Looking to do a summit climb next June. Anyone have any experience?

I'm following this....

I was thinking of doing this last year and it didn't work out. Might try and go next year. Looking forward to people thoughts on this.

http://www.ultimatekilimanjaro.com/routes.htm

I did Kili in January of 1999 via the Marangu Route. The climb was beautiful, but if I were to go again, I would not recommend this route. Time-wise, going from 6,000 feet to 19,340 in just 3 1/2 days is way too quick. If you take this path, you also go from 12,205 to 19,340 in just over 24 hours, which is WAY beyond what should be done at such an elevation. Many people, if their schedule allows, take an extra day to acclimate before making the summit. I recall having the worst headache of my life when approaching the Kibo Hut at around 15,000 feet. I had pretty much decided not to go on, and got no sleep at all before the midnight call to prepare for the summit. . At midnight, my headache was gone, and our group of four all made the summit. It was beautiful at the top, and seeing the sun rise from below the clouds over Kenya was amazing. As an aside, my personal feelings are that the safety of traveling in East Africa is significantly worse since I was there. We were there not too long after the embassy bombings in Arusha, and at that point I had no clear idea as to what Islamic terrorism was. Of course, make sure to give yourself enough time to visit Ngorongoro Crater and the Serengeti while in Tanzania (if you do not spend your time in Kenya).

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As an aside, my personal feelings are that the safety of traveling in East Africa is significantly worse since I was there. We were there not too long after the embassy bombings in Arusha, and at that point I had no clear idea as to what Islamic terrorism was.

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OP - I've been in east Africa 3 of the past 4 summers and haven't had any issues or really even bad feelings about safety. If you're in a tour group with guides, you should have no problems at all. The most likely problem would be corrupt cops (we did have a small run in with one just north of Nakuru in June), but even then, my impression is they're not as bad in TZ as in Kenya. Your problems with terrorists start when you leave Nairobi in the direction of Somalia, so as long as you don't go too far northeast, I'd be surprised if you had problems.

If you are worried about safety, or you'd feel more comfortable having a fall back, you can email me at dhorn at aggienetwork. I can give you the contact info of trustworthy American contacts in Arusha, and trustworthy native contacts in Arusha, Moshi, and Nairobi.

I will say also, you should check out Shah's in Moshi for souvenirs ranging from cheap to pricey, and don't go to Arusha Coffee House, it's not worth the money.

I have personally never had any security problems in Africa, but I have always toured with a company. When I did Kilimanjaro, I was single, and I met up with a couple of young ladies who were traveling on their own through Tanzania. They basically showed up in Dar Es Salaam with no agenda and decided to "wing it" on a budget. They hired their guides at the base of Kili and were on our group's path. They took an extra day to acclimate at one of the huts, so I got "out of sync" with them but they were cute and adventurous and I got their contact info for when I got back home.

Long story, only one of the two summited - the other one fell victim to altitude sickness. They got back to base and wanted to take a cab down to a Kilimanjaro hotel. Their guides hooked them up with a cab driver, and not long into the ride, they discovered the driver was drunk and weaving across the lane. He wrecked the car, and both girls briefly lost consciousness. The trunk of the car either opened during the collision or people gathering around the collision opened it. All of their possessions were taken, including their passports and wallets. One girl was taken to the local hospital and was cleaned up a bit and told she was OK, even though she was complaining of significant neck pain. When she finally returned, she saw a physician back home and was diagnosed with a C-2 fracture. In medicine, we call this a "hangman's fracture" - a bit of a misnomer, because the hangman is doing just great, but the hangee has a really big problem.

In a poor country, tourism jobs are very sought-after, and my experience with tour guides is that they really want to earn your trust, provide an enjoyable and safe experience, and earn tips. Pay the extra money to go with a reputable company, one which stands to lose something if tourists have the kind of experience the ladies I met had and word of such gets out.

Pics or none of this happened

I don't have the time, talent, or interest in removing my Kili photos from 1999 (before I started shooting digital) from their albums, scanning them and learning how to share photos on this Forum. Additionally, I have only my memories of phone and email conversations with the young lady who called and wrote me after she returned with her friend to relate their story of leaving Kili and Tanzania.

The reason I posted the story, which you may not believe to be true (that is certainly your perogative), is that I feel strongly that when one is planning a trip to a poor part of the world, where infrastructure, emergency facilities, and police forces are questionable at best, one needs everything stacked in their odds to have a safe experience. The girls who were trying to travel "on the cheap" got lucky in my opinion. Their possessions were easily enough replaced, and the girl who flew from Tanzania to Alberta with an undiagnosed C-2 fracture made it back just fine and accessed care from a neurosurgeon upon her return. Once again, it is nothing but my opinion that having someone who is accountable for your safety is extremely important when traveling in this part of the world. I have traveled to Africa three times for extended vacations, with friends, my spouse, and the last time with my Dad. Carefully planning an itinerary (the reason I posted regarding the route we took up Kili) and having local, accountable, reliable, and knowledgeable contacts in the region has been something I would recommend to anybody planning such a trip.

I love the African continent, and I hope the OP has the chance to take the trip. Cheers.

