What to Wear to Climb Mt. Kilimanjaro | Day 02

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Day 2 journal entry: 

"We left Mandara Hut this morning at 8:30 sharp. This was after a 6:30 hot tea/coffee wake up call, 7:30 breakfast, packing up, filling water bottles, and taking one last leak before hitting the trail. About an hour out of camp, the lush rain forest turned to stiff grass clusters under trees covered with dry moss, and an hour after that, the tree dwindled entirely, replaced by scrubby, chaparral-like vegetation. By this time, Dusty and I had each peed about 6 times and (in retrospect) wastefully hydrated our bodies. We had no idea how hot it was about to get. 

Mid-morning (well before lunch) brought about the first glimpse of Kilimanjaro's gray, trapezoidal peak, Kibo. At the same time we also saw the picturesque sharktooth of Mawenzi, Kibo's neighbor, at about 17,500 feet [actual elevation 16,893 feet]. An excited photo op ensured. By the time the lunch stop was announced, we were starving and tired. 

We slathered on sunscreen and took refuge in some meager shade for lunch at 1:00 pm. By that point, we each had about a liter of water left, having literally guzzled it away all morning. First lesson learned: drink a lot, but not too much. 
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Though the food rejuvenated us, the prospect of only being half-done with with day's work was demoralizing. Imagine our surprise when two short hours later, we crested a hill to see Horombo Huts just 500 meters down the trail. It appears our guides weren't too concerned with exactly dividing our day's hiking distance in half, with lunch in the middle. Turns out lunch occurred 4.5 hours into a 6.5 hour hike. Second lesson learned: take hunger into own hands, and snack on the trail before lunch." 

​Catch up on the story so far by jumping to >>  DAY 1    DAY 2    DAY 3    DAY 4    DAY 5 ...and as always, please don't hesitate to email me ([email protected]) with additional questions. ​

Start location: Mandara Hut 
Start time: 8:30 AM
Start elevation: 8,923 feet (2,720 meters)
End location: Horombo Hut
End elevation: 12,204 feet (3,720 meters)
End time: about 3:00 PM 
Distance hiked: 7.2 miles (11.6 km) 
Weather: clear blue sky, bright sun 
Vegetation: started in forest, gradually transitioned to grassy moorland 
Water consumed: 5+ liters

​​Outfit (pretty much the same as Day 01):

• ​Salomon Women's Quest 4D 2 GTX Hiking Boots
• REI Lightweight Merino Wool Hiking Crew Socks 
• lululemon athletica Wunder Under Pants 
• lululemon athletica Power Y Tank 
• lululemon athletica Run: Swiftly Long Sleeve Tech Shirt 
• lululemon athletica Fast Paced Run Visor
• Oakley Latch Sunglasses

​Meals: 

• 6:30 AM wake up call: hot tea/coffee
• 7:30 AM breakfast at Mandara Hut: porridge, eggs, toast, sausages 
• 1:00 PM bagged lunch on the trail: fried chicken, banana, muffin, biscuits, boxed juice 
• 4:00 PM snack upon arrival to Horombo: popcorn, cookies & choose-your-own-hot drink powders (coffee, tea, Nido, dry milk, sugar) 
• Dinner: hot cucumber soup, beef & vegetable stew, noodles of some sort, more hot tea & coffee 

Contents of my day pack, which I carried: 

• Camera 
• Spare lens 
• Tripod 
• full 1.5 L Camelbak 
• trail snacks (nuts, dried fruit) 
• lunch (provided by guide) 
• North Face rain jacket 
• North Face down puffy jacket 800 fill 
• bandanna 
• cash/passport/phone 
• journal 
• Kindle 
• toiletries bag 
• camera cards/spare batteries 
• full extra 1 L water bottle 
• Gloves & hat 
• Toilet paper 

Contents of my large pack, which a porter carried ahead and delivered to our hut at the end of each hike: 

• REI Joule Sleeping bag 
• Rain pants 
• Wool base layer 
• Polarfleece jacket (rented at base) 
• Huge down puffy parka (rented at base) 
• 2 pair lululemon Wunder Under leggings 
• 2 lululemon Power Y tanks 
• 1 lululemon Run: Swiftly Short Sleeve tech shirt 
• 1 lululemon Run: Swiftly Long Sleeve tech shirt 
• 1 pair lululemon Base Runner Pants 
• Camp shoes
• 3 more pair wool hiking socks 
• Hand warmers (purchased at base) 
• Head lamp 

Our first glimpse of Kilimanjaro's peaks: Kibo on the left, Mawenzi on the right.

Our first glimpse of Horombo Huts, with Kilimanjaro's peak (Kibo) in the background.

Above the sea of clouds.

When you pack a tripod up Kilimanjaro, you have to stop for some cute couple photos.

As the sun set, Kibo cast long shadow over our camp and over the sky. You can see the edge of the shadow here.

The huts at Horombo camp are constructed just like Mandara: little A-frames with 4 small beds inside.

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