Mount Kilimanjaro

Right before I left for Tanzania, I had a few moments of fear and doubt about the upcoming climb. There was definitely a "what was I thinking?" - when I started to worry about my health, my fears and the fact that I had pretty much told everyone I knew that I was going to do this.

For starters, I am an asthmatic. And while everything I had read told me that this was fine (and possibly an advantage at high altitudes), I still had a last minute worry that I had bitten off more than I could chew. I had  been training both informally (taking 10 km walks whenever possible) and formally (with a personal trainer three times a week) but at almost 40 years old now, I am certainly not in the best physical shape I have ever been in. I mean, this is a real mountain, not some sorta-challenging, cutesy tourist trek. On top of that, I am afraid of heights. I don't like roller coasters or skiing or driving along cliff sides. So picking a mountain climb for vacation is a pretty stupid idea to begin with. And then I go and tell everybody - blogging, posting on Facebook etc. Yeah, great plan.

That said, by the time we had arrived in Tanzania and enjoyed our week long safari, my fears had left me and I was filled with a surge of excitement to just give it my best shot, and if the mountain should spit me back out (like the roughly 60% of those who attempt it), well so be it.

The following posts will detail my time spent on the Marangu Route. In addition, I will also post some details on practical information related to planning and packing for the trip. I did a ton a research before the trip and have insight as to what worked / didn't work for me, and would love to share it with someone else who might be considering the same journey.