Agree with Kool about the piks and safety concerns. Before we went up met some Brit physicians whe were on a tour of the Serengeti. Some locals robbed on of their tents. When the yelled and gave chase one of the theifs turned and shot one of the Brits in the leg. The Docs went to 4 hospitals before they found one acceptable. Things turned out fine and the others finished Kili while he went home.
Africa is a magnificent continent to see but as a 3rd world there are problems. Did see quite a few horrific car accidents.
I would go back in a heartbeat and presently trying to put a trip together overland and boat to Victoria Falls.
Kili is great. Brit friend of mine had done it 5 times with the last one camping in the crater.
Advice is do not do the Marangu route, Contact Marangu hotel and let them do your booking that way you are away from Arusha and save lots of money.

Agree completely. Maybe I can clarify what I said above:

I'd be surprised by any major safety problems you encounter in the Kilimanjaro area, IF AND ONLY IF you plan properly and are accompanied by trusted local guides. I would never, ever, ever go to east Africa 1) alone, or 2) without a trusted local guide, except possibly in one or two popular downtown urban areas. Even then, I would never go to Nairobi or Dar alone if I was female under any circumstance.

My company (SWS Mountain Guides) guides Kili as private trips. Do it in no less than 7 days. All the local guides will tell you that it can be done in way less but there are a LOT of altitude related fatalities on that mountain. The Tanzanian gov. wont allow the statistics to be published but we believe it to be around 40 deaths a year. For comparison Everest avg about 8 a year.

I suggest the Rongue route but which ever route you do take your time and enjoy it. Also, afterwards I suggest doing the Ngorogro Crater safari

Read it is about 75% success. We had 7 Aussie and Brit. With 2 having to turn back.
We did do the Rongue route as well.

I've wanted to do Kilimanjaro for while now. I did Annapurna Base camp with absolutely no training and loved it. I'm trying to convince my wife to get into shape to do Kili. I'm not sure that I will be able to convince her though. We will see. Thanks for the information though.

In

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All the local guides will tell you that it can be done in way less but there are a LOT of altitude related fatalities on that mountain. The Tanzanian gov. wont allow the statistics to be published but we believe it to be around 40 deaths a year.

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That is astounding. Do you think it's because the average Joe thinks, "Hey, it's only 19k, anyone can do that!" and then tries to ascend? Is it the client or the speed of the ascent and lack of acclimation, or both? I know I'm not in the best shape of my life and I'd love to go at it. Unfortunately, I have a heart condition and extreme physical stress in a low oxygen environment would probably make me a statistic too. It's a damn shame, that was on my near term list of adventures.

I would definitely not recommend Kili to anyone with cardiac problems. I am a physician and I had the luxury of taking acetazolamide and prednisone, among other meds, on the trip for myself and for my climbing partners. Perhaps I wouldn't have been able to make the summit without them. I was also 33 and in pretty good shape at the time, even though your propensity to altitude sickness is surprisingly poorly correlated with your level of fitness. We all had varying degrees of altitude sickness at various points along the climb, anything from nausea to intense headache. No medical literature would ever recommend starting at 6,000 feet above sea level and then climbing 13,000 feet in 2 1/2 days as we did on the Marangu route, the technically easiest and most common route.
If you want a great, memorable hike with much more beautiful scenery, take my advice and do the ****ord Track on New Zealand's South Island

Yeah, mountain climbing and drinking were the first things to be crossed off my list. along with weight lifting, running, hookers, blow, etc...

But at least I can still go on safari and look at Kili from afar.

I am not a cardiologist, and I did not sleep at a Holiday Inn Express last night. Nor have I done a PubMed search on the topic. But I do distinctly recall being taught in Med school that it was common for French cardiologists to instruct their post-MI patients to delay relations with their wives for X number of days but delay X + Y number of days for their mistresses. So you may be onto something there with the self-imposed hooker ban. Hope your heart gets better.

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All the local guides will tell you that it can be done in way less but there are a LOT of altitude related fatalities on that mountain. The Tanzanian gov. wont allow the statistics to be published but we believe it to be around 40 deaths a year.

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That is astounding. Do you think it's because the average Joe thinks, "Hey, it's only 19k, anyone can do that!" and then tries to ascend? Is it the client or the speed of the ascent and lack of acclimation, or both? I know I'm not in the best shape of my life and I'd love to go at it. Unfortunately, I have a heart condition and extreme physical stress in a low oxygen environment would probably make me a statistic too. It's a damn shame, that was on my near term list of adventures.

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It just comes down to the fact that you have to acclimatize properly. Most of the local guide service know nothing of the physiology of acclimatization. Going to fast at that altitude (in reality that pressure) will make you sick and limit your bodies ability to perform. Compounding the problem is our fast pace society and limited vacation time drives people to want to climb the mountain as fast as possible.

What type of heart condition do you have?

If you do decide to go to altitude I would consult with one of the following:
Peter Hackett, MD
[url=info@tahoewildernessmedicine.com]Alan Oram DO[/url]
or
Emily Sagalyn MD emily.sagalyn"at"gmail

Those are three of the top altitude/mountian climbing physicians in the world. Peter being perhaps the top. Tim Heinborn (second American to summit Everest) is probably the best but I think he is retired.

Unfortunately, I already know what they'd tell me. I have DCM and LBBB. Right now I'm just happy to be walking upright!