CLIMBING THE PEAK OF FREEDOM – MT. KILIMANJARO

by Somprom Svinos (Australia)

I didn't expect to find Tanzania

After what felt like an eternity, I finally lifted my head and gazed around, and saw only whiteness - a frozen world where time had trickled to a halt. My breathing expelled in a smoky cloud, harsh even to my own ears, my heart beat thumped wildly through my veins, fighting with the oxygen deficient atmosphere found nearly 6000 metres above the ocean. Overwhelming feelings collided and surfaced through my exhaustion – wonder, veneration, self-belief, fellowship – and many other emotions hard to name or even to identify. Ones I certainly did not expect to find on this journey..... To start at the beginning of this tale, I need to back track 4 days to where this journey commenced with a bumpy ride over a dirt track. Our group of 10 travel industry professionals from Australia were gathering at the base of Kilimanjaro to begin our trek, one that had been in the planning for 10 months. After a briefing from our local team leader and some medical advice, we proceeded in single file through the temperate rain forest along the Rongai Route, a lesser known track on the northern side of the mountain, which has retained a sense of unspoilt wilderness. Spirits within our group were high, laughter and joking interspersed with music and singing. Continually hurrying past us were our team of 40 porters and guides, loaded with packs, tents, food and baggage, who enabled us to have hot meals ready on arrival at camp sites and our tents and toilets set up at the end of each long, exhausting day. Our mountain crew were truly the most amazing, and awe-inspiring people – those individuals who make for such memorable travelling experiences and who are truly invaluable on these journeys. Simply put, this trek would have been impossible to achieve without their help and positive energy. As each day that followed dawned, we ascended through varying landscapes, each one becoming less vegetated, more open and exposed. Temperatures dropped and wind and rain became prominent elements in each day’s walk. The challenges of the track began to affect the group’s emotional state of mind – we had all become quieter as our bodies worked harder, and concentrated more on secure footing as the track quality diminished. Breathing became difficult and the effects of altitude began to take its toll. Headaches, some nausea, breathlessness, lack of appetite and difficulty sleeping. The situation had become decidedly tougher. Finally, summit night arrived. It was midnight and a full moon reflected over the valley below us. The mountain loomed above us, disappearing in the low cloud. I was nervous of failure, of coming so far and being unable to complete the summit, as over one third of climbers attempting the climb don’t finish it. But overwhelmingly I just wanted to get moving. Every expedition begins with that first step and I was frustratingly eager to commence mine. After all, this was the culmination of so much planning, watching you-tube videos, and reading travel blogs. It was time. The following five and a half hours became lost in a blur of pain and cold. We shuffled up the rock-strewn slope, which soon became so steep and arduous we were forced to rest every half hour. Group members began to succumb to the altitude – nausea and vomiting, tears and mumbled complaints. In the midst were our guides, urging us forward, encouraging those on the brink of giving up, telling us it wasn’t long to go, even though we knew by craning our necks high above us to the flickering lights of other climbers ahead that we still had so far to climb. At this point it became sheer will power that drove us forward; heading down simply wasn’t an option. A blizzard had hit the summit and we were in the middle of it. Yet, despite the deteriorating conditions, I took that final step and lifted my head. We’d made it, and the emotion swept over me as I saw my companions collapsing with relief, crying tears of joy and agony, embracing each other. We had achieved our arduous goal and had reached the Roof of Africa!