Day one started with checking in at the gate to the Kilimanjaro National Park where we had to give our names and passport numbers and sorted out our kit that we would be taking up the mountain. We met the porters who would be carrying our bags and also our tents/food/mats and generally anything else that we would need for the next six days. The porters and guides were amazing during the whole climb. Whilst we toiled up the mountain one step at a time, moaning about the altitude and how far we had to walk, the porters would literally run by, carrying impossible amount on their heads and on their backs without even breaking sweat. Without them helping us there was no way we could have even got to the 1st camp!
Day one was a steady incline through rainforest. It was sweaty and hot but a good chance for people to get to know each other and get in the swing of things. As anyone who has climbed to altitude before will know, one of the key ways to beat altitude sickness is to drink an unnatural amount of water… We’re literally talking about eight litres of water a day – which I’m sure is great for keeping you hydrated, but does also mean that you are required to “water the plants” or as the porters called it “send an email” almost every half hour… This took a bit of getting used to, but the group adapted well and we reached our first camp at around 1600 hours at an altitude of 3000m. We ate dinner in the “mess tent”, a long tent big enough to fit all 30 of us in which was greatly appreciated! For any Harry Potter fans, it reminded us of the Weasly’s tent from the Quidditch World Cup…
Morale was high and we headed off to bed early in preparation for our next day’s hike which would take us to 3800m.
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