Day 3 - Hiking From Moir Camp to Pofu Camp - 24 Sep 2014

Our night in Moir Camp was clear and cold.  Those who ventured out of their tents after dark saw a sky full of bright stars.  As the sun went down, and as we got up the next morning, we were treated to great views of the Shira Plateau below and to the west of us.

We went through the morning routine of getting dressed and layered based on the recommendations of our guides the night before.  We packed water and snacks and some of us who carried day packs loaded those up.  We separated our gear in the tents between the stuff our personal porters would be carrying and the materials our camp porter would shoulder.  The personal porters stayed with each climber the entire day so it was possible for individual climbers to hike without a day pack, if desired.

While we were preparing for the day's hiking and getting ready to go to breakfast, hot coffee, tea, or cocoa was delivered to the door of our tents.  We also each received a basin of warm water for washing up before breakfast.  This was a daily morning routine.

At a pre-arranged time, we all met at the mess tent, washed our hands under the supervision of the camp waiter, Pasco, and were then allowed to take our seats.  No meals were ever served until Pasco had personally ensured we all had washed our hands with hot water and soap!  No exceptions!

 

Starting to depart from Moir Camp at elevation 13,700 ft. We scale the wall immediately in front and then continue to the ridge for a rest stop just to the left of the rock knob in the middle.  That knob is about the height of Mt Rainier in Washington state.

It is a beautiful morning.  We march past the derelict hut at Moir Camp that was installed there some years ago by a research team.  Our access to the top of this first rock wall is the sunlit notch left of center.  Climbers visible include Robert DeWolf (nearest), then Tom Reveley, and on the left in red gaiters, Rich Wortley.

Getting to the top of the first rock wall is easier than it appeared from a distance.

Looking back from where we started, we can see Mt Meru in the distance. It is nearer Arusha and 15,000 ft. tall.  It is climbed by many visitors to Tanzania.  The near depression below is the Moir Camp and the larger basin below it is a portion of the Shira Plateau where we had our first camp on the mountain.

If you look closely, you can see some of our porters approaching us from below.  You can also see some tents in the Moir Camp area.

Starting out, the "rabbits" and "turtles" are hiking together.

Tom Reveley on the left and Rich Wortley on the right, our two most senior climbers.  The Western Breach can be seen behind and between them.  It is another access route to the crater and the summit, but is generally steeper and more technical than other routes.  There used to be large glaciers sitting in the Western Breach, but they have disappeared, in some cases in the form of large ice and rock avalanches which caused this route to be closed from many years. 

 

Another view of the Shira Plateau below us and to our west.  It was once a volcano over 16,000 ft. tall that blew itself to bits.  The crater has since been filled with ash and lava debris coming from later eruptions of Kibo.

David Still with his personal porter Aaron on the left and his camp porter on the right.

Our tents, sleeping bags, and mattresses are coming up behind us now.  Soon this group of camp porters will pass us and go forward to our next camp location. The sleeping tents, mess tents, and outhouses they carry will be set up and ready for us when we arrive.

This flower is very common on Mt Kilimanjaro and is called the everlasting flower as it retains its white blossoms even when they are long past their prime.  Helichrysum newii.  Grows in the Heather and Moorland vegetation zones.

We are on the march toward Pofu Camp.  The guides and climbers are in the middle as the porters pass us on our left.

Looking up toward Kibo in the distance.  The nearer peaks are all higher than Mt. Rainier.

Good view of the Shira Plateau to our west and the Shira Crater rim.



This rock looks like obsidian, or volcanic glass.

At this elevation, there are very few plants that survive.

Note the colorful mix of lichens on the local basalt rock.

One of our guides taking a rest when we do.  We stop frequently for water and are expected to drink 3-4 liters of water daily.

Assistant Guide Sam on the left and Head Guide Pendaely on the right.

View of a large glacier on the north side of the Kibo rim.

We are traversing the north flank of Kibo and when we arrive at the Pofu Camp, we will be almost directly north of the Uhuru summit.  Pofu means eland in the local language.  Both eland and cape buffalo sometimes range this high in search of salt licks on the mountain.

Local wild flowers are few and far between at these elevations. These  need to be positively  identified, but are most likely also members of the Helichrysum genus like the everlasting flower.  Most flowers we saw at the highest elevations were white or yellow.

Looking toward the north crater rim of Kibo.



A field of everlasting flowers on the north slope of Kilimanjaro.

Good hiking weather and views on this stretch of the trail.

A relative of the common carrot.  Our guides indicate it is not edible.

Example of senecio or giant groundsel.

Often only lichen like the one on this boulder can be found at high elevations on Mt Kilimanjaro.  Such lichen grow very slowly and can be very old.



Everlasting flowers.

The crater rim is still far away.

 

Typical mixture of lava rock formations and vegetation in the Moorlands.

 

Our first view of Mt. Mawenzi, a 17,000 ft. remnant from an ancient volcano on Kibo's east side.  We will have another 3 days on the trail before we arrive at the Mawenzi Tarn Camp at its base. 

 

 

Anthony Welcher and Jennifer Lindwall looking for a cell phone signal from our camp at the end of the day. 

 

Thomas Reveley, resident of Bainbridge Island, and still an employee of Merrill Lynch after 50+ years.  Graduated from University of Idaho as a forester.

 

 

Anthony Welcher may have a signal on his kiliPhone?
 

 

Richard Wortley is another kiliPhone user.

 

 

L-R Jennifer Lindwall, Anthony Welcher, and Rich Wortley, all of Seattle. Posing in front of one of the "standing" tents that came with a cot and solar powered LED lights that some climbers elected to use.  Comfortable, but much colder than the smaller mountaineering tents in which we slept in sleeping bags right on mattresses on the ground. 

 

Alicia Chapman.  A cardiac nurse who lives in Denver.

 

Alicia, our  youngest climber, stands next to Malala, the oldest porter.  He is 64.

 

White-necked ravens are big and bold and we see them everywhere we set up camp.

 

Robert DeWolf washing up for the next meal under the stern eye of waiter Pasco.

 

The elevation of the Pofu Camp is about 13,200 ft., roughly 500 ft. lower than the Moir Camp.  Except for the early morning climb to the ridge above Moir Camp at an elevation is excess of 14,000 ft., most of our day was spent on good trails traversing the north flank of Kibo on the contour with a gradual descent into Pofu Camp in mid-afternoon.  Hiking time was between 5-7 hours for everyone in the group.

 

In the next blog post, we will describe our hike from the Pofu Camp to the Rongai Caves Camp 2 at approximately 11,450 ft.  We are going to sleep lower for the next two nights to help our acclimatization to the altitude.