JCG Expeditions Kilimanjaro 2010 – All done with 100% success!

Posted on September 18, 2010

So that’s it – the epic 3 weeks is over, the two expeditions have been completed, and a massive well done to all 22 of the guys that made it to the summit of Kilimanjaro!

Team 2 hit the summit on Saturday and out back into Moshi on Sunday. As with team 1 I arranged to have dinner at the Glacier bar and invited all our local team from Ahsante – nearly 20 of them turned up. We had a fantastic evening with lots of dancing and parting until the early hours.

The next morning we all went our different ways but for a large group of us we headed off the airport together destined for Zanzibar, some paradise beaches and some well earned rest!

Kendwa provided exactly what we needed…quiet, beautiful, picture perfect beaches, palm trees and sunsets – and after nearly 3 weeks on the mountain I could finally unwind and turn off my brain for 4 days of pure relaxing J (hense the lake of blog since the summit!)

I’m now back in Stone Town (Zanzibar) and waving good bye to the guys tomorrow before I have one week of travelling on my own before home time.

Overall the past month has been incredible, both expeditions have run perfectly smoothly with only the smallest of problems that were easily resolved. We had good weather on the mountain, a legendary local team lead by Nelson and 22 very happy clients.

As for next year – JCG Expeditions will definitely be returning to Tanzania for more mountain madness on Kilimanjaro in 2011!! So – if you fancy the challenge and the idea of climbing Kilimanjaro please just get in touch – jongupta@hotmail.com and we’ll take it from there!

Thanks again to all the people who sent messages to the Sat Phone and on here – they were amazing. Also for all the support from the friends and families of all the clients – your help really makes a difference.

Until the next adventure…..

Kili – hello from the highest place in Africa!

Posted on September 11, 2010

About 8.am UK time

Well here we all are – yes everybody has made it to the top of this amazing mountain at 5895 above sealevel. The weather is fantastic and the view incredible. Yes we had very tired legs and a few headaches but it was worth it. For many this will have been the biggest life experience so far. Well done to everybody for the huge effort.

We now head back to High camp or a few hours sleep and the back down to Milenium camp. We will be out of the park by tomorrow afternoon – and I guess for some back to work next week! Surreal!

Kili – nearly there!

Posted on September 11, 2010

Well here we all are at High Camp at 46oometres. Today has been a very long day. We are crashing into our tents now [late afternoon Kili time] for a few hours sleep before the big day tomorrow. The team have been doing very well and really excited about the summit attempt to come. Goodnight!

Kili – Here we go!

Posted on September 11, 2010

It is 11pm Kili time and we are getting up all very excited! Having breakfast and hot drinks ready for the big day. We are setting off at about midnight and hopefully should summit tomorrow morning – watch this space!

Kili – nearly there!

Posted on September 11, 2010

Friday 10 September – GB late afternoon

Well here we are all now at High Camp at 4600 metres. Today has been a very long day and we are crashing into our tents for a few hours rest before the big day tomorrow. Team members are doing really well and although very tired are feeling good about the summit attempt tomorrow. All is looking good for getting everybody to the top so we are very hopeful. Goodnight!

Kili Up-Date Thursday 9/9

Posted on September 9, 2010

Sorry for no postings before now! Signal from Sat Phone to Home not brilliant. Contact made today, day 3 of trek  All is well. A very different team from last week but equally as good!

Day 1 – Tuesday

After an ealry around 6.30, we took a bus to Machame Gate.  As last week, we are going up to Machame Route (look at a Kili website for details).  We got our permits, weighed our kit (not to overload the porters!) and we set off. We walked until early afternoon through the Montane forest (jungle). Again, we saw plenty of monkeys. Everyone was really cool as we had started our trek!  We arrived at Machame Camp at 2,900 metres at around 2.30 pm, had cups of tea (plenty of fluid recommended!) and then relaxed. The 25 guides and porters are really good. In the evening we all went for an acclimatisation walk, going up a few hundred metres and then returning down to camp. Before dinner, all the porters came over and we had singing and dancing! This is a highlight with everyone joining in! We all went to bed earlybecasue  everyone was tired!

Day 2 – Wednesday

Room service with hot tea in our tents at 6.00 ready for an early breakfast of porridge and scrambled eggs on toast and more tea/coffee at 7.00. Everyone then packed and we set off around 8. There are several other teams on the mountain, so Nelson, our chief guide, sends a runner off early to bag a good camp site!  Today was a shorter day but a lot steeper and the paths are quite narrow.  But Nelson, our chief guide send a runner off each morning to bag a good camp site! Preferably a quite and secluded and away from the main area.  Today we walked out of the rain forest and into a kind of moorland, with bushes about 10 foot high. Today we had some fantastic views across western side of Kilimanjaro and over towards Mt Meru. We had a hot lunch sitting inside a large tent, so that we were out of the sun.  The food has been excellent and (I think!) everyone is enjoying it. In the afternoon, we carried on up to around 3,900 m before turning and dropping down into (Shira 2) camp at about 2,800 m.  One or two people had a slight headaches, but nothing that water and paracetamol did not cure. Again, after a rest at camp, we went for another acclimatisation walk for about an hour. The sunsets and stars have been the best that anyone on the trek has ever seen!  Just fantastic! Then another sing and dance session rounded off the day!! And again everyone was so tired, off to bed by 8 pm again!

