long races and ultras (a new thing for me) as preparation for the race. I have noted the following possibilities in the next few months:

10/3/09	Gold Country Trail Run 50K/20M/25K/8M	50K/20M/25K/8 Mile	Auburn	CA
10/10/09	Mammoth Lakes Ultra Marathon 50K	50K/25K	Mammoth Lakes	CA
10/24/09	Jenkinson Lake Fall Trail Runs	50K/24M/16M/8M	Sly Park(Pollock Pines)	CA
10/31/09	Helen Klein Ultra Classic	50K/50M/30K	Sacramento	CA
11/14/09	Folsom Point Trail Runs	50K/25K/7M	Folsom Lake	CA
12/5/09	The North Face Endurance Challenge Series	50K/50M	San Francisco	CA

Not too sure how far I'm going to go with this, but I have already put down a £500 deposit, and I am slowly but surely beginning to treat it as a real, serious, project. (And - no small matter! - Madonna may be taking part!)

Day 5: to Karanga Camp (3930 m)

The morning is cool, but not as cold as on previous mornings. Today, we have to scale the fairly imposing Barranco Wall. Bruce talks of starting early, to beat the traffic of other groups and porters all headed in the same direction, but we get started at 9 AM as usual. We immediately get caught in a crush of porters and other hikers on the way up.

We quickly reach a steep rock wall -- the Barranco Wall, and we start to hike up. Parts of the climb require a bit of scrambling. It's fairly tough but exhilarating. Everyone enjoys it, despite the fast that porters are climbing past and around us all the way. (They are taking astonishing risks to get to the top of the Wall with their loads.)

However, we get to the top inside an hour and take in the astonishing vista around us, with the peak and glaciers directly above us.

Left: taking pictures at the top of the Barranco Wall.

Take off again along a trail of scree and pebbles. We soon see the Karanga Camp in the distance ahead of us. This seems easy. However, Bruce tells us that we have a big descent into a canyon and an ascent back up before we reach it.

We struggle through the difficult, rather dangerous descent and then make our way up to the camp. (Bruce tells us that the descent is the most difficult part of the entire Lemosho Trail, even more difficult than any part of the hike on Summit Night -- but we're a bit skeptical...)

Anyway, in to camp by 1:30 PM and we're done for the day!











I nap for a while and we have dinner around 6 PM -- soup and some deeply fried chicken. Nobody is hungry. Bruce comes in and starts to talk about Summit Night (coming up soon -- late the following night.) Sounds like it's going to be very cold and I'm not at all sure I have enough layers for it. I'm getting concerned!

Bed again by 8:30 PM. I sleep well till about 4 AM despite a distinct slope on the tent floor! Up again at 6:15 AM and getting prepared for the big day ahead.

Day 4: to Barranco Camp (3940 m)

Wake again at 6 AM -- it's freezing outside! We get moving quickly. Our aim is to reach the Lava Tower by lunch, the highest point (at 4600 m) we'll reach before summit night. I'm finding the going to be fairly easy and I have no symptoms of altitude sickness.

Left: the Lava Tower

I ask Bruce about the Abramovich thing -- he confirms that the guy is indeed on the mountain & he registered at the camps along the way. (Apparently, lots of other celebrities have also been there recently. He mentioned Arjen Robben and Guus Hiddink from Dutch football - just a few weeks earlier, and even Justin Timberlake! Suddenly, my great Kilimanjaro climb doesn't seem so impressive.) Even the US Marines come here occasionally -- cutting off all telecommunications traffic on the mountain when they need to update their website...!

We reach the Lava Tower by about 1 PM. The early heat is giving way to much colder conditions, as it clouds over. After leaving the Lava Tower, it is a steep descent down almost all the way to Barranco Camp. There are rocky sections, and our guide, Fuat is racing down, seemingly in a hurry to reach the camp. Dave takes a tumble on the way down, and bruises his thigh. (Furtunately, it seems to be a fairly minor injury.)

We reach a grove of cactus-like plants (senecio plants) that grow to be up to 8-10 feet tall.

Right: Nitin next to a senecio plant

We finally reach Barranco Camp around 3:30 PM. It is a small city of tents with a view over the plain and the city of Moshi, and with the Kili peak looming overhead.







