Day 2 - Hiking From Shira 1 Camp to Moir Camp - 23 Sep 2014

In spite of darkening skies the night of the 22nd of September, the morning of the 23rd of September dawned bright and sunny with great views of Mt Kilimanjaro to our east as well as expansive views of the vast Shira Plateau which contained our first camp on the mountain.  As we hiked toward Camp Moir at 13,700 ft. elevation, the size of the Shira Plateau was slowly revealed.

Shira was a massive volcano before Kibo erupted and it eventually exploded and collapsed leaving a large crater.  With the many eruptions of neighboring Kibo that followed, the Shira crater was eventually filled with ash and lava and today forms a massive plateau.  Portions of the Shira crater rim are still visible, especially on the west and south sides of the plateau.


The west rim of the Shira Plateau is nearly 13,000 ft. high in places.  Shira 1 Camp elevation is about 11,500 ft.  Heather and moorland vegetation types are common.



As we hike east toward Kibo, we can look back at Shira 1 Camp.  The building here, and similar buildings at several other camps, are new since our last trip up the mountain in 2009.  They house Kilimanjaro National Park rangers and staff and are used to check on permits and help organize responses to emergencies. 

Gary Drobnack's camp porter Ayub Rashidi on the left and personal porter Hussein Hussein on the right.

 

We start hiking in the direction of Kibo and the Moir Camp.  The climbers have divided into two groups.  The first and faster group are called the "Rabbits" and the second and slower group are called the "Turtles".



 

Apparently, emergency vehicles have road access to Shira 2 Camp at roughly 12,500 ft. and sick or injured climbers are often brought there to be evacuated.

This giant lobelia (Lobelia deckenii) is characteristic of the moorland
zone on Mt Kilimanjaro.

Another common plant in the moorland zone is Stoebe kilimandsharica.

As we gain elevation and look back east toward the Shira Plateau, we can start to appreciate its vast scale. The Shira volcano reached a height greater than 5,000 m. before it exploded and collapsed leaving a gaping crater that has since been filled by lava and ash from Kibo eruptions.

View toward the Shira Needle and  Shira Cathedral on the south rim of the Shira Plateau.

To our right front as we ascend toward Moir Camp, we get a glimpse of the west flank of Kibo.  This cloud sits in what is called the Western Breach which is one of the more challenging routes to the summit.

Time for lunch on our way to Moir Camp.  Some porters continue to stream past us to start setting up the rest of the camp before our arrival later in the afternoon.  Robert DeWolf and Anthony Welcher are trading stories in front of the mess tent.  The mess tent will come down once we are done eating and will pass us on the backs of porters during our afternoon trek.

One of the "Rabbits" taking a quick snooze before lunch.

Alicia Chapman and Chris Branch from Denver CO are in the lunch line.



Jennifer Lindwall, aka Goldilocks at the Igoda Primary School in the Mufindi Highlands, also awaits our midday meal.

Rick Billingham.  Note glaciers high on the rim of Kibo.

We are on the march again and the "Rabbits" are out in front.

One of the camp or kitchen porters hurries past us with a load on his head bound for the Moir Camp.  The mess tent, the toilet tents, and our sleeping tents will all be ready when we arrive at the Moir Camp.

Looking down into the Shira Plateau as we gain more elevation.  Our Shira 1 Camp was near the far edge of the grassy-looking meadow in the distance.

 

The "Turtles" are taking their time as we get closer to the Moir Camp.  The closest ""Turtle" is Tom Miller, then David Still, and finally Tom Reveley (in black parka).  Our route the next day will take us just left of the little rock knob in the saddle.  Our elevation at the point will be higher than Mt Rainier in Washington state.

Gaining more elevation above the Shira Plateau below.

We will hike for roughly 6 hours in getting to Moir Camp from Shira 1 Camp.

Trekkers and porters ascend the near ridge to the front. 

Tom Reveley scoping out the route ahead of us that remains to be done before we can clean-up and have dinner.

David Still catching his breath in the thin air.

Tom Miller offers Assistant Guide Deo an energy snack.

A close-up view of giant lobelia leaves.  At this time of year, and at the higher elevations above the Forest Zone, there are relatively few plants showing much in the way of green color.

We are now much closer to the point on the ridge we will cross tomorrow soon after we start hiking.  This valley takes us to the Moir Camp which is still out of sight and to the right.  A game trail used by Cape Buffalo and Giant Eland follows the valley below us.  These animals sometimes come this high up to find salt which is abundant in some of the nearby caves.

Our trail follows this lava bluff which contains some caves where we find Cape Buffalo tracks.

Often, the lava rocks in this area are covered with orange, and sometimes green, varieties of lichen which are quite bright.

Here we pass a shallow cave which contains salt licks and where we see some Cape Buffalo tracks.

This is the bench that contains Moir Camp. The teepee-like structure is a ruin from an earlier research project.  It is no longer in use.  Our tents and those of some other trekkers are barely visible on the far right.

We have arrived at Moir Camp and our tents await us.

Tomorrow's route takes us above the near rock band and to the left of the rock knob on the far left.

This is the camp of another group doing the Grand Traverse.



  

David Still is uncharacteristically wearing a square, blue halo today instead of the usual golden, round one.

  

Rich Wortley, in silhouette, is checking out our camp surroundings and the terrain behind and  below us.

 

 

 

Panorama shot of Moir Camp.

  

Telephoto view of one the glaciers on the crater rim high above us.

 

Close-up of the old research station. Our porters are wearing their Thomson-issued parkas and rainpants for warmth.

   

Another view of our camp.

  

Three of our Assistant Guides, L-R Philip, Nestor, and Deo are standing by to brief us after dinner about how we need to prepare for the following day in terms of gear, water supplies, and snacks.

 

The next blog post will cover our trek between the Moir Camp at 13,700 ft elevation and the Pofu Camp where we will are headed.  The Pofu Camp is directly north of Mt Kilimanjaro at elevation 13,209 ft.

 

Thus far, no one among the Mufindi Mountaineers has had any serious reactions to the higher elevation.