Before even knowing that Rob existed, I had signed up for an expedition to climb Africa’s highest mountain as part of a fundraising activity for a local branch of the SPCA.  During our long distance emails, I told Rob about it and he thought to himself, wow, this would be a great accomplishment for his life CV and decided to sign up with me.  I have to admit that I had my reservations about us doing something so challenging so early on in our budding romance.  Those of you who thought travelling internationally together, or camping together, are challenges on their own, put those two together and add a 5895m high mountain to the equation.  Talk about a serious relationship test!  Tent mates we were to be, so we would find out very early on who would be the snorer and who would be the farter.  2 September 2013 dawned and we left Johannesburg, bound for Tanzania with 23 other animal enthusiasts.  After a couple of hours travel time we arrived at Kilimanjaro International Airport, only to find that half of our bags were still sitting in Nairobi because there wasn’t enough space in the baggage hold of the plane.  The advice of “wear your hiking boots on the plane” rang very true in this situation.  “Not to worry,” we were told by Sean Disney, our expedition leader, “this happens all the time.  Your bags will arrive on the next flight and you’ll have your stuff in the morning.”  Luckily his experience proved right and we were able to set off for the park gate after only a few hours delay.  Our hike started well, and by 17h00 had reached Camp One for the night, at an altitude of over 2000m above sea level.

Nights on the mountain were restless affairs.  We were both taking Diamox to help with altitude sickness, and one of the side effects is frequent urination.  Although this only seemed to affect me (Rob didn’t experience a single side effect, not from Diamox, nor from the altitude itself).  So this meant me having to dig around my kit for my head torch (because despite you putting it in what you think is an accessible place you can still never find it when you need it), wiggle my way out of a warm sleeping bag, try and get some shoes on, unzip the tent and stumble my way to the toilet tent (toilet being generous to describe a bucket with a toilet seat placed on it), stumbling back trying to find the right tent, and then trying to get warm again, only to repeat the process at least another two to three times before morning.  And man was it cold, and it would only get colder as we climbed higher.

Washing every morning was done with a bowlful of treated water, enough to wash face, underarms, and girl and boy parts.  So you can imagine the bliss of a hot shower once reaching the hotel after 5 dirty days on the mountain.  Two washes later and the water going down the drain was still brown!

Day Two we set off and headed further up the mountain, walking at a very slow pace as to allow us to acclimatize faster.  So we had plenty time to stop, take pictures, soak up the scenery and whenever Uhuru Peak was in view, take a moment to think about the enormity of what we were undertaking.  Our route wasn’t direct and we headed away from the summit base camp and took a more circular trail to give us more time on the mountain.  At this stage we had already climbed above the cloud level.  This day was a relatively long one walking wise, trekking the entire morning with a couple of rest stops, having a long lunch break on the trail, and then walking into the late afternoon before reaching camp.  Throughout the day (and this occurred every day for that matter) we were constantly on the lookout for our train of porters.  We were extremely lucky to have a whole team who carried our main kit bags, as well as our tents, sleeping mats, mess tent and food supplies, so by the time we arrived at camp each evening (and sometimes our lunch stop) everything was set up and waiting for us.  Every day we had warm breakfasts, lunches and dinners with great snacks on the table while we waited as well as hot coffee, tea and Milo.  These little creature comforts helped make the experience so memorable.  Our porters were a really special bunch.  Aside from carrying our gear, these young (and sometimes old) men would also be hauling their own kit with them, each carrying a load of up to 15kg, but the pace at which they walked with their loads would put most fitness enthusiasts to shame.  As we wandered up the trails, you would hear a freight train of footsteps pounding the dirt behind you, with calls of “PORTERS, PORTERS”, and a group of 10 to 15 porters came steaming past you, not once breaking their stride and they were able to shout a greeting of “JAMBO”.  They weren’t even out of breath while here the rest of us were panting our way up the mountain.

Over and above this, our head porter Edwin was tasked with carrying the SPCA mascot, Tanzanite so the entire journey he had a furry stuffed dog in his arms (and he was 65 years old at the time!).