Left: the summit from Barranco Camp


There are lots of people at the camp - a number of different routes meet here, including the Lemosho and Macheme routes. I wander around after tea, and meet some folks from San Francisco (almost in the same neighborhood as me...) Dinner is getting a bit monotonous at this stage - another peculiar concoction of noodles and some sort of beef stew/curry. It's a bit warmner at this camp than it has been the past few nights. However, I still quickly get in to my tent & I'm asleep again by 9 PM. I wake briefly at about 3 AM - when I get out of the tent, I can see the lights of the city of Moshi below, and a bright sky of stars above.

Day 3: to Moir Hut (4200 m)

I stick my head out of the tent at 6 AM, and there's frost everywhere! It soon warms up - it is very warm by 7:30 AM. I'm filthy - yesterday's trail and the campsite are covered in a fine dust that gets everywhere.

We consider Bruce's options and decide to head for the Moir Hut, the higher destination. Soon, we're off, on Day 3 of the trek. Today's terrain is more desert-like, similar to the Californian desert.

Everyone in the group seems to be in good shape, though some in the group are complaining about side effects from the Diamox medication we all took (that prevents or alleviates altitude sickness.) Dave is complaining about tingling sensations in the hands and feet. (We've started to refer to it as "doing the Diamox dance"...!)
Left: Dave (left) and Nitin (right)
Below: Donal (lying down) & Daniela

We stop for lunch in an open, rocky area, around 1:15 PM, and we have the (by now) usual lunch of soup and sandwich (consisting of carrot and some mystery fish). Going again, we trek through a rocky passage, and along a narrow ledge. Eventually we see the campsite in the distance -- a good thing. Some in the group are struggling a bit. Bruce tells me the camp, Moir Hut, is also called Fischer Camp, in honor of Scott Fisher, the famous climbing guide who lost his life on Everest in 1996.

Left: Bruce and Fuat looking at the elephant skull at Moir Camp.

We're all tired but ok. We take a brief break and get dinner in a wind-swept dining tent. (Chicken! Though bizarrely small little wings and thighs...) There is a crazy duststorm blowing and the dining tent is getting engulfed in dust (and very cold.) We finish off quickly and go straight to bed.

We hear an interesting detail from Bruce: apparently, Roman Abramovich is also hiking the Lemosho Trail, and is 3 days ahead of us. Interesting...

Day 2: to Shira 1 Camp (3500 m)

Good breakfast of fried eggs. Get on the way by 8:30 AM through forested terrain that's quite different from yesterday.

Left: our guides, Fuat, the assistant guide (or Fortune, or Fortunata! -- Arsenal man, and also apparently a bit of a ladies' man in Moshi) on the left, and Bruce, our guide, on the right.

Feeling good -- Bruce sets an easy pace. We stop along the way to see an eagle eating a catch up above us. The terrain gets drier as we continue ascending. Eventually we reach the top of a ridge and can look out over the Shira Plateau below. In the distance we get a view of Kili under cloud, our first sight of the mountain peak. We descend down on to the plateau - we can see the campsite in the distance. We finally get in to camp at around 4 PM - a fairly early day. The tents have already been set up by the porters.

Fairly mediocre dinner of rice and a very suspect fish. It is freezing in the tent, worse outside. Bruce discusses our options for the following day - we have the choice of heading for a lower or a higher camp the following day. The advantage of going to the higher one is that we'll spend a night at much higher elevation (4200 m), and have a better chance of acclimatizing. We go outside and see a field of brilliant stars. It is too cold, though, so I flee to bed. I try to read for a while but I quickly fall asleep. I have a fitful night's sleep, and I an awake again by 6 AM.

Day 1: to Mti Mkubwa Camp (2750 m)

After arrival at Kilimanjaro Airport, I passed easily through customs and immigration, and my bag arrived quickly and safely -- big relief! (I think getting the Tanzanian visa in advance saved on some big delays.) There was a scrum of guys waiting with hand-written signs, once we exited. Eventually, we located the guy holding the "Zara" sign - he would be our driver to Moshi. (It turns out that the US trekking company, "Ultimate Kilimanjaro" subcontracts everything in Tanzania out to a local outfit called "Zara Tours". Zara would be managing all aspects of the trip from here till I returned to the airport at the end.) A number of other travelers were rounded up and we were on our way to Moshi to the hotel, the Springlands Hotel.

The room was ok - bit hot and small, and the shower didnt work at all, but these were minor details. I got a beer and a trademark cheese and tomato sandwich, and tried to prepare for the following day. A group of Irish guys nearby were discussing their coming trip. There was a general air of activity and movement in the place. I was ready to go with the hike...

