We awake in the middle of a very cold night.
The Turtles are asked to get up, get ready, eat, and leave for Gilman's Point about an hour earlier than the Rabbits. On this day there will be 7 Rabbits and 5 Turtles.
The Turtles are led by Tom Reveley and also include Tom Miller, David Still, Jennifer Gladwell, and Gary Drobnack.
The Rabbits on the summit day include Rick Billingham, Alexandra Branch, Chris Branch, Alicia Chapman, Robert DeWolf, Anthony Welcher, and Rich Wortley.
As we move up from the Kibo Hut Camp, we are still in the shadows and the first sight as we gain elevation is the top of Mawenzi Peak to our east and an orange-pink sky on the horizon signaling the imminent appearance of the sun.
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| Top of Mawenzi Peak to our east. |
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Assistant Guide Deo looking east toward Mawenzi Peak. At this hour of the day, we have a clear sky above Kibo to our west.
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The Turtles following their guides and personal porters. We are traveling in what is called the Arctic Zone. There is no vegetation except for the lichens we see on the bigger boulders and rock faces.
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| Kibo Hut Camp is below the clouds behind the Turtles. |
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As we gain elevation, the heavy cloud layer which surrounds Kibo is below us. The weather shifts often and quickly, however, and we will soon find ourselves enveloped in fleeting clouds, gusts of wind, and pelting snow before gaining back the sun and better visibility.
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R-L Tom Miller and Tom Reveley, both graduate foresters from the University of Idaho.
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Gary Drobnack. Everyone on this stretch of the trail donned gloves and some kind of head gear to stay warm.
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Our view toward the east rim of Kibo. Gilman's Point sits on the crater rim. The Hans Meyer Cave where Pendaely's great-grandfather and Hans Meyer spent the night before making the first successful climb in 1889, sits between us and the rim.
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| Assistant Guide Nestor. |
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| More of our route is visible below us. |
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| The eastern sun is now just breaking the horizon. |
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| Soon we are bathed in light and shadow. |
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| Progress is steady, but slow. Soon the Rabbits will catch up with the Turtles. |
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Looking toward the southeast we see an unearthly pink glow covering the terrain below the clouds. This view encompasses the terrain that the Marangu or Coca-Cola Route follows from Mandara Hut on the southeastern park boundary. That route is typically done in 5 days with only 60% of those attempting that route making the summit. Most fall victim to altitude illness in one form or another.
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| No clouds above or around us at the moment. |
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| Looking toward Kenya to the northeast. |
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| Our angle of ascent is progressively steeper. |
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| This boulder has tumbled and slid from the cliffs above us. |
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| The sky above at the moment is a brilliant blue. |
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| Time for a break. |
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We can start to see the Rabbits coming up behind in the group below us and just left of center.
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| The Rabbits get closer. |
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| We are getting quite close to the crater rim, but still have a ways to go. |
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| Typical rock formations near the rim interspersed with ribbons of talus and scree. |
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| Several kinds of lichen on this boulder. |
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| Assistant guide Deo. |
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| The Turtles pause for a few deep breaths. |
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| Jennifer Gladwell. |
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| Tom Miller. |
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David Still. To keep things lively and to encourage the Turtles during the summit push, David kept a running dialogue going, acting as the radio announcer in a number of exciting, albeit fictional, sporting contests. He called baseball games, football games, and even basketball games in an inspiring and compelling voice. It was motivational speaking in its purest form. By the time he reached the summit and got down to Crater Camp, he could not longer speak and he had a very sore throat.
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| Fascinating rock formations as we get closer to the crater rim. |
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| The Turtles keep plugging away at the route above us. |
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| We have just been overtaken by the Rabbits and their guides and porters. |
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Alicia Chapman is taking photos while the sun is still out. We can start to see the clouds below us rise, but for the moment, we can enjoy the sun and take off our gloves and some other layers.
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| The Rabbits prepare to tackle the steepest pitches that rise above us. |
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| This is the crater rim and we will soon be on top of it. |
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| To our east, the cloud cover has been rising and this is all that is left of our view of Mawenzi Peak for the moment. |
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| The Rabbits are off and tackling the last big slope before gaining the rim. |
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Rabbits to the front and Turtles starting up after them. Once they reach Gilman's Point, the Rabbits will be out of our sight until we are all in Crater Camp together.
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| Head guide Pendaely Lauwo near Hans Meyer Cave. |
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Buildings in the bottom center of this photo are part of the Kibo Hut Camp where we started the day.
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| A telephoto view of Kibo Hut Camp. The clouds above it have lifted momentarily. |
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As we get closer to the rim and Gilman's Point, clouds are starting to gather again and it is getting windier and more chilly.
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Some of the camp porters are now gaining on us. They will go directly to Crater Camp and await the trekkers, guides, and personal porters there.
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| The Turtles have to negotiate a few boulders as we prepare to crest the crater rim. It is starting to get foggy and we can feel bits of frozen snow pelting our parkas. |
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| We are now on the rim and looking toward a patch of snow and ice just below us. |
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| The sign at Gilman's Point announces we are a 18,652 ft. elevation. |
