Tanzania

In all of the write-ups, the authors say the last 1,000 meters of Kilimanjaro is the hardest. No surprise really. As the tallest mountain on the African continent, some 19,000 feet above sea level, the thin air takes a toll, particularly on us sea-level dwellers. Time will tell if that actually is the worst part, as the first 9,000 miles is definitely no walk in the park.

The flight from Seattle to Doha, Qatar clocks in a just over 14 hours, which feels like the better part of eternity locked into an aluminum tube. Add another 14 hours stuck in an airport with a creepy, exceptionally teddy bear, and then 8 more hours to travel from Doha to Kilimanjaro. Without a doubt, it is the longest it has taken me to get somewhere and, but the time I finally set my bags down and fall into bed, I feel like I have already climbed a mountain.

[bear pic]

After dragging them across Spain earlier this summer, there aren’t many takers for this adventure, with most of the team opting to enjoy a few relaxing weeks before school starts at home. Fortunately, Nick has never met a dumb idea he doesn’t like, and has joined me after his time in Europe. He’s getting awfully close to starting a life working for the man, so I’m glad to have him along for what could be our last big adventure for a while.

Our base of operations is Moshi, at the base of the mountain just outside the national park. The original plan was to rest here for a few days and just experience Tanzania. Egypt notwithstanding, this is my first time in Africa, so I’m anxious to try the food, meet the people, and just generally experience something new. That plan changed a few days ago when the tour company that we booked our climb through let us know they had a short, 3 day safari heading out the day after our arrival that would get us back in time to start our hike.

A safari is probably THE bucket list item for Efe Bomba (or just F-Bomb now that she is back home in the US), so we debated passing it up, before finally deciding to give it a go and treating it as a trial run for when she can be here. The fact that we’ll be camping instead of staying in lodges helped sway public opinion. For as much as she loves animals, there is no way in hell that she is going to sleep on the ground while they wander around her.

So, on what little rest we can get in our jacked-up time zone state, well be heading out first thing to Lake Manyara, a four hour drive from Moshi and the first of the three parks we’ll be hitting on our express tour.

Let the adventure begin.