Day 3 – Thursday

Today was planned to be quite a big day, so we were up at 5.30 am with cups of tea. We left early climbing from 2,800 m up to Lava Tower at 4,600.  We had lunch at Lava Tower and rested for about an hour. Then we climbed Lava Tower, about a 100 m scramble. Again, a few who were tired and a few with headaches, but overall everyone was good.  As last week, many of the other groups did not go up Lava Tower.  We are the BEST! In the afternoon, we did a long descent all the way down to Barranco Camp (3,900 m). We made good speed going down and arrived at camp around 4 pm. No extra acclimatisation walk this evening! Everyone was really tired from the walking and, for some, getting used to sleeping in tents.  Everyone is now looking forward to summit day.

Tomorrow – Friday

We have another long day going up High Camp (Barafu Camp). Everyone is looking strong and feeling positive for tomorrow. We should arrive there about 4 pm and then we have to get up at midnight to walk up to the summit so that we arrive on the summit around 7 am.  KEEP SENDING THE MESSAGES!  and thanks for all the messages sent so far.  Your folk really appreciate them!!  So if you want to send any messages before summit day, send them now so that they are received by 5 pm Thursday (3 pm UK time) as we will all be going to bed really early tomorrow! WISH US LUCK!

Ding Ding Ding – Round 2# Kilimanjaro!

Posted on September 7, 2010

Time to go back up the mountain again – with Team 2!

What a whirl wind 36 hours and i’m back at the start! Most of the team arrived on Saturday evening with the rest on Sunday. A few small hiccups – one main bag didn’t not arrive at the airport so after spending the day begging, borrowing, stealing and renting kit it eventually did turned up with the final member of Team 2 on Monday evening! 

Apart from the above, 11/12 had their build up day yesterday with full kit checks, medical discussions, expectations etc etc. Nelson popped in with Anton (Anton was my assistant guide last year) and met the team and said a few things. He unfortunatly mentioned that we would be ‘scrambling’ to which some of the team went a little pale…sadly you only get to use your hands on rock for about 2 minutes during the whole expedition!

Very excited, nervous and anxious but ready for a huge adventure the 11 went off to pack thier kit. The team enjoyed a meal together at the hotel and later in the evening the arrival of our 12^th member and the missing bag! Everything was coming together! (Our 12th member had unfotunatly been delayed in transit and missed her conecting flight to Africa)

So they are all here, all packed, and fully briefed! As I type they are all coming down the stairs of the hotel and about to have breakfast before we head up the mighty Kilimanjaro – 6 days macheme route again. As before – this blog will be getting updates DAILY and we also have a SAT PHONE on the mountain which you can send a message to for the team. (Please seea previous blog about how to do it!)

Wish us luck…

The Team!

Posted on September 5, 2010

Down and dusty & the morning after!

Posted on September 5, 2010

So - we made it! 100% to the summit (10 out of 10) which is fantastic, but not without some enjoying the sensation of altitude and the lack of oxygen! The expedition went really well from start to finish and the team were superb – really positive and encouraging all the way. Everyday held its challenges but they took it in their stride and nothing seemed to put them down.

Summit day was great, clear starry skies and a light breeze to start with, and incredible classic African sunrise and the exhausting 7 hour & 1300m accent to the summit! Our incredible summit crew sang us to the summit, and between the leaders we kept an eye on everyone. At 07:00 Nelson (head guide from Ahsante) radioed me and told me he was on the summit with the first part of my team and at 07:50 the rest of us arrived.

Climbing Kilimanjaro is a huge achievement for everyone and they all thoroughly deserved it. Totally exhausted but successful the team began the long descent down the 1300m slope down to high camp. By 10:45 everyone was back in camp and had crashed out in their tents for some well earned rest/sleep. What a result.

A few hours later and we had a small lunch before packing our kit and heading down hill for 1 ½ hours to Millennium camp. As a team we move very fast downhill and managed this 3 hour trek in only half the time. The next morning, still feeling the effects from the day before re rose early in order to reach the gate before midday – again the team moved like lightening and manage new park record for the fastest descent by a team…in under 3 hours we made it to the gate – even over taking porters!! (and to do that you have to be moving fast!)

A quick nip back to the Ahsante office to collect our belongings, sort out some bits and bobs and of course give the porters/cooks/guides their well earned tips. After another singing and dancing session we said thanks for the all the hard work they had done for us and gave them their tips and some trekking gear. We had managed to collect enough items that all of them (24 in total) could have some clothing as tip also.

Back to the hotel for pizza, shower, shave and clean clothes and out to celebrate for the evening! AND WHAT AN EVENING IT WAS……

THANK YOU for all the message we received on the mountain – they were amazing and really kept the team going. If you want to send a message to team 2 then look down a few blogs to the one of how to send a message to the team! (They start on Tuesday)

 

Summit Day!

Posted on September 3, 2010

100% success! Hooray!! Everyone made it to the top – 5,895 m. Wow! We set off at midnight and 8 of us arrived at 7.30, and two of us at 8. It was a long trek, 8 hours and a climb of 1,300 m. The weather was very good, a really amazing sunrise, with only a little cloud and a 10 kph wind. So everyone is quite tired (understatement!) and all did really well.  The reality of what everyone has achieved will probably set in later today or tomorrow – at present everyone is too tired to fully appreciate what they have managed to achieve!  We are now making our way back down to High Camp (Barafu Camp) for a short (couple of hours) rest / sleep and then back down to tonight’s camp.  So we all have another 8 hours to trek!  Making a very very very long day! – probably the biggest day of many people’s lives!  We are going back down a different route – Mweka Route and staying at Millennium Camp tonight. (Have a look at the Kilimanjaro Routes web site!) Then we should be back in Moshi tomorrow afternoon. Send your messages of congratulations!!

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