The highlight of Day Two would be one of Rob’s comments.  We were in the tent setting up our mats and sleeping bags, and I mentioned my back was feeling a bit sore so Rob offered to rub an anti-inflammatory cream on it.  At the time I was busy blowing up my sleeping mat, and without blinking an eye, Rob said: “Once you’re finished blowing, I’ll do you”.  I think any one walking past our tent would have been bowled over and given us a wide berth that night, but the comment was made in pure innocence!  Night Two’s camp was set up on a gentle slope overlooking a local town, with darkness bringing spectacular stars in the sky and blinking town lights on the horizon, something to appreciate on my numerous pee trips!  Day Three we headed to the blown out crater of another extinct volcano.  Although only a short morning hike, we enjoyed lunch at Day Three camp, had a short rest in our tents then headed out for an afternoon acclimatization hike.  At this stage we were already above 3000m and a few climbers had begun to experience mild signs of altitude sickness, with a few headaches and feelings of nausea reported.  Here we trekked up the side of the crater, and spent about an hour at an altitude of above 4000m to help us get used to the thinner air.  Down we came, with a few stumbles on the loose gravel, enjoyed an early dinner and hit the sleeping bags.

Day Four was considered to be an easy day, as we trekked over the crater edge and across the “flat” saddle of the mountain to base camp.  All I can say is that this was probably my worst day on the mountain.  Although the trail was relatively flat, you still encountered a very gradual slope as you made your way along the path.  Being an alpine desert, you could see your camp for the night miles ahead of you, but as you slogged along, the camp just didn’t seem to get any closer.  Added to this we were walking into an icy headwind, all of which made the going that much tougher.  Reaching camp late that afternoon, I literally cried as I waited in line to sign the register.  Worst of all, looking up we could see the ascent we had to make the next day, and it was monstrous compared to the flat walk we had just done.  At this point I had some serious doubts about my capabilities, and this is when Rob stepped in for an intimate pep talk in our tent. Everybody’s bodies were taking strain now at this altitude (base camp is over 4000m above sea level).  For example, we all measured our oxygen saturation on the start of Day Two to get a baseline reading.  My initial reading was 97% with a resting heart rate of 60 beats per minute, which is pretty normal.  On the eve of our summit attempt, my oxygen saturation was 72% with a resting heart rate of 120 beats per minute.  After sharing this with a paramedic friend upon our return, he told me if we were in normal circumstances, those kinds of readings would call for immediate assisted breathing on a ventilator!

Summit morning dawned dark and very early, 01h00 to be exact when we set off for the summit, wrapped in at least seven layers, head torches only illuminating the path three meters ahead of you.  This was probably a good thing because if you could see what you were up against, your mind would completely work against you.

We were lucky to have a guide, Daniel, who took a liking to us, and he latched himself to me from day dot and stayed by my side the whole journey.  It was between Daniel, who eventually took my pack to ease the load on my back, and Rob, who behind me was constantly encouraging me, who got me up that ascent.  On and on we climbed in the darkness, feeling we were making no progress walking on loose shale, so each step forward felt like we were slipping the same distance back.  Every now and then we would stop for a quick rest, not too long or else we would start to freeze (we had a recorded temperature of -13 degrees Celsius with added wind chill that day).  I was so tired and cold I couldn’t even unscrew my water bottle for a drink, Rob was the one who took off his gloves to help me.  One of the most amazing moments though was stopping to watch the sun rise over the clouds, and it was a huge morale booster to one, see how far up we had actually climbed in the darkness, and two, hear my pal Rene shouting down encouragement from the ledge just above me (we had fallen off the main group in the darkness because I couldn’t keep pace).  Upon reaching the crater ledge, it was a huge sigh of relief as at this point we knew the real hard part was over.  Our guide, Sean, told us in the briefing the evening before that if we managed to reach Gillman’s Point on the crater edge, we must not give up, the rest of the climb was flattish along the rim to Uhuru Peak, and he and his team of guides would make every effort to get us to the summit.  With those words reverberating in my ears, I bucked myself up, literally said to Rob, “Let’s do this because I’m not paying any more money to do this shit again”.  That got some laughter out of both of us, and we headed off again knowing that the goal was in sight.

Yes, the crater rim is the “easy” part of summit day, but you were still walking uphill, and it took us a good few hours to walk that last kilometre, with us eventually catching up to another small group of climbers who had fallen off the main pack.  What was wonderful is that we were seeing some of our group who had already made the summit and were heading back to camp.  Seeing their joy and hearing their encouragement was enough to push through the pain to get to the summit.  We were so close!

