KILI MISCELLANEA

Tips for the Trek

1. DRINK PLENTY OF WATER!!! At the Springlands pre-climb briefing they advised us to drink about 4 liters of water per day. Other sources strongly suggest 5-7 liters a day. Based on our experiences, the latter is the desirable amount. Start drinking large quantities of water before you even start the trek for a valuable head start. A hydration pack, properly used, is a valuable asset.

2. If you travel to Kili via Nairobi: arrange in advance to have a private shuttle take you to your Kilimanjaro hotel. It costs more, but is utlimately worth it. You will be avoiding unnecessary stays in Nairobi, delays, crowded public shuttles, etc. This assumes that your outfitter does not provide you with transportation from Nairobi to your Kili hotel as part of your package. We "roughed it" a bit and so had to make arrangements. There was some confusion once we got to Kenya, but it was worth the $340 total we paid for the trip to Moshi. On the return, Nik and I paid for a private shuttle from our hotel in Moshi to Arusha where we caught the Davanu shuttle to Nairobi.The private shuttle was necessary because we had to leave quite early in the morning for Arusha.

3. During our briefing at Springlands Hotel the evening before our climb, we were advised to stop taking malaria medication upon reaching Shira Hut (basically anywhere above the forest level) and told not to resume until after summit night. The reasoning here is that the medication would likely cause problems with acclimatization (and there would not be any mosquitoes to worry about from above Machame Hut until we returned to the forest level at Mweka (main) Hut). None of us had heard this advice before, but we followed through with it. Whether it helped or not remains a source of mild contention.

4. We found much of the food provided for us on the mountain to be rather bland and dull. I brought along a container of spices to which Ianko gave his Royal Bulgarian Seal of Approval. A bottle or two of your favorite condiments and even hot sauce is well worth having on Kili. Whatever perks up the appetite is a valuable asset.

5. Tea is an option at every meal on the mountain. On some trips, the cook brews it for the climbers. We were provided with boiled water and an assortment of instant coffee, tea, and hot chocolate powders. Tea not only contains large doses of caffeine, adding significantly to the insomnia many climbers already enjoy at altitude, but it is also a diuretic. We therefore brought along our own decaffeinated herbal teas. They kept us hydrated (somewhat, in my case), provided warmth, and let us sleep through the night (for the most part—Nik’s tyrannical bladder forced him to get up frequently at night. See the journal for the giggly details.).

6. Bring print film and plenty of it. 400 ASA/ISO is a good speed. Having to figure out exposure settings with slide film will be a problem especially when it's cold (I realize many SLRs do a pretty good job of metering automatically, but the extreme lighting contrasts at high altitude on the equator might well call for manual metering.). It's good to have a point-and-shoot with a good lens on hand (or in pocket) whenever possible. Just remember to use it! Better too many shots than not enough. Digital cameras work, but keep them warm. Lithiums are the only batteries you should use no matter what camera you bring along (digital or film).

7. "Pole pole!" A Swahili phrase you will hear constantly on Kili. It means SLOWLY, SLOWLY!

8. Altitude Medicines: Diamox AKA Acetazolamide. None of us took it. It makes you urinate constantly and it can mask signs of altitude sickness. The other big mountain medications are Decadron (Dexamethasone) and Nifedipine. I took Decadron (a brain steroid) for the first two days as an acclimatization aid per my travel physician's advice. Did it help? I don't know, but I sure didn't have the massive headaches that the Ivanovs wrestled with at night. Gingko Biloba is rapidly gaining respect as an aid to acclimatization. One is supposed to take 120mg twice a day starting at least one week prior to the climb. I started taking a smaller amount a few days before the climb so I can't tell how effective it was. As always, consult your physician.

Gratuities for Porters, Cook, and Guides.

Not mentioned in most guides and tour company brochures are gifts and tips for the porters. Most of the porters are paid negligible amounts and they do rely on tips (U.S. $ preferred) to provide an adequate income. In addition to this we provided European and American cigarettes (and felt no qualms about it as they were tremendously appreciated) and some candy during the early days of the climb, then beers and unwanted gear at the end of the trip. The standard tip structure for Machame Route tours is as follows:

$25-35 per porter, from the entire group

$50 for the cook, from the entire group

$60 for the assistant guide, from the entire group

$80 for the guide, from the entire group

One problem we had planning was that we did not know how many porters would be assigned to our group. Also, in some groups the cook serves as the assistant guide, particularly on summit night. We had both a cook and an assistant guide. Fortunately, all were taken care of. Godi confimed this at the end of the trip.

Here’s what we gave out, in $US:

a. Guide: $120. This is much more than the $80 recommended for the Machame Route, but we felt Godlisten went above and beyond the call of duty by carrying one of my cameras for a few days, taking time to show points of interest, constantly seeing to our general and specific needs, and getting Ianko and Nik to Uhuru and back alive. Plus, we always enjoyed his company.

b. Assistant Guide: $60. Originally we allocated $50 because Prosper was basically just another porter and we only enjoyed his guiding services on Summit Night. In fact, Ianko, Nik and Andrea did not even meet Prosper until they understandably requested an introduction 4 hours before leaving for the summit. He was basically just one of the porters for most of the trip. I tossed in some extra $ on the reasoning that he guided me down to Barafu when I took ill at 18,000 feet.

c. Cook: $50. Basically the recommended amount. While Ali did a fine job and none of us got sick, we did not feel there was service above and beyond the call of duty.

d. Porters: $35 each plus the gifts mentioned above. At Mweka (main) camp, Godlisten lobbied hard for them to receive the outlandish sum of $50 each, however, we stood firm. One problem we had was that we expected perhaps 6 porters, but had 8. There was just enough money budgeted for tips, luckily. The average for the Machame Route is about $25 so we had no regrets. Godlisten informed us later at Mweka Village that the crew was all quite pleased.

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