We reached Nairobi after midnight, having left Isiolo after 5pm. That was a drive and a half. Our friends the Stegens welcomed us with open arms, fed us royally and gave us beds. Next morning we welcomed the next crew of drivers: Ian, Jason, and Chris, all work colleagues of Andy's from N.I. We all managed to catch the midday shuttle bus to Arusha and by Friday evening had booked into our hotel in Arusha, and were sorting out our stuff for the climb which was due to begin on Saturday. The drive from Arusha to the start of the climb takes a good few hours because you need to visit the main gate in the Kili National Park first to register, then you head for your starting gate. In our case it was on the opposite (north) side of the mountain so we didn't get started until after 3pm on the Saturday. Fortunately it was a short leg.
This photo shows our second last camp on the way up, high on the slopes of Kilimanjaro, next to Mount Mwenzi. Next day we crossed the high saddle plateau to what they call "Base Camp" at Kibo huts. From there we were due to begin the summit ascent at midnight and hopefully reach the summit between 6 and 7am on Thursday morning.
Looks like we made it. We took a day and half to get right back down off the mountain! We said goodbye to our team of guides and porters back in Arusha at our hotel, spent Friday night there, and caught the bus back to Nairobi the next day. Lorraine and I flew out of Nairobi on the Tuesday morning. See the continuing journey on surfingafrica.net
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