And next minute we were there, next to the sign proclaiming we were on the peak of Africa’s highest mountain, with many hugs and kisses going around.  It was a really special moment for Rob to build a small shrine behind the summit sign, under which he placed a photo of his late father.  We wonder if it is still there today.  Photos taken, and 20 minutes later we were already making our way back to camp.  With all the excitement of reaching your target, and now you realize it’s literally “all downhill from here” we set off quickly, only to realize after 100m that we were still extremely high and therefore still had to stop every now and then to catch our breaths.  The really fun part is when reaching Gillman’s Point again, Daniel took my hand and literally ran me down the sandy shale part of the slope.  Rob got such a fright behind me, seeing me take off like a bat out of hell that he came screaming down with us.  It was like we were kids on vacation running down a sand dune!  And it felt like we were going to the beach because with every step we took down, the air got thicker and the temperature got warmer so we could start shedding our layers.  Eventually we got to camp and could enjoy a well deserved rest and warm lunch.  All in all, it took us about eight hours to walk a total distance of about 4km from base camp to the summit, climbing over 1000m in altitude over this distance.  Conversely it only took us about two and a half hours to come back down!  Wait a minute, you may say, tell us more about the summit.  Well the sad part of the whole thing is that we were so tired upon reaching it, the weather started turning foul with cloud moving in, and it’s dangerous to spend more than half an hour up there without supplemental oxygen, that we only really took in the magnitude of our accomplishment that night, after the day was over.  But take note that that night’s camp was not at the base of the mountain where we had spent the previous night.  After reaching base camp round lunch time, we had a short rest then had to walk an additional 10km to another camp a little bit lower in altitude.  Needless to say we were absolutely exhausted when reaching camp.  In the tent, struggling to set up our mats, I realized that we were slap bang on a bunch of rocks which would be digging into our backs and hips while we slept.  Great, I thought, another restless night after a seriously long day.  But as mentioned we were so exhausted, when we woke up the following morning, Rob asked me if I had felt the rock.  “What rock?” was my reply!  For the first time, I slept through the night, not even needing to get up to go to the loo!

Our last day started with much celebration.  After breakfast it was the guide and porter payment ceremony and again photo opportunities with the men who helped us through it all.  This day’s hike was probably the best in terms of scenery.

We didn’t use the same route down so our path took us through natural rainforest and we were fortunate to encounter a Colobus monkey sitting right on the edge of the trail.  It was a long slog to the park gate, walking 25km from camp to gate.  By the time we reached the Land Rovers taking us back to the hotel our legs were in serious pain, and after a cramped car ride, we could hardly walk from stiffness!  After a wonderfully hot shower (with soap!) all enjoyed a well deserved beer before a delicious barbequed dinner.  It was an early night for most of us since we were flying back home to South Africa early the next morning.

All in all I describe the Kilimanjaro adventure as one of the best, worst experiences of my life.  We both say it’s an experience of a lifetime, but never to be repeated.  I am so proud of myself for having accomplished one of my life’s goals, and ecstatic that in the process met and cemented the foundations of mine and Rob’s relationship.  We were forced to learn things about our personalities very quickly, and in stressful circumstances, and were able to get through it unscathed.  I learnt that I will cry if put in extreme circumstances which are completely unfamiliar and uncomfortable.  Rob was completely blown away with the fact he travelled from sea-level to an altitude of 5895m within the space of a couple of days, and had no effects of altitude sickness.  In fact, Rob was an anomaly compared to the rest of the group.  He walked in tracksuit pants most of the time, not fancy wet weather gear like the rest of us.  His water bottles didn’t freeze like everybody else’s despite our bottles being insulated.  His chocolate snacks stayed gooey when mine were as hard as rocks.  He even wanted to walk the first few days in flip-flops, but received an emphatic NO from Sean on that one!  I discovered that in Rob I had found an incredibly supportive and motivated individual who would literally and figuratively push me up any rock that was in my way.  And as to the snoring and farting, well, we were both so tired at the end of every day that we didn’t find this out until much later in our travels, and no, I’m not sharing!