The next morning, after breakfast, I was packed and waiting at the main entrance with a bit group of other travelers. There was a general sense of mild chaos and nobody seemed to know exactly what was going on. Eventually, we were all assigned to different groups and loaded onto vans. (In my group's case, we all squeezed on to a beat up Land Rover -- it seemed we had to travel across some very rough terrain to get to our starting point!) We were also introduced to our guide, Bruce, who would be leading us along the Lemosho trail to the summit and back.

We head off towards our starting point, the Londrossi Gate, but we soon stop to get "supplies" at a local supermarket. (Seems like a bit of a scheme to throw some tourist business to their friends at the supermarket.) In any case, I oblige, and get a packet of Ginger Snap biscuits for the outrageous price of $4.

Off again, the road surface gets increasingly rough. We pass out of the populated areas on to dirt roads with scrub & rocks at either side. The driver stops along the way to point out herds of zebra and wildebeest near the roadside -- we get right up to them!


Finally, we get to the Londrossi Gate and get some lunch. The porters join us in a large covered truck. They take our larger duffle bags and we drive again, over a horrendous rutted road, to the start of the trek.

Soon enough, we get there. We get our day packs on and I try out my walking poles for the first time -- it's 3:30 PM and we're finally started on the first day of the hike.

The pace is fairly easy, though my stomach is not feeling strong. All around there is rich vegitation and fairly dense forest. We can hear the croaking of monkeys all around. Occasionally, we see a few -- colubus monkeys with black and white coloring and long tails, a bit like flying skunks (they are flitting around in the trees above). We finally make it to our first camp, Mti Mkubwa (Big Trees) after about 3 hours.

Our tents are set up as is our personalized outhouse! we get a dinner of leek soup, potatoes and some fairly tough but very tasty spicy beef. There are strong wafts of pot around the campsite - this is clearly the porters' way to "acclimatize". It's very cold outside so I get into bed in the tent by 9 PM and immediately drop into sleep. I wake again at 4 AM, and am roused again from a fitful sleep by a monkey chorus at about 6 AM. Time for Day 2...

Bound for Tanzania

I had booked a hiking trip to go to the top of Mount Kilimanjaro using the Lemosho route. After much planning, and anticipation, it was time... I was on my way!


The trekking company we selected was Ultimate Kilimanjaro, middle-of-the-road in terms of cost (not the cheapest but certainly far from the most expensive.) They have a good reputation, as far as we could tell, from online comments, and word-of-mouth. (I was paying $1875.00 for the 8 day trip - not cheap, but a lot is provided for you on the trip, including accomodation and food, and porters to lug all the baggage up the mountain!)

And the Lemosho route was chosen also based on positive online comments. In particular, the Lemosho route is longer, 8 days, compared to 4 and 5 days for some of the other routes, and as a result there should be more time to acclimatize to the altitude and less likelihood of suffering debilitating altitude-related problems. (This was a big deal for me - my previous attempt at a high-altitude hike, or Longs Peak in Colorado, ended badly for me. I hiked too fast to high altitude without being adequately acclimatized, and I started to get crushing headaches, had no appetite, and eventually called it quits and descended without getting to the summit of the mountain.) Another reason for Lemosho was that it was described as the most scenic of the routes, passing through a diverse variety of different terrains and climate zones during the 5/6 days before the final Summit night.

Kilimanjaro is a long way from the States, but most people travel there using the same route -- flight to Amsterdam, then a direct flight from Amsterdam to Kilimanjaro Airport (which is just a couple of hours away from the main gate of the Kilimanjaro National Park. I flew to Amsterdam, and spent a day there in an attempt to break up the very long journey. The next stage, the flight to Kilimanjaro, was the crucial one. There were many stories of luggage being lost on that route (indeed, I met a few people during the trip whose luggage had been lost or delayed) so I tried to organize things so that I had all the essentials on my person or in my carry-on - my hiking day-pack. (Particularly, my boots and my warm clothes for the final ascent - very difficult to replace if they went missing.)

In any event, the flight to Kilimanjaro went without a hitch and all my baggage arrived without problem. (It was surprising for me how many tourists were on he plane and how few Tanzanians - I had been expecting a slightly different experience, flying to Africa, but we could just as easily have been flying to JFK, judging by the passengers...)

10 PM - I had landed in Africa, and I was ready for the trek. (Now, things seemed exotic, and I was excited and looking forward to it.)

Kilimanjaro

Having just returned from hiking up Mount Kilimanjaro, I'm going to attempt to describe the trip, my experiences during the hike, and my recommendations and suggestions for any of you planning to attempt the climb. It was a memorable, challenging journey for me, and one that's finally prompting me to